Johns Hopkins Religious Professionals Study
So, how did a (mostly nice) ordained Baptist minister, New Testament scholar, seminary professor, grandmother of 2 end up called to work at the intersection of psychedelics and soul care? Well, I'm glad you asked!
In seminary, I served in the Chaplain’s Department of Connecticut Hospice, America’s first architecturally intentional hospice. It had a profound effect upon me to be in my early twenties and journeying with people and their families through the dying process. It was nothing less than holy ground. Sometimes smelly and loud and heartbreaking, and other times awe-inspiring and tender and peaceful. But ALWAYS holy ground. I was especially intrigued by how the dying person and their family made sense of (or not), integrated (or not), the experiences they were having into their own spiritual lives. I found surprising variety, even among those who shared the same religious tradition.
I went on to complete my PhD in Biblical Studies and become a professor who teaches a class called “Evil, Suffering, Death, and Afterlife” (light topic!) and wrote a book on it. I also specialize in the Gospel of John, which is nothing if not mystical!
I’m a scholar and I'm always interested in the advancement of human knowledge. But I’m also a seminary professor who trains faith leaders, and a clergyperson captivated by matters of spiritual formation and the soul. So, when I learned about the FDA-approved clinical trial at Johns Hopkins University involving Religious Professionals and psilocybin, for me, it brought both my academic and ministerial interests together. The clinical trial was titled “Effects of Psilocybin-facilitated Experience on the Psychology and Effectiveness of Professional Leaders in Religion.” It began in March 2015 and concluded in 2019.
There were more than two dozen of us and we came from different religious traditions. In the fall of 2017, I experienced two high-dose psilocybin sessions set one month apart. Like most participants in the study, I count the sessions among my top 5 spiritually significant experiences (I've given birth twice, so those slots were already taken). Much happened in those two day-long sessions. With any extraordinary spiritual experience, there’s a fine line between sharing in the interests of connection and boring the other person to tears with details of your personal journey! I will say I encountered God in extremely profound ways. I experienced a range of emotional states from joy and laughter to awe to grief I didn't even know I had. And there were certainly some very challenging experiences and initially unwelcome lessons as well (e.g., forgiveness as a deep, fully embodied reality vs. mere intellectual assent or values-based decision). Maybe not surprisingly for a bible scholar, I experienced and understood my tradition’s scriptures in fresh ways.
The study has generated a robust response and conversation about the intersection of psychedelics and religion.
New Yorker
Michael Pollan’s New Yorker article responding to the study appeared on May 19.
Here’s accompanying text that is an edited version of what I wrote on FB when I posted the essay
In 2017, I was a study participant in the NYU/Johns Hopkins study of religious leaders. This is the study Michael Pollan refers to in his essay for The New Yorker. As you know, I currently serve as a Field Scholar for the inimitable Emory Center for Psychedelics and Spirituality at Emory University as well as an Affiliated Researcher for PULSE project at Harvard Law School and am currently writing a book for Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company called Psychedelics and Soul Care: What Christians Need to Know. The church is far behind in this important conversation not only with respect to the healing and spiritual formation aspects, but also the justice and harm reduction facets. I dislike immensely the title The New Yorker chose for the online version as it's cheap, silly, and click-baity, but Michael's essay itself is worthwhile. I am profoundly grateful that I get to collaborate with so many other people I respect across a variety of fields. And I am grateful for the clergy colleagues represented in the study and this essay.
Re: New Yorker
Jay Michaelson adroitly responded to Pollan’s essay. “Taking Psychedelic Spiritualities (More) Seriously”
Here’s what I wrote to accompany the social media post
If you are at all interested in the intersection of religion and psychedelics, subscribe to Jay Michaelsons substack. Jay is a rabbi, lawyer, meditation teacher, journalist, and scholar and I work with him on the Emory Center for Psychedelics and Spirituality as well as the Harvard PULSE project. I posted this week Michael Pollan's (piece on the Hopkins/NYU study I was in with other clergy colleagues across religions. This is Jay's excellent response to Pollan's essay that will help you consider the topic more clearly and in a less dismissive way (especially with respect to those who take religion seriously as well as concerns related to black and indigenous siblings).
“After a Decade of Controversy, Clergy Psychedelic Study is Published”
Kathyrn Post’s balanced essay for the Religion News Service appeared on June 2, 2025.
Here’s my intro to the post
Thank you to Kathryn Post at Religion News Service for this well-researched, concise, and elegant essay on the release of the Johns Hopkins/NYU study. I love learning more from my colleagues in the study, whose faith and leadership I admire. I hope we continue to have nuanced conversations about the intersection of psychedelics and spirituality.
Religious Leaders of all Faiths ate 'Magic Mushrooms' in a Scientific Study, and it Changed Their Lives”
By Eric Ralls
The essay concludes on this salient note
Faith leaders stand at a unique crossroads of tradition and human need. Studies like this one spark discussions about new approaches to spiritual care. They also add to the growing literature suggesting psilocybin’s potential for promoting introspection and community well-being. It remains to be seen how religious organizations respond to these findings….Either way, the results open a conversation about how substances like psilocybin could interact with centuries of established rituals and beliefs.
“Effects of Psilocybin on Religious and Spiritual Attitudes and Behaviors in Clergy from Various Major World Religions (Hopkins/NYU study)”
William Richards, Anthony Bossis, and Steven Ross, three of the primary researchers, presented on the study at the 2025 Psychedelic Science conference on June 19. Video will be linked here when it becomes available.
Researchers gave psychedelic drugs to clergy across religions. It made some switch careers.
NPR One
Here’s what I wrote when I shared it on my social media
Grateful NPR considered this important enough to feature on Weekend Edition. Always glad to collaborate with my colleagues from the Hopkins/NYU study (you’ll also hear Bill Richards, Zac Kamenetz, Dave Barnhart, and Brennan Jeffrey Vidt). I appreciate the chance to help other Christians reflect on how our tradition is rooted in mystical experiences—starting with the resurrection appearances, and including Paul’s visions and revelations in 2 Corinthians 12.