Short Bio
Eric Isaac is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Religious Studies at Florida International University, where he serves as Chair of Christian Studies and Undergraduate Program Director for Religious Studies. His research and teaching focus on spiritual abuse, institutional power, and the role of religion in public life. He founded and established the Juliana Isaac Fund for the Study of Christianity and Spiritual Abuse and is a founding faculty member of the Certificate in Christian Studies.
Full Description
Eric Isaac is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Florida International University, where he serves as Chair of Christian Studies and Undergraduate Program Director for Religious Studies. His work focuses on spiritual abuse, institutional power, and the broader role of religion in shaping social and public life.
He has contributed to the development and expansion of FIU’s Religious Studies program through curriculum design, course creation, and program leadership. His work includes building academic pathways and supporting student development across the undergraduate program.
Professor Isaac developed the first officially cataloged public university course examining spiritual abuse, as well as an undergraduate course exploring it through a public-interest law framework. His teaching integrates interdisciplinary research with applied analysis of institutional accountability.
He is the founder of the Juliana Isaac Fund for the Study of Christianity and Spiritual Abuse at FIU, which supports research and student engagement on issues of religion, power, and abuse. He is also a founding faculty member of the Certificate in Christian Studies, an interdisciplinary program examining Christianity’s role in society.
His research includes one of the largest qualitative and quantitative studies of Latinx survivors of spiritual abuse, examining how institutional incentives shape authority and the persistence of harm. He is also a co-investigator on a collaborative research project with the University of Michigan examining religion and civic engagement among Latinx youth.
In addition to his academic work, he completed a judicial internship in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida, gaining experience in legal reasoning and judicial process.
Prior to his academic career, Isaac founded and led a nonprofit faith community serving individuals impacted by spiritual abuse.
He is the recipient of FIU’s Excellence in Teaching Award (2024), selected through a competitive double-blind review process.
Degrees
MA Theological Studies, Fuller Graduate School, Pasadena CA
MA Latin American & Caribbean Studies, FIU, Miami FL
Areas of Expertise
Analysis and Interpretation of Religion.
Courses taught:
REL 4150 Spiritual Power & Abuse
REL 3530 Protestantism
REL 3532 Reformation
REL 3505 Introduction to Christianity
REL 3066 Race, Slavery, Christianity, & The Caribbean
REL 2011 Introduction To Religion
REL 3308 Studies in World Religions