A central feature of Virginia’s colonial backcountry was the Great Wagon Road. Imagine water pouring from a pitcher, arcing as gravity pulls the liquid down into a glass. In a similar way, Scotch-Irish, German and English settlers poured down…
Scholarship
Books, Scholarship, zFeatured
What’s in a name? Radcliffes and Ratliffs in England…
by admin •
At the time of writing, Great Britain is mourning the death of Queen Elizabeth II. It seems like a good time to take stock of family connections across the pond. Specifically, the origins of the name and the family in England. Most Ratliff histories…
Books, Film, Scholarship, zFeatured
Lost in the Woods
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by Walter Ratliff On a hot summer day in June 1996, I set out to cover a story in a remote part of New Mexico’s Gila National Forest. Hours later I found myself face down on the trail, consciousness fading.…
Books, Scholarship, zFeatured
New Book! Between Faith and Power: Religious Freedom as Dynamic Engagement
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My new book is out! I think you’ll find it lively, readable and compelling. In part one of the book, I take a “drive through history” with the major figures who helped define religious liberty as a human right. The second…
Scholarship
Religion and Modern Public Life
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Here is a recent essay that deals with my research and its place in the broader conversation about the role of religion in public life. It’s a bit of an update on my doctoral work at Georgetown as I move…
Scholarship
Coptic Evangelicals in Post-Revolution Egypt
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Prior to the Egyptian military’s coup d’état in July 2013, Coptic Evangelicals were faced with rising hostilities directed at the country’s ancient Christian community. This took place amid widespread unrest and a shattered economy. The Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS)…
Scholarship
Shakespeare’s Birthday, Ideas About Salvation in Hamlet
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On William Shakepeare’s 450th birthday, it’s worth taking stock of the depth of the Bard’s writing that has sustained his work through the centuries. Hamlet in particular emerges as a perennial favorite and perhaps the most popular of his plays. Themes about the…
Scholarship
An Eye-Opening Trek Into Turkish Society
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In Gaziantep, Turkey, the children at a local orphanage were recently asked to write about what they wished for most in life. The exercise was designed to help them think about their goals for the future. However, one child took…
Scholarship
Beyond History’s Rough Draft: Doctoral Research at Georgetown
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Working in journalism is one of the best ways to see all sides of the human condition. Over the years, I have reported from conflict zones and cow pastures, spoken to famous and infamous world leaders, interviewed both victims of violent…
Scholarship
Upcoming Conference at Georgetown
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In a few weeks, I’ll be presenting my research about the Mennonites of Pilgrims On The Silk Road alongside a scholar who studied church missions & politics in the Belgian Congo, and the Irish-American Catholic use of mass media (i.e.…
