David Thang Moe

David Thang Moe is Henry Rice Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer in Southeast Asian Studies at Yale University. He is a co-editor of Public Theology for Global Witness (2023), a review editor of International Journal of Public Theology, and a co-chair of Religion in Southeast Asia Unit at American Academy of Religion. He is a celebrated public speaker, having been invited to speak about religion, politics, and public life, particularly regarding Myanmar at several leading universities around the world, including Yale, Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford, Columbia, Brown, Princeton, New York University, George Washington University, Boston University, Boston College, DePaul University, Pittsburgh University, Eastern Kentucky University, Baylor University, University of Toronto, Hamburg, Australian National University, Whitley College, National University of Singapore, Yonsei University, Ewha Womans University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, among others. Touted by Yale's Sterling Professor James C. Scott as “a true gem and animator from Burma” for his enormous contributions to Southeast Asian-Burmese studies at Yale and beyond, Moe’s scholarship actively engages with four distinct communities—global academia, grassroots churches, public society, and political state. He teaches courses related to religion, conflict, and reconciliation, including “Religion, Politics, and Identity in Southeast Asia,” which some students have described as “their favorite and most rewarding class at Yale,” and "a life-changing class for an internship at an immigration law firm in rural Minnesota." His teaching and research have been featured in some prominent media outlets, including Voice of America VOA Burmese News, Yale News, Yale Daily News, Christianity Today, among others. Born and raised in a rural Chin ethnic minority village in Myanmar, Moe is described by Christianity Today as a "public theologian of the bridge" who bridges the gap between grassroots and academic voices. He believes in the power of an interdisciplinary scholarship driven by a "triple dialogue": dialogue between Asian and non-Asian scholars (glocal dialogue), dialogue between Christian faith and other faiths (inter-religious dialogue), and dialogue between academic and grassroots Christians (intra-religious dialogue).