David Brown (theologian)
Encyclopedia
David William Brown FBA
(born 1948) is an Anglican priest and theologian
who currently serves as Professor of Theology, Aesthetics and Culture in the Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts
and as Wardlaw Professor at St Mary's College
, University of St Andrews
.
) and brought up in the Western Isles (Islay
), Brown received his initial degree in Classics at the University of Edinburgh
(1970). From 1970 to 2007, his academic career was spent in England. In 1972, Brown received First Class Honours in Philosophy and Theology from Oxford University, and in 1976 he received his Doctorate in Ethics from Cambridge University.
and University Lecturer in Ethics and Philosophical Theology at Oxford. During this time, he was also ordained as a priest of the Church of England
(1977).
Brown's early interests were concerned with the interactions between theology and philosophy, reflected in the two major works, The Divine Trinity (1985) and Continental Philosophy and Modern Theology (1987).
. While at Durham, Brown's interests shifted from the engagement between theology and philosophy to the engagement between theology and the wider culture, especially the arts. Between 1999 and 2008, Brown has published five major books with Oxford University Press
: Tradition and Imagination (1999), Discipleship and Imagination (2000), God and Enchantment of Place (2004), God and Grace of Body (2007) and God and Mystery in Words (2008).
From 1998 to 2007, Brown served as Canon as well as Chapter Librarian & Curator at Durham Cathedral
, during which time he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy.
(ITIA), St Mary's College.
From 6–8 September 2010, ITIA held a conference entitled, 'Theology, Aesthetics and Culture: Conversations with the Work of David W Brown', which featured careful theological, historical, biblical, philosophical, and literary engagement with Brown's five major OUP volumes. Among those who delivered papers were:
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
(born 1948) is an Anglican priest and theologian
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
who currently serves as Professor of Theology, Aesthetics and Culture in the Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts
Institute for Theology, Imagination & the Arts
The Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts is an institute within St Mary's College, the School of Divinity at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, which 'aims to advance and enrich an active conversation between Christian theology and the arts - bringing rigorous theological thinking...
and as Wardlaw Professor at St Mary's College
St Mary's College, St Andrews
St Mary's College of the University of St Andrews, in Fife, Scotland - in full, the New College of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - was founded in 1538 by Archbishop James Beaton, uncle of Cardinal David Beaton on the site of the pedagogy or St Johns College .St Mary's College was...
, University of St Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
.
Education and early academic career
Born in the Borders of Scotland (GalashielsGalashiels
Galashiels is a burgh in the Scottish Borders, on the Gala Water river. The name is often shortened to "Gala" .Galashiels is a major commercial centre for the Scottish Borders...
) and brought up in the Western Isles (Islay
Islay
-Prehistory:The earliest settlers on Islay were nomadic hunter-gatherers who arrived during the Mesolithic period after the retreat of the Pleistocene ice caps. In 1993 a flint arrowhead was found in a field near Bridgend dating from 10,800 BC, the earliest evidence of a human presence found so far...
), Brown received his initial degree in Classics at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
(1970). From 1970 to 2007, his academic career was spent in England. In 1972, Brown received First Class Honours in Philosophy and Theology from Oxford University, and in 1976 he received his Doctorate in Ethics from Cambridge University.
Oxford University
From 1976 to 1990 Brown served as Tutor in Theology and Philosophy at Oriel CollegeOriel College
Oriel College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford...
and University Lecturer in Ethics and Philosophical Theology at Oxford. During this time, he was also ordained as a priest of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
(1977).
Brown's early interests were concerned with the interactions between theology and philosophy, reflected in the two major works, The Divine Trinity (1985) and Continental Philosophy and Modern Theology (1987).
Durham University
From 1990 to 2007, Brown served as Van Mildert Professor of Divinity at Durham UniversityDurham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
. While at Durham, Brown's interests shifted from the engagement between theology and philosophy to the engagement between theology and the wider culture, especially the arts. Between 1999 and 2008, Brown has published five major books with Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
: Tradition and Imagination (1999), Discipleship and Imagination (2000), God and Enchantment of Place (2004), God and Grace of Body (2007) and God and Mystery in Words (2008).
From 1998 to 2007, Brown served as Canon as well as Chapter Librarian & Curator at Durham Cathedral
Durham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham is a cathedral in the city of Durham, England, the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Durham. The Bishopric dates from 995, with the present cathedral being founded in AD 1093...
, during which time he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy.
University of St Andrews
In the autumn of 2007, Brown returned to Scotland to take up his post at the Institute for Theology, Imagination and the ArtsInstitute for Theology, Imagination & the Arts
The Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts is an institute within St Mary's College, the School of Divinity at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, which 'aims to advance and enrich an active conversation between Christian theology and the arts - bringing rigorous theological thinking...
(ITIA), St Mary's College.
