Dr. Brown'€™s period of specialization extends from the Renaissance through the Reformation and Counter-Reformation to the period of Orthodoxy and Pietism. His particular teaching and research interests include the reception and interpretation of ancient (Biblical, Classical, and Patristic) texts in the Renaissance and Reformation, and the relation between learned theology and lay piety in the Protestant and Catholic reforms in the contexts of home, church, and schools. His forthcoming book, Singing the Gospel: Lutheran Hymns and the Success of the Reformation, appraises the Reformation in light of the use of vernacular hymns to spread Lutheran doctrine and piety and to form Lutheran identity among the early Protestant laity. Dr. Brown’s church experience includes a year as vicar at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Valparaiso, Indiana. His degrees are in History & Literature (A.B.) and History (A.M., Ph.D.) from Harvard, as well as an M.Div. from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.