Adult Degree Evening Program

Profile

Dr. Carlson is interested in the historical intersection of various types of texts (literary, theological, academic) and religious practice.  His specialty is late medieval and early modern Christianity.  He has additional qualifications in Literature and Religion, American Religious History, Muslim-Christian Relations, Queer Studies and Religion, and the History of Monasticism. He has been invited to present papers at conferences nationally and internationally, and has contributed to various encyclopedias and written several articles. He is currently working on a book tentatively titled Good Men, Good Books: the Library of the Boni Homines of Ashridge, England.

He is an Episcopalian, and has recently joined the Church of the Epiphany in Oak Park. He has taught adult education sessions at a number of local churches on the history of the Christian church. As a testament to his commitment to interreligious dialogue, he is the faculty advisor for the Hillel Club on campus, and hosts a monthly Shabbat Supper at his home, which is open to students and faculty alike. His Jewish husband and mother-in-law are thrilled.

Dr. Carlson recently moved to Thousand Oaks from the San Fernando Valley, and is delighted that he can walk to school. When he is not walking, singing, or playing the piano, Dr. Carlson reads mystery fiction, bakes, and has participated in AIDS LifeCycle, for which he raised over $3000, and rode his bicycle from San Francisco to Los Angeles, to provide care for AIDS patients who could not afford their medication.

He also loves watching rugby, but does not play, because he's donated enough blood already.

Education

Ph.D., Claremont Graduate University, Claremont CA:  History of Religion
M.A., Claremont School of Theology, Claremont CA:  History of Christianity
B.A., Wheaton College, Wheaton IL:  Communications

Expertise

• Medieval and Early Modern Britain and Continental Europe.
• History of Gender/Sexuality and Religion.
• Literature and Religion.
• History of Monasticism.
• American Religious History.
• Evangelicalism, Fundamentalism and Holiness Movements.
• African-American Religion; the Black Church.
• World Religions.
• Muslim-Christian Relations.

Publications

Dissertation:
• Quid Me Dicis Bonum?: A Study of the Library and Theology of the Good Men of Ashridge.
Chapters:
"Death in Word and Sacrament," in Oxford Handbook of Early Modern English Literature and Religion, Ed. Andrew Hiscock and Helen Wilcox (Oxford: Oxford University Press, scheduled 2015).
Published Essays:
• "Sermons," in Encyclopedia of English Renaissance Literature (Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell Publishers, 2011).
• "The Liturgical Year," in Cambridge World Shakespeare Encyclopedia (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).
Reviews:
• Review, The Last Divine Office: Henry VIII and the Dissolution of the Monasteries, by Geoffrey Moorhouse. In Anglican Theological Review, v. 92:3/2010.
• Review, Readers and Authorship in Early Modern England, by Stephen Dobranski. In Comitatus, v. 37/2006.
• Review, Women's Writing in English: Early Modern England, by Patricia Demers. In Comitatus, v. 37/2006.
• Review, Sacraments, Ceremonies and the Stuart Divines. Sacramental theology and liturgy in England and Scotland 1603-1662, by Bryan D. Spinks. In Anglican and Episcopal History, v. LXXIV, No. 1, March 2005.
• Review, Henry VIII and the Evangelicals, by Alec Ryrie. In Comitatus, v. 35/2004.