Shawn Varghese

Areas of Specialtization

Modern American Religion and Race, American Intellectual History, Civil Rights Movement, American Evangelicalism

Education

Ph.D, The University of Texas at Dallas
Th.M., Dallas Theological Seminary
B.M., New York University

Academic Interests & Research Narratives

I am interested in the intersections of American Race and Religion. These topics cross at every major turn in American history. I am mostly interested in the effects that the push for equality, demonstrated in the civil rights movement, had on American religion, namely evangelicalism. I am personally inspired by the resilience of 20th-century black protestants from both mainline and conservative Christian traditions, who have spearheaded movements towards racial and cultural diversity within American religion. 

I am currently working on editing my dissertation, "From Every Tribe, Tongue, and Nation: The Role of Dallas Theological Seminary in Shaping African American Evangelicalism," into a book. I am also exploring how the experiences of Black Americans and their push for racial and cultural equality resonated with other oppressed groups around the world. 

Selected Publications

[Under Review] “The Voice of Color in the Desegregation of Dallas Theological Seminary, 1954- 1975” with Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture 

“Christian Nationalism: The Persistence of an Idea,” review of Benjamin J. Wetzel, American Crusade, Christianity, Warfare, and National Identity, 1860-1920 in The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, 2023 Vol.22 (3), p.355-357 

“Civil Rights Movement” and “Tony Evans” in American Religious History: Belief and Society through Time, edited by Gary Smith, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, forthcoming September 2020 

Contributor, “Gender, Religion, and Culture,” Chap. 18 Section IV, American Yawp, Stanford University Press, Online 

Review of The State of the Evangelical Mind, Edited by Todd C. Ream, Jerry Pattengale, and Christopher J. Devers, Themelios Vol. 45, No. 1 (April 2020) 

Follow Dr. Varghese on

Twitter: @ShawnVarghese1