Dr. Matthew Vander Vennet earned his Ph.D. in Theology & Religious Studies with a Church History concentration at The Catholic University of America in 2023. Dr. Vander Vennet also earned an M. Phil at CUA in 2018 while pursuing his doctorate. He is a proud alum of Holy Apostles College & Seminary having earned his Masters in Theology summa cum laude with a Church History concentration in 2016. He earned a B.S. in Chemistry from Eureka College in 2008.

His areas of interest are Church History, principally the Reformation/Counter-Reformation period/early modern Catholic Church history. He has additional competencies in Early Church history and Christian Spirituality with a Franciscan focus. He also has interests in the Catholic history of Ireland and Britain, liturgical studies, Marian studies, Ecclesiology, and Christology.

While at CUA, he was also a Teaching and Learning Fellow and has experience teaching in both the classroom and online courses. He has guest lectured in various classes at both the high school and collegiate level. He is part of the book review team for the Diocese of Peoria’s “The Catholic Post” newspaper and has contributed articles to EpicPew.com, fellow HACS alum Shaun McAfee’s website.

He is an eminently proud husband and father. He currently resides in central Illinois.