Ben R. Crenshaw

Ph.D. Candidate

Portland, Maine

Visiting Assistant Professor, Declaration of Independence Center, University of Mississippi

American Reformer Author Page

Curriculum Vitae

Education

B.A. Taylor University, History, 2011

M.A. Denver Seminary, Biblical Studies, 2017

M.A. Denver Seminary, Christian Apologetics & Ethics, 2018

M.A. Hillsdale College, Politics, 2021

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“Hillsdale is an ideal place to study because it understands that education is primarily about the formation of the soul, which requires gaining the knowledge and practical wisdom essential for achieving human excellence in every area of life.”

About

Ben R. Crenshaw was born in Dallas, but grew up in Georgia and Maine. He graduated summa cum laude from Taylor University, and then completed theological studies at Denver Seminary. He is an avid New England sports fan, but also enjoys hiking, biking, skiing, and other outdoor activities. He spends his free time building his library, making craft coffee, writing, and fellowshipping with family and friends. When not studying politics, he enjoys translating the New Testament and learning about Greek linguistics, philosophy, and Christian ethics. He is happily married.

Selected Articles and Publications

“Winston S. Churchill and the Theologico-Political Problem.” Churchill Annual. Hillsdale College, Autumn 2021.

Blomberg, Craig L., and Ben R. Crenshaw. “Worship: A Concept Study in New Testament Greek.” In Biblical Worship: Theology for God’s Glory, 332-49. Edited by Benjamin K. Forrest, Walter C. Kaiser Jr., and Vernon M. Whaley. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2021.

Blomberg, Craig L., and Ben R. Crenshaw. “Discipleship in James.” In Following Jesus Christ: The New Testament Message of Discipleship for Today, 233-49. Edited by Clinton Arnold and John Goodrich, for the Michael Wilkins Festschrift. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2019.

"Here's Why You Shouldn't Decolonize Your Bookshelf." The Federalist. June 16, 2020.

"The Misery of Democratic Socialism." The Public Discourse: The Journal of the Witherspoon Institute. July 28, 2019.

"'Shut Up, Bigot!’: The Intolerance of Tolerance.” The Public Discourse: The Journal of the Witherspoon Institute. August 12, 2015.

Interviews & Podcasts

"The Lives of Trump." American Reformer Podcast, September 20, 2024.

"Preachers, the Founding, and Religious Liberty." Hale Institute Podcast, March 15, 2024.

"Christian Nationalism as a Cure for Woke Ideology." The Optimistic Curmudgeon, December 11, 2023.

" Post-liberalism, Classical Liberalism, and the Post-War Consensus." Conversations that Matter, October 6, 2023.

"Politics, Evangelicalism, and America’s Ruling Class." Full Proof Theology, July 15, 2022.

Conference Presentations

"Crusader or Pacifist? The Foreign Policy of Political Protestantism." Presented at the annual meeting of the Ciceronian Society, Harrisonburg, VA, March 2025.

Panelist for "The Nature of Education in a Free Society" at the annual meeting of the Southern Political Science Association, San Juan, PR, January 2025.

Panelist for "America's Exceptional Nationalism; Panelist: America's Plutarchan Lives," Intercollegiate Studies Institute American Politics and Government Summit, Wilmington, DE, November 2024.

Panelist for "Christian Nationalism and the American Regime," Intercollegiate Studies Institute American Politics and Government Summit, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, February 2023.

Chair of panel on "Conserving Conservatism, Abandoning America", Intercollegiate Studies Institute American Politics and Government Summitt, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, February 2023.

"Punishment and the Natural Law." Presented at the 2022 Thomistic Summer Conference, Thomas Aquinas College, Santa Paula, CA, June 2022.

Dissertation (in progress)

The Political Philosophy of Christian Republicanism in the Political Sermons of Rev. Jonathan Mayhew

Research Interests

Liberalism and the American Founding

Natural Law and Natural Rights

Religion and Politics

Political Theology and American Civil Religion

Abraham Lincoln

Karl Marx

Awards & Honors

High Pass, PhD Qualifying Exams, Fall 2020

Honors, PhD Comprehensive Exams, Fall 2022

Languages

Classical Latin
Koiné Greek
Biblical Hebrew
Modern Italian