Current Events and Politics

Overwhelming majority of clergy reported feeling a sense of hope following disaffiliation

88% of clergy surveyed were hopeful about the United Methodist Church’s future, even as 55% disclosed losing one or more friendships with congregants or clergy because of the schism.

Read our research summary

Resources

Love Thy Neighbor with Loving Kindness

Loving Kindness Meditation is an effective tool for building compassion during times of stress. In this resource, we share stories from clergy who have used this meditation practice to care for their own health, while caring for others.

Loved and Cared For: A Handy Guide for P/SPRCs Who Want to Support Their Pastor Well

This guide is intended to help P/SPRCs engage in practices which support their pastor feeling loved and cared for. The ideas in this guide can be explored in more detail as a committee through the resource Keeping the Faith.

Keeping the Faith: Conversations to Strengthen the Bond Between Pastors and Church Leaders

Addressing tough topics is essential for healthy churches & pastors. This guide offers tools to help P/SPRC committees and their pastors come together for difficult conversations and offers skills needed to live together in healthy community.

Pastor & Parish: A Learning Resource for Staff/Pastor-Parish Relations Committees

Combining videos, workbook content, guided discussion and complementary readings, this six-session series for United Methodist staff-parish relations committees offers guidance on how to create a covenant to guide their work as a ministry.

Research Summaries

Mental Health Profiles Help Clergy Assess Their Own Flourishing

Drawing on survey data from over 1,200 North Carolina United Methodist clergy, we identified four profiles of positive and negative mental health symptoms and determined how those profiles changed during the intense stress period of COVID-19.

Hope After Division

The past few years have been challenging yet hopeful for clergy in North Carolina's United Methodist Church, who have navigated significant cultural shifts. Read interesting findings based on the 2023 Clergy Health Initiative Survey.

Key Findings from Our Disaffiliation Report

Based on NC-UMC clergy’s assessments of their own congregations, 57% of churches remaining after disaffiliation were purple, 25% were red, and 18% were blue. Read up on other key findings from our 2024 report in this summary.

Reports & Briefs

Witnessing the Wounds: BIPOC Clergy in the United Methodist Church Reflect on Their Callings, Careers, and Pastoral Experiences

Amid clergy burnout and civil unrest, a group of seventeen Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) clergy were asked questions regarding their call stories, ordination experiences, and careers in the North Carolina United Methodist Church.

Disaffiliation from the United Church Methodist in North Carolina: Challenges and Opportunities

With partisan conflict at an all-time high, this report suggests a timely opportunity for the denomination to embrace its “Big Tent” roots and seed communities where plurality without division can thrive.

Impact Report: Resourcing Today's Clergy & Church for Resilience

As a tangible thank you to our research participants, we created an impact report that details how we’ve been translating our research into resources that can serve clergy and seminarians.

Journal Articles

2023
Johnston, E.F., Eagle, D.E., & Headley, J. (2023). “Pastoring in a Pandemic: Sources and Types of Social Support Used by United Methodist Clergy in the Early Period of the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Journal of Psychology and Theology. https://doi.org/10.1177/00916471231182737

2021
Eagle, D.E., Johnston E.F., Headley, J., & Holleman, A. (2021). “The financial impacts of COVID-19 on United Methodist Churches in North Carolina: A qualitative study of pastors’ perspectives and strategies.” Review of Religious Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13644-021-00474-x

Johnston, E.F., Eagle, D.E., Headley, J., & Holleman, A. (2021). “Pastoral ministry in unsettled times: A qualitative study of the experiences of clergy during the COVID-19 pandemic.” Review of Religious Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13644-021-00465-y