Department Chair of History Online: Sean Turchin – A jack of all trades

A jack of all trades, Sean Turchin, department chair of history online and assistant professor of philosophy, has taught many classes ranging from history to philosophy, and he holds a diverse bagful of degrees. 

Turchin earned his bachelor’s in theology, masters in philosophy, masters of arts in religion and masters in divinity from Liberty University. He earned a doctorate in philosophical theology from the University of Edinburgh  and is currently working on a second doctorate degree here at Liberty.

“I started out in a history undergrad and then switched to theology, and it was sort of a crisis, but looking at the lack of depth in Christianity, and so many people emphasizing emotions … I had a lot of questions, and that really pushed me into theology,” Turchin said. “Then, on a more apologetics side, it pushed me into philosophy.” 

Within this melting pot of interests in history, philosophy and theology, Turchin turned to many different works by famous authors to help him pursue knowledge and growth. Some of these came from the church fathers, which he read chronologically. Others include Martin Luther and John Calvin. Furthermore, Turchin shared how he explored the antithesis to Christianity in the writings of Rousseau, Kant, Hume and other Enlightenment philosophers and German idealists like Hegel. 

“(By) reading Hegel, I was starting to see what they did with Christianity and where it went wrong and liberal in Europe,” Turchin said. “This pushed me to read Søren Kierkegaard, who is probably my favourite. He is just misunderstood … He was very much inspired by Luther and attacked nominal Christianity.”  

This inspiration from authors carried into his numerous areas of study. His dissertation, which he completed in Edinburgh, Scotland, focused on Karl Barth and Søren Kierkegaard, where he assessed and discussed how many people, such as Barth, misunderstood Kierkegaard’s goal and his important views on Christianity. Turchin shares that many think Kierkegaard is the “father of existentialism,” but this is a fatal misunderstanding of what he wrote. Thus, with this passion for the pursuit of truth and growing in faith, Turchin examined this misunderstanding so others could better understand Kierkegaard’s writing. 

“For me, it was a personal journey because I didn’t know what I was going to do with these degrees,” Turchin said. “Nor did I care at the time. I was just going to keep studying because it was about understanding truth.” 

Turchin shared that all of the degrees he pursued and the knowledge he gained from them was part of his walk of faith. What he learned in his journey and continues to discover as he pursues another doctoral degree, he brings to his classroom. 

“My favorite part about teaching is seeing students understand how important it is to think critically,” Turchin said, describing how he wants Christians to think correctly about Christianity. “It’s not so much what they think, but learning how to think and how they approach their own worldview.”

While having a deep desire for truth, Turchin keeps his classes fun by sharing entertaining stories from his life. 

Wherever life takes him, Turchin seeks to continue to make progress in his pursuit of knowledge and truth.

Auld is a feature reporter for the Liberty Champion