Profile

  • Title:
    Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
  • Department:
    Religious Studies
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Christopher J. Welch, Ph.D.

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Background

Dr. Christopher Welch received his Ph.D. in Theology and Education from Boston College, where his dissertation research focused on education for the purpose of the reimagination and transformation of consumer culture in the service of greater human flourishing. This education can happen in colleges and universities, in parishes, and in collaboration with the wider community. His academic research, teaching, and community presentations are oriented toward theological education for critical consciousness through reflective practices that are both personal and social.

Prior to joining the faculty at Rivier University, Dr. Welch taught at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry. He was also a theology teacher at Fontbonnne Academy, a private Roman Catholic college-preparatory high school located in Milton, Massachusetts, for ten years prior to conducting his dissertation research and teaching at Boston College.

Degrees

  • Ph.D., Boston College
  • MTS, Weston Jesuit School of Theology
  • B.A., Tulane University

Courses Taught

  • REL 115 God and the Created Order
  • RIV 120 Dignity, Work, and Vocation
  • GSP 201 The Community
  • REL 235 Theism, Atheism, and Liberation
  • REL 253 The Self: Integrating Spirituality and Ethics
  • REL 330 World Religions
  • REL 363 Introduction to Christian Ethics
  • REL 379 Bioethics
  • REL 385 The Challenge of Peace

Recent Publications and Proceedings

  1. Welch, Christopher J. Book Review. “The Transformed Heart: Spirituality, Religion, and the Struggle for Integrity, by Tom Zanzig.” Religious Education. April 2019
  2. Welch, Christopher J. Book Review. “Where Two or Three Are Gathered: Transforming the Parish through Communities of Practice, by Jane E. Regan.” Religious Education. January 2018.
  3. Welch, Christopher J. “A Pedagogy of Critical Consumption for the Bishops’ Framework.” Journal of Catholic Education. In Review.
  4. Cameron, Cynthia, Edward Sloane, and Christopher Welch. The History of the Catholic Church. Edited by Thomas H. Groome. Dublin: Veritas, Forthcoming.
  5. “Encountering Other, World, and Self in Communities of Productive Practice.” Religious Education Association. St. Louis, MO. November 2017.
  6. Cameron, Cynthia, Edward Sloane, and Christopher Welch. The History of the Catholic Church. The Credo Series. Edited by Thomas H. Groome. Dublin: Veritas, 2017.
  7. “Sustaining Hope in a ‘Hot Takes’ World: Religious Education as the Practice of Persistent Provocation.” Workshop Presentation with Cynthia Cameron. Religious Education Association, Pittsburgh, PA. November 2016.
  8. “Jesus: Pedagogue of the Prophetic Imagination.” Religious Education Association. Atlanta, GA. November 2015.
  9. “In the Wilderness, Make Straight the Bike Path.” College Theology Society. Portland, OR. May 2015.
  10. Welch, Christopher J. “Boston Stronger: Hope and Healing Two Years After the Marathon Tragedy.” America. April 13, 2015.
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