I have posted several items on the idea of empire as it applies to American history. Although a generation ago, even to speak of American empire was contentious and provocative, today it is an absolutely standard way of understanding national history from earliest times, and also – my particular interest – its religious history. But I should be more specific. Empires are by no means a one size fits all model, as they take various forms, and one of those... Read more
My conversation with historian Alex Mayfield about Pentecostalism in Hong Kong Read more
As teachers prepare for the approaching fall semester, questions surrounding artificial intelligence in the classroom are ramping up once again. Should we seek to integrate AI into assessments and assignments? How should we monitor its use? And how should we treat cases when students use AI on papers? While I have encountered numerous opinions about AI, both positive and negative, I must admit I have never been a fan of this technology in academic spaces—but I think there might be... Read more
“I still do the bulletin.” She was the wife of a retired small-town pastor. We stood next to the booth sponsored by her church, watching as volunteers served hot dogs to children and firefighters at the summer festival. “Our new preacher is good, but he isn’t married. I’ll do the bulletin until he gets a wife,” she said. My husband was standing close behind me. I heard a muffled sound of laughter as he turned and walked away. The... Read more
While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” –Luke 11:27-28 When the visiting priest from Nigeria read this Gospel passage on Wednesday night during the Vigil Mass for the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, my children, standing beside me in... Read more
Sometimes you think you know a story very well, and then you come across a fact or a body of evidence that proves you have been wrong all along. Today’s blog concerns something called the Gallus Revolt, which has unsettled a number of my historical assumptions about both Jewish and Christian history in Late Antiquity. The immediate spark for this column is an important article by scholar Jacob Sivak, entitled “Forgotten Jewish Revolts Show Poor Historical Literacy In Jewish World.”... Read more
This has been an active summer for me, one that I did not anticipate, and I have not even written yet about my family trip to Japan! Recently I have read some new books on Latino politics and Christianity that I would like to highlight and connect it to two events: a new paper that was published and a somewhat formative moment in my life. First, I worked with a couple of my students on a research project this summer... Read more
In the spring semester, I did a bit of research towards a project that while a bit outside my wheelhouse, is influencing my methodologies in ways I think are interesting and important. I’ll be presenting a version of this project at a conference this fall, and I thought I might introduce a bit of it here also. This will be part one of a series over the next couple months where I explain my process and introduce pieces of what... Read more
Americans were expecting this presidential election year to be full of “unprecedented” events, and the news headlines have not disappointed. (I’m not even going to begin to include links!) But on top of the political spectacles, court rulings, and the flood of campaigning hyperbole and misrepresentations, it also seems to be an exceptionally emotional presidential election year for Americans. What I mean by “emotional” is the wide range of emotions, from being totally “checked out” to being very excited, with... Read more
Rachel Dobkin interviewed me in May for a Newsweek article that published this past Sunday entitled “Conservative Campuses Are Facing Cancel Culture Problems.” Dobkin discovered my story through the encouragement of Matt Warner and Karen Prior, who had read my Anxious Bench column in early May on my departure from Wheaton College, “And Come to the Defense of Those Targeted.” I voluntarily brought my story to Dobkin, shared with her for over an hour on the phone, and continued email... Read more
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