Expertise

American Religious History; History of Christianity; American Catholic History; Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies; Cultural Studies; Gender and Religion; Religion in Philadelphia

Biography

Elizabeth Hayes Alvarez’s research and teaching interests include American religious history, religion and gender, and cultural studies. She received her Ph.D. in History of Christianity from the University of Chicago, Divinity School. Her book, The Valiant Woman: The Virgin Mary in Nineteenth-Century American Culture (University of North Carolina Press), explores Marian imagery and the female ideal in American popular culture. She also published an edited collection, Religion in Philadelphia. She’s at work on a new book examining gendered rhetoric in anti-Catholic propaganda. 

Website

Selected Publications

• The Valiant Woman: The Virgin Mary in Nineteenth-Century American Culture (University of North Carolina Press, (2016)
• Religion in Philadelphia, Temple University Press (2016)

Courses Taught

• Religion in Philadelphia
• Religion and Human Sexuality: East and West
• Religion and Society
• Special Topics: American Cults