Rachel Bodily Birch
Welcome! My name is Rachel Bodily Birch! I live in Springfield, Virginia which is perfect because I love American history. I have several titles. I am a parent, spouse, Christian, patriot, teacher and scholar. I have two teenagers and my husband is a trade attorney at a boutique firm in Washington, D.C. I am passionate about exercising, learning, friendships, laughing, baking and am an award winning cake decorator.
My interest emphasis is 19th century American politics, theology and how those two things interact and build on each other. Belief is a powerful thing, and I want to know why people believe what they do (or don’t), how they believe and what that belief informs in their daily actions. I am especially interested in Women’s religious benevolence. Women have used extra institutional means to influence issues they were passionate about for generations. Additionally, I love to learn more about the American Revolution. It is the most amazing underdog story!I love to learn more about the American Revolution. It is the most amazing underdog story!
I taught an online American Heritage class at BYU-Idaho for nine years and am currently a History Graduate student at George Mason university pursuing a PhD in American History. George Mason is a great place and I am loving the classes and faculty who create an open, learning environment. I am an affiliate with the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media.
The Backpack: Solidarity in Secrets and Sacrifice
The Legacy of the Relief Society
in the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Women are deliciously complicated filled with competing tensions between softness and grit, empathy and tenacity, and insecurity and ferocity. Analyzing the behavior and characteristics of a subset of women, especially religious women, becomes especially problematic when there is an idealized notion of perfection and then there is well, reality or the way women actually live religious principles. This reality of lived religion is a fascinating source of scholarship, but I wanted to go deeper than what the archives offered. I interviewed four women who are active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These generous ladies offered their life experiences to enhance my historiographic research on lived religion and women’s relationship to formal religious hierarchical power. I produced this research into a podcast episode. Please click on “Research” to read and/or listening to the production.
I taught at BYU-Idaho as an adjunct faculty member for nine years.
This is where you can access Youtube links to all of the review sessions where we discuss curriculum and answer student questions.
Everyone has a different pathway to their professional goals!
Please visit my CV page to view my unique skills, career path and experiences.