From 6–8 September 2010, ITIA held a conference entitled, 'Theology, Aesthetics and Culture: Conversations with the Work of David W Brown', which featured careful theological, historical, biblical, philosophical, and literary engagement with Brown's five major OUP volumes. Among those who delivered papers were:
- Margaret R. Miles (Former Dean of the Graduate Theological UnionGraduate Theological UnionThe Graduate Theological Union ' is a consortium of nine independent theological schools, and eleven centers and affiliates. Eight of the theological schools are located in Berkeley, California. The GTU was founded in 1962. It maintains the Graduate Theological Union Library, one of the most...
in Berkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
) - William J. AbrahamWilliam J. AbrahamWilliam J. Abraham is a United Methodist pastor, theologian, and philosopher. A native of Ireland, he is currently the Albert Cook Outler Professor of Wesley Studies at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.Dr...
(Albert Cook Outler Professor of Wesley Studies, Southern Methodist UniversitySouthern Methodist UniversitySouthern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
) - Richard BauckhamRichard BauckhamRichard Bauckham is a widely published scholar in theology, historical theology and New Testament. He is currently working on New Testament Christology and the Gospel of John as a Senior Scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge....
(Emeritus Professor University of St AndrewsUniversity of St AndrewsThe University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
/ Ridley Hall, Cambridge) - Tina BeattieTina BeattieTina Beattie is a British Roman Catholic theologian, writer and broadcaster. She is Professor of Catholic Studies at Roehampton University and her academic research and publications include work on theology, gender and critical theory, the symbolism and cult of the Virgin Mary and, more recently,...
(Professor of Theology & Religious Studies, Roehampton UniversityRoehampton UniversityThe University of Roehampton is a campus university in the United Kingdom, situated on three major sites in Roehampton, south-west London.-History:...
) - Gordon Graham (Henry Luce III Professor of Philosophy and the Arts, Princeton Theological SeminaryPrinceton Theological SeminaryPrinceton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
) - Charles TaliaferroCharles TaliaferroCharles Taliaferro is an American Philosopher specializing in Theology, Professor of Philosophy at St. Olaf College and a member of the Royal Institute of Philosophy...
(Professor of Philosophy, St Olaf College) - Graham WardGraham Ward (theologian)Graham Ward is currently Professor of Contextual Theology and Ethics at the University of Manchester, England. His appointment as Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Oxford is expected to take effect from 1 October 2012. His letter of appointment had to be re-issued because his...
(Head of School and Professor in Contextual Theology and Ethics, University of ManchesterUniversity of ManchesterThe University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
) - Jeremy BegbieJeremy BegbieJeremy Begbie, BA, BD, Ph.D., LRAM, ARCM, FRSCM, is Thomas A. Langford Research Professor at Duke Divinity School, Duke University. He was previously the Associate Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge, as well as an Affiliated Lecturer in the Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge...
(Thomas A. Langford Research Professor of Theology, Duke UniversityDuke UniversityDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
) - Gavin Hopps (Research Councils' UK Academic Fellow in the School of Divinity, Assistant Director of ITIA, University of St Andrews)
- Clive Marsh (Senior Lecturer and Director of Learning and Teaching, University of LeicesterUniversity of LeicesterThe University of Leicester is a research-led university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is a mile south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park and Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College....
) - Ben Quash (Professor of Christianity & the Arts, King's College LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
) - Trevor Hart (Professor of Divinity, Director of ITIA, University of St Andrews)
Selected bibliography
- Choices: Ethics and the Christian Blackwell, 1983 (ISBN 0 631 13182-5 & 0 631 13222 8) 167pp.; Spanish translation, 2000.
- The Divine Trinity Duckworth & Open Court (La Salle, Il.), 1985 (ISBN 0 7156 1816 4) 315pp.
- Continental Philosophy and Modern Theology Blackwell, 1987 (ISBN 0 631 15734 4) 250pp.
- Invitation to Theology Blackwell, 1989 (ISBN 0 631 16473 11 & 0 631 16474 X) 182pp.
- The Word To Set You Free: Living Faith and Biblical Criticism SPCK, 1995 (ISBN 0 281 04806 1) 193pp.
- Tradition and Imagination: Revelation and Change Oxford University Press, 1999 (ISBN 0-19-8266991-9) viii + 402pp.
- Discipleship and Imagination: Tradition and Truth Oxford University Press, 2000 (ISBN 0-19-8270186) viii + 438pp.
- God and Enchantment of Place: Reclaiming Human Experience Oxford University Press, 2004 (ISBN 0 19 927198 4), vii + 436pp.
- Through the Eyes of the Saints: A Pilgrimage through History Continuum, 2005 (ISBN 0 8264 7640 6), xiii + 185pp.
- God and Grace of Body: Sacrament in Ordinary Oxford University Press, 2007 (ISBN 0 19 923182 6), 352 pp.
- God and Mystery in Words: Experience through Metaphor and Drama Oxford University Press, 2008 (ISBN 978 0 19 923183 6), 288pp.