Kraig Beyerlein directs the Center for the Study of Religion and Society at the University of Notre Dame, where he’s also an associate professor of sociology. He studies civic engagement and social networks, and he’s written about how religious belief deters problem gambling.

Anne Williamson is the founder and director of WAYfinding, which leads discussion groups on spiritual topics and organizes service projects.

The Rev. Timothy Shapiro is the president of the Center for Congregations in Indianapolis. He’s also an ordained Presbyterian pastor. He is the co-author of Divergent Church: The Bright Promise of Alternative Faith Communities.

Terrell McTyer is the minister for new church strategies for the Hope Partnership for Missional Transformation, a ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ.)

Kara Faris is the director of resource grants and consulting for the Center for Congregations in Indianapolis. She is the co-author of Divergent Church: The Bright Promise of Alternative Faith Communities.

What does it mean to establish a religion? This edition of ReligionLink is focused on a hotly contested and confusing piece of the First Amendment.

Patricia L. Miller is executive director of the Confessing Movement within the United Methodist Church, a theologically conservative organization. She served on the Commission on a Way Forward, the group tasked with brainstorming potential resolutions to the decades-long debate over LGBTQ ordination and same-sex marriage.

Eugene Halton is a professor of sociology at the University of Notre Dame, where he studies social theory, materialism and consumption. He is the co-author of The Meaning of Things, which explores the significance of household possessions.

Russell Haitch is a professor of theology and human science at Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind. He is ordained in the United Methodist Church.