Are you curious about the faith journeys of young adults? Join us for a series of conversations featuring ministers, researchers, and students. Over the course of the day, we consider a range of topics related to young adults and Christian faith: factors shaping affiliation with faith, the experience of working with young adults in ministry contexts, and research into the spiritual lives of college freshmen. This pathway concludes with a collaborative session on young adults’ faith formation and race, hosted in partnership with the Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Joy: Seeking Racial Unity and Justice pathway.

Hosted by John Boyles and Amanda Pittman, this pathway took place in ACU’s Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building on Monday, September 16, 2019.

Sessions

Fresh Takes on College Freshmen (Amanda Pittman, John Boyles)

Join Amanda and John for an interactive presentation based on two years of research into the spiritual lives of freshmen on a Christian university campus. Topics include participation in Christian practices, knowledge of the Bible, approaches to reading the Bible, and strength of connection to God and the Christian community.

A Crisis of Faith Among Our Youth? Disaffiliation Among Emerging Adults in Christianity (Suzie Macaluso, Lynette Sharp Penya)

Join expert researchers as they walk through current research on disaffiliation patterns of emerging adults who have left Churches of Christ. Their research considers topics like reasons for disaffiliation, patterns of disaffiliation, and setting up contexts – both historical and contemporary – that provide some explanation for these results.

Tales From the Front Lines: Ministry Among Emerging Adults Today (Darren Hagood, Gloria Hagood, Holly Racca, George Galindo)

Listen in on this roundtable discussion as ministers reflect on their ministries. What characterizes the faith of the students with whom they work? What distinct challenges and experiences do students bring to their Christian faith? What is it like to walk alongside, both in teaching and learning from, this particular population in today’s church? This session was not recorded.

Racial Healing and Young Adult Spiritual Formation (LJ Brodie, Gema Perez, Takuma Tsuneki, Jackson Womack)

Offered in collaboration with the Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Joy pathway, this session draws on the experiences of four young adults to explore challenges and opportunities for faith leaders who seek racial healing and spiritual formation. Participants respond to questions about their personal experience with racial division in a religious context. At the speakers’ request, this session was not recorded.

What Should We Do? Best Practices for Racial Justice, Healing, and Unity (speakers from the Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Joy pathway)

Offered in collaboration with the Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Joy pathway, this concluding session features a roundtable discussion between the panelists and special guest Douglas A. Foster, as well as Q&A time. What are we already doing and what more can we do to overcome the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities we learned about in prior sessions?

Speakers

JOHN BOYLES

John Boyles is an assistant professor in the Department of Bible, Missions, and Ministry and a member of the Highland Church of Christ in Abilene. His current research focuses on the social history of the ancient Mediterranean as it can inform the study of the New Testament, especially the lived experience in groups and associations. He teaches courses in biblical interpretation and biblical languages. He and his wife Lauren came to Abilene in 2016.

LJ BRODIE

LJ Brodie is a junior musical theatre and dance major from Mesquite, Texas. He has been in productions in Abilene such as West Side Story, short films like The Brotherhood, and dance shows such as Struggle to Strength with Sanctify Hip Hop Co. When he’s not on stage, he is either listening to music, planning trips, or enjoying the beauty of nature.

GEORGE GALLINDO

George Gallindo is a recent ACU graduate and current youth minister at New Beginnings Church in Houston, Texas. He loves working with teenagers and loves beating them in competitions even more. His favorite part of youth ministry is seeing God work through his teens. He resides in Houston with his beautiful wife Stephanie and his two crazy dogs.

DARREN HAGOOD

Darren Hagood recently completed his Master of Divinity degree with ACU’s Graduate School of Theology, and he is the lead pastor for Long Beach Church of Christ in Long Beach, California. Darren is also a rap artist and uses his academic work as fodder for his musical content. Darren is married to Gloria Hagood, who is also a recent graduate.

GLORIA HAGOOD

Gloria Hagood is a Master of Divinity graduate at Abilene Christian University and a member of Long Beach Church of Christ. Much of her graduate work was spent exploring how Deutero-Isaiah’s view of Yahweh’s universal dominion in justice and righteousness speaks to the contemporary theological challenges arising from mass incarceration. She enjoys learning about how Christianity and the African American culture intersect. She spent past summers working with low-income youth through the Summer Blaze Wellness Camp with the hopes of allowing her academic work to be realized practically. She is married to Darren Hagood.

SUZIE MACALUSO

Suzie Macaluso did her undergraduate degree in sociology, psychology, and Bible at Cascade College and her Master of Science, graduate certificate in survey research, and Ph.D. in sociology at Purdue University. She came to ACU in 2011 and is currently an associate professor of sociology and the director of the Pruett Gerontology Center at ACU. Suzie is an active member at Minter Lane Church of Christ, where she regularly teaches children and adult Bible classes. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, cheering on ACU sports, and traveling.

LYNETTE SHARP PENYA

Lynette Sharp Penya is the chair of the Department of Communication and Sociology and professor of communication at Abilene Christian University. Her teaching and research interests include crisis communication, persuasion and social influence, and gender and religion. She earned degrees in communication from the University of Kansas (Ph.D.), the University of Illinois (M.A.), and Abilene Christian University (B.A.).

GEMA PÉREZ

Gema Pérez will receive her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, with a concentration in graphic design, in May 2020. Gema is a Xicana (Mexican American who embraces her ‘mexicanidad’), and a first-generation college student who is determined to promote her passion for her culture, diversity, all things empowerment, and unity through the power of art and design.

AMANDA PITTMAN

Amanda Pittman is an assistant professor of Bible and ministry at Abilene Christian University. Her overlapping research interests—the formation of scriptural imagination, Luke-Acts, and Christian formation in congregational contexts—all coalesce around one central question: how are communities formed as disciples in the encounter between bodies and Bibles? With a Th.D. in Christian education and New Testament from Duke, she teaches both general education and upper-level courses in those areas. She lives in Abilene, Texas, with her husband and young son, where she worships and serves with the Minter Lane Church of Christ.

HOLLY RACCA

Holly Racca is the middle school student minister at Southern Hills Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas. She attended Abilene Christian University, graduating in 2013 with a degree in children and family ministry. Since graduating she has been at Southern Hills spending her days working with and for teenagers and their families. She is passionate about helping students experience grace and find a place to belong in a faith community. Holly is married to Wes and they have one son, Henry.

TAKUMA TSUNEKI

Takuma Tsuneki is a junior studying English with a Bible minor. He has served as the chaplain for ACU’s International Student Association (ISA) and enjoys worshipping with people from a variety of backgrounds. Though he was born in Japan, Takuma lived in the U.S. for several years as a child, and he hopes to use this experience and the variety of other experiences he has had of various international cultures to serve God and the church.

JACKSON WOMACK

Jackson Womack is a junior fine arts major and a graphic design minor, with a concentration in painting. Jackson has been heavily involved in the Office of Multicultural Affairs’ events and was the president of Voice during the 2018-2019 school year. His mission here at ACU is to help support, educate, and inspire through kindness, clarity, and respect. Born in La Gomera, Guatemala, Jackson was adopted and raised in the States but always remembers his roots and does what he can to support and reach out to other minority students on campus, treating them with the love God calls us all to show each other.