The Polis Center is researching a new project, Religion and Urban Culture 2.0 (RUC 2.0), which seeks to understand how Indianapolis congregations are responding to the dramatic changes we all have experienced over the past several years. Among these challenges are growing economic inequality, awareness of systemic racism, immigration, political polarization, and the pandemic, among many others. Although national surveys reveal that religious affiliation continues to decline in the United States and, by implication, in Indianapolis, RUC 2.0 uses observations and interviews to examine congregational resiliency and creativity. How are congregations responding to change, and especially what are the creative responses that are worthy of notice? The project offers two regular publications that may interest you. Research Notes provide monthly updates of what the project is learning about the themes listed above. Responsive Congregations tells more in-depth stories of the creative initiatives to address our society’s challenges. Our April Responsive Congregations issue features Second Presbyterian Church’s food pantry. Second Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis has provided food to those in need for nearly two decades. Read more about how they did it here .

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