Spirituality is declining in the United States if you focus on religious affiliation, but that isn’t the whole story according to Morgan Shipley, associate professor of religious studies at Michigan State University. A recent Pew Research Center survey reports that 28% of U.S. adults say they are religiously unaffiliated. By digging a little deeper, Shipley finds the religiously unaffiliated, sometimes called the “nones,” are a diverse group of people often with a broader perspective of spirituality.

As the MSU Foglio Endowed Chair of Spirituality, Shipley is exploring the changes in spirituality, belonging and religious identity through his research. 

Conversation Highlights:

(0:59) – Shipley on his background and interest in religious studies.

(4:00) – Why did you come to MSU for your PhD? Is there a collaborative ethos and sense of community and belonging at MSU that allows you to do your best work?

(6:44) – Tell me about Father Jake. What does spirituality mean more broadly and how is that evolving? Who are the “nones?”

(15:19) – How do you teach students about spirituality?

(18:06) – What role can technology and artificial intelligence play in people’s religious and spiritual practices?

(21:01) – Where do you see religion and spirituality heading in the next decade?

(23:37) – What do you want us to remember from this conversation? “To be a spiritual person is to be a person among others.” 

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