Once upon a time, Protestants liked to take credit for the glories of the modern world: freedom, prosperity, civilization. As attitudes on modernity have soured, many have been quick to turn the narrative around and blame Protestantism for the licentiousness, greed, and exploitation that we see around us. Influential books by Catholic scholars have told a tale of a Reformation that disenchanted the cosmos, banished beauty and sacraments, and opened the door for rampant individualism. What is the true story? This course will offer students a fuller perspective on why the Reformation was necessary, what aspects of Christendom it did and did not seek to change, and the lasting legacy it left, both good and ill, for the world we live in today.
Reformation and the Modern World
Taught by Christian Finnigan
Discipline: Core
Runs 4/6/26 – 6/13/26
Meets Fridays, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM (Eastern Time, GMT-05:00)
This Core course will be taught by Christian Finnigan. This course will run from April 6, 2026 through June 13, 2026. The syllabus will be posted when available.
Online only, runs 10 weeks, meeting 2 hr./wk. via Zoom. Students will also have the option to participate in class discussion on the Davenant Common Room Discord server. This is a graduate-level course. Although a BA is not a necessary pre-requisite for this course, students should come prepared to do graduate-level work.
Registration after March 22 will be considered late. There is an additional $25 fee (per course) for late registration.
Auditor: $225
Enroll for Credit (Part Time): $449
Enroll for Credit (Full Time): $325
Instructor
Christian Finnigan
JD, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University; PhD Candidate, McGill University
Christian D. Finnigan is Associate Professor and Chair of Politics, Philosophy, and History at Cairn University. He is also a Senior Fellow at The John Jay Institute.
Finnigan previously served as an assistant professor of history and politics at Colorado Christian University, adjunct professor of government at Patrick Henry College, an instructor in history at Sacred Heart University, and a teaching fellow in history at Yale University. He has also been a fellow at the Centennial Institute and an Emo F.J. Van Halsema Fellow at the H. Henry Meeter Center for Calvin Studies at Calvin University.
His academic work includes a chapter he recently contributed to From Generation to Generation: Writings in Honour of Douglas F. Kelly (Mentor, 2023), and papers presented at conferences such as the Sixteenth Century Studies Society, the Society for Reformation Studies, and the Southern Political Science Association.
Finnigan holds a BA in religious studies from Randolph-Macon College, an MA in the history of political thought and intellectual history from University College London, an MLitt in Reformation studies from the University of St Andrews, an MDiv from Reformed Theological Seminary, a ThM in historical theology from Erskine Theological Seminary, and a JD with a concentration in homeland and national security law from the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. He is currently a PhD candidate at McGill University, where his dissertation explores the political thought of the Protestant reformer Martin Bucer.
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Davenant Hall Courses
“Davenant courses are second to none in the quality of the teachers and the depth of the engagement they make possible. I can think of no better way of diving into the riches of classical Protestant thought, and few more worthy endeavors for our time”