The Catholic College of the South
Dr. Thomas Varacalli
Meet Dr. Thomas Varacalli
OF NOTE:
I consider my undergraduate studies at Belmont Abbey as the four most transformational years of my life.
KNOWN FOR:
Dad jokes
WHEN NOT IN THE CLASSROOM, CAN OFTEN BE FOUND:
Visiting used bookstores, traveling around the country, trying new restaurants, and, of course, reading.
POPULAR QUOTE:
“Human experience is very, very old. It is our surest monitor, our safest guide. To ignore it crudely is the error of those ardent but uninstructed missionaries who have lightly undertaken the rebuilding of of the social world.” – Agnes Repplier
Examples of classes taught by Dr. Thomas Varacalli:
- American Founding
- Augustine and Aquinas I
- Augustine and Aquinas II
- Doctors of the Church
- Homer and Virgil
- Modern Political Thought: Machiavelli to Hume
- Modern Political Thought: Rousseau to Marx
- B.A., Belmont Abbey College, 2011, History
- M.A., Louisiana State University, 2014, Political Science
- Ph.D., Louisiana State University, 2016, Political Science
Books
-
Invitation to Political Science, with Sherri Mora, 2nd Edition (Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt, 2026).
-
The Future of the Catholic Church in the American Political Order, with Kenneth Grasso (Steubenville, OH: Franciscan University Press, 2023).
Peer-Reviewed Book Chapters and Articles
-
“Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s Progressive Reading of the Religion Clauses,” in The Catholic Supreme Court Justices, forthcoming.
-
“Introduction to Symposium on Dobbs” and “The Coming Tension between the Pro-Life Movement and Public Opinion” Catholic Social Science Review vol. 28 (2023): 3-6, 31-38.
-
“Catholics and Political Parties in the United States,” in The Future of the Catholic Church in the American Political Order (Steubenville, OH: Franciscan University of America, 2023): 143-173.
- “The Legacy of Trump’s Judicial Appointments” Catholic Social Science Review, vol. 26 (2021): 117-123.
- “In Defense of Christian Exceptionalism” Catholic Social Science Review, vol. 25 (2020): 43-50.
- “In Defense of Catholic Fusionism” Catholic Social Science Review, vol. 24 (2019): 11-18.
- “Thomas Aquinas, the Thomists, and the Consent of the Governed” History of Political Thought, vol. 39, no. 3 (Autumn 2018): 422-438.
- “Coronaeus and the Relationship between Philosophy and Doctrine in Jean Bodin’s Colloquium” Logos, vol. 20, no. 3 (2017): 122-146.
- “National Interest and Moral Responsibility in the Political Thought of Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan” Naval War College Review, vol. 69, no. 2 (2016): 108-127.
- Thomas Aquinas and Thomism
- History of Law
- American Constitutionalism
- American Conservatism
- Catholic Intellectual Tradition
Ready to Apply?
You can learn, seek, and thrive alongside our passionate faculty. The first step is to apply.
So that we can take you to the right application form, tell us: are you a current North Carolina High School student?
*You will be taken to the College Foundation of North Carolina to create a free account to apply.
