As a first-year graduate student, Gabriel aims to research religious communities in the United States during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, particularly Asian American Christians and other religious groups in their communities. The topics he plans to study include the role of local organizations in affecting interpersonal expression and external influences on American demography. He will also explore Asian Americans’ responses to cultural assimilation, the differences between their religious denominations, and the political motivations for their connections inside and outside their communities.