I founded this journal because I wanted an outlet where I could combine my passions for theology, classic literature, and boxing. There are hundreds of boxing sites out there already that give breaking sports news and fight commentary, so I didn’t feel the world needed another one of those. What I think we all need right now is more critical thinking, more reading, more searching for truth, more of the fighter’s spirit, and most of all, more of the Holy Spirit. Thus, American Pugilist was born.
Here you’ll find articles and personal essays on those topics, as well as book reviews, cultural commentary, answers to your spiritual questions, and more as the site continues to evolve. Thank you for stopping by!
About Memoree Joelle
A few of my favorite writers are Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Norman Mailer, C.S. Lewis, Carson McCullers, Cormac McCarthy, Rudyard Kipling, Richard Adams, and a few contemporary authors who write about Christian spirituality. I just started reading the Book of Enoch.
I hold a B.A. in Comparative Literature, with 2 years of post-grad work in American History. I also hold a level 2 WSET certificate in Wine. In 2022, with the help of several online Christian teachers, I began a self-directed Bible study.
I have pursued boxing as a hobby for about 5 years, and had the great privilege of private training under two great boxers/trainers in LA – Pepe Reilly and Rocco Santomauro. While I once had the goal of competing, these days I’m content to just spar in the gym.
In early 2024, God told me to leave Los Angeles, and brought me to a magnificent rural location here in north county San Diego, where my neighbors are coyote, hawks, roadrunners, owls, ravens, wild rabbits, raccoons, skunks, possum, weasels, ground squirrels, lizards, and other wildlife, including an occasional mountain lion, with whom I have a wary relationship. Still looking for a boxing gym around here….
Get in touch
If you’re an Amateur/Olympic boxer or trainer who would like to be featured on the site, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I also would love to hear from you if you wrote a book (that is at least loosely tied to boxing or Christian faith), or if you have a recommendation.
If you have a spiritual question, Email me! I don’t have all the answers, but I appreciate dialogue and I am likely to write an article addressing your question, and point you to authors, teachers, and leaders whose counsel I trust.
Contact: memoree@americanpugilist.com