Meet Christian Finnigan
Degrees and Experience
- Ph.D., Candidate, Christian Thought and History (McGill University)
- M.A., History of Political Thought and Intellectual History (University College London, and Queen Mary University London)
- M.Litt., History-Reformation Studies (University of St. Andrews)
- J.D., Homeland and National Security Law (George Mason University)
- Th.M., Historical Theology (Erskine Theological Seminary)
- M.Div., Theological Studies (Reformed Theological Seminary)
- B.A., Religious Studies (Randolph-Macon College)
Christian Finnigan comes to Colorado Christian University having previously taught Western Civilization at Sacred Heart University, and having served as a teaching fellow in the Department of History at Yale University. He was an Emo F.J. Van Halsema Fellow at the H. Henry Meeter Center for Calvin Studies at Calvin College, and a visiting assistant in research at Yale University.
An intellectual historian specializing in early modern European political thought, he holds advanced degrees in intellectual history and the history of political thought, Reformation studies, jurisprudence, historical theology, and divinity. His doctoral research focuses on the contribution of the sixteenth century Protestant reformer, Martin Bucer, to Reformed political thought.
Finnigan also brings with him a background in politics and ministry. His experience in politics includes positions on various presidential campaigns, as an advance representative for the Office of the Vice President, serving in The White House, and working for the American Conservative Union. Ministerially, he served as a pastoral apprentice at the Independent Presbyterian Church in Savannah, Ga., and worked for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is currently a ministerial candidate in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).
Presentations
- “Republican, Imperialist, Radical, or Erastian?: Evaluating the Contribution of Martin Bucer to Reformed Political Thought,” H. Henry Meeter Center for Calvin Studies, Calvin College. Grand Rapids, MI. 18 July 2019.
- “Martin Bucer and the History of Political Thought,” Protestantism and the Modern Age (Religion and Politics), Southern Political Science Association. New Orleans, LA. 12-14 January 2018.
- “Persuasion or Coercion?: Magisterial Reformation in Martin Bucer's De Regno Christi,” Early-Modern Political Theologies, Sixteenth Century Society and Conference. Milwaukee, WI. 26-29 October 2017.
- “Magisterial Reformation and The Emergence of Political Liberalism,” Problematizing Religious Diversity in A Secular Age, Centre for Research on Religion Graduate Conference. Montreal, Canada, 14-16 September 2017.
- “Magisterial Conversion?: Conversion and the Role of the Magistrate in the Political Thought of Martin Bucer,” The Politics of Conversion Workshop, III. Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE) & The Early Modern Conversions Project. Mexico City, Mexico. 8-11 March 2017.
- “The Marian Exiles and the Right of Resistance: The Grounds of Political Authority in the Thought of John Ponet, Christopher Goodman, and John Knox,” The Reformation after 500 Years (Religion and Politics). Southern Political Science Association. New Orleans, LA. 12-14 January 2017.
- “De Regno Christi and The Two Martin Bucers,” Visions of Religious and Political Order in Germany and England. Sixteenth Century Society and Conference. Bruges, Belgium. 18-20 August 2016.
- “The Geneva Bible and The Scottish Reformation,” The Bible in the Reformation. Society for Reformation Studies Conference. Cambridge, United Kingdom, 5-7 April 2016.