Christianity is in decline in the United States today, and so many changes are occurring in our culture as well. However, researchers are at work seeking to learn about what is happening in Churches of Christ. In this Intersection webinar, Dr. Suzie Macaluso will give an overview of cultural and sociological trends as well as tell us about a new research group—the Church Research Council—that is forming to learn about congregations in Churches of Christ in terms of demographics, practices, and other sociological factors. She will also share what they hope to learn and how that will be helpful for thriving congregations!

Intersection: Where Theology and Practice Meet is a series of focused, online conversations hosted by Randy Harris and Carson Reed. Drawing wisdom from special guests and inspiration from timely topics, we create space for collegial learning, reflection, and ministerial action.

Dr. Suzie Macaluso is trained as a sociologist of religion and survey researcher. Her passion for helping Churches of Christ began in her undergraduate research at Cascade College, surveying church leaders in the Pacific Northwest on why members were leaving their congregations. This work continued in her master’s and doctoral work at Purdue University as she studied church growth among white Protestant Christian denominations and then how changing local demographics impact feelings of sense of community in Catholic parishes. Since completing her Ph.D. in 2010, her research agenda has focused on understanding Christian college students' spiritual formation, learning more about why people choose to leave their congregation and where they go when they do, as well as researching what makes a congregation healthy. Suzie finds incredible joy and fulfillment in her small role in helping congregations use data to better understand their strengths and potential challenges and how that opens up dialogue in the congregation. After serving as a faculty member at ACU for 13 years, she has recently transitioned to focus more fully on her research and service to the church community as the director of research for the Siburt Institute. Her current projects include updating and maintaining the Church Health Assessment (CHA) and working with the interfaith group Faith Communities Today (FACT) to gather data from Churches of Christ as we seek to better understand the United States' religious landscape. She believes that using data can help us make more informed decisions about how best to serve our congregations individually and as a larger fellowship. Dr. Macaluso currently serves on the board of the Religious Research Association, is a member of the Faith Communities Today steering committee, and is a member of the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies.