Clergy & Religion Research Collaborative

The Duke Clergy & Religion Collaborative

The Duke Clergy & Religion Research Collaborative is a partnership of the Duke Clergy Health Initiative (CHI) and the Duke Religion and Social Change Lab (RaSCL). We share data to develop fresh insights, smart conversations, and grounded resources that support the diverse needs of clergy and faith leaders across lifespans and shifting cultural landscapes.

Making research matter - because you matter.

Clergy Health Initiative

Ministry is a complex profession – full of purpose and meaning. However, the challenges of ministry, combined with the need to prioritize their sacred calling, can prevent pastors from tending to their own well-being. We believe congregations and communities flourish when pastors have permission and tools to foster their physical, emotional, and spiritual health. To that end, we identify, test, and promote evidence-based practices to support the well-being of clergy.

Religion & Social Change Lab 

The United States is undergoing profound religious change. We believe churches, seminaries, denominations, and allied organizations that understand the impacts of these cultural shifts will be better able to adapt and thrive in the future. To that end, we use the tools of social science to deepen understanding, spark conversations, and develop resources on the training and formation of faith leaders and communities who contribute to the common good.

Fresh Insights. Smart Conversations. Grounded Resources.

Using data-informed insights, we help clergy, seminaries, and religious leaders gain perspective, thrive amidst stress, and evolve and adapt with cultural change. 

We offer evidence-based recommendations for clergy well-being, academic programming for ministerial formation, and broader conversations about the future of theological education. 

 

Our resources provide practical strategies for building resilience, cultivating community, and engaging in God's work with renewed creativity and insight. 

For more information about our  offerings, please contact us.

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Insights & Resources

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Featured Research

After a historic exodus of conservative pastors and congregations, remaining churches in the North Carolina United Methodist Church (UMC) have become more rather than less politically diverse, according to a new report from the Duke Religion and Social Change Lab.

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Featured Resource

Based on NC-UMC clergy’s assessments of their own congregations, 59% of churches remaining after disaffiliation were purple, 25% were red, and 18% were blue. Read up on other key findings from our 2024 disaffiliation report in this research summary.

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Featured Story

United Methodists will again debate LGBTQ clergy and same-sex weddings at General Conference. In this interview with NPR, Director of the Religion and Social Change Lab David Eagle discusses the politically and theologically divided landscape. 

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News

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