Eric J. Lott
Encyclopedia
Eric J. Lott is a religious scholar who taught in Andhra Pradesh
and Karnataka
. Of the Indian languages, he knew Sanskrit
, Telugu
and Kannada.
The Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society designated Lott as a missionary to India and sent him in 1959 to minister in the Diocese of Dornakal of the Church of South India
.
Lott was ordained in 1962 in the Cathedral of the Epiphany in Dornakal during the Bishopric of P. Solomon as a Presbyter of the Church of South India.
from 1962 to 1964 along with Victor Premasagar
, then Lecturer of Old Testament. The Principal of the College in Dornakal at that time was C. S. Sundaresan and the College was affiliated to the Senate of Serampore College (University)
.
With the 1964 merger of the College in Dornakal into the newly-formed ecumenical Andhra Christian Theological College in Rajahmundry
, then headed by W. D. Coleman, Lott began taking classes in the river town of Rajahmundry. Later in 1972, Lott moved to Hyderabad along with the College when it was relocated to Hyderabad.
During Lott's teaching career in Andhra Pradesh
from 1962 to 1976, Lott taught New Testament
and Religion
s to students pursuing L.Th., B.Th., and B.D.
in Dornakal
, Rajahmundry, and Hyderabad.
In 1973, the Andhra Christian Theological College released Service for All Seasons, Lott's ecumenical worship book, which continues to be the primary worship book for students of Baptist
, Lutheran, Anglican, Pentecostal, and Methodist backgrounds studying theology at the seminary
in Hyderabad. The book was also adopted in a Church setting by the United Church in Defence Colony in Sainikpuri
, Hyderabad, which serves an ecumenical congregation.
Sai Baba
; when Lott offered revision suggestions, the student balked, since he believed that the "spirit of Sathya Sai Baba" had already taken control of the thesis and it could not be revised, lest the spirit got disturbed.
. His dissertation was later published under the title God and the universe in the Vedāntic theology of Rāmānuja.
In 1975, Lott again went on study leave to the University of Lancaster to pursue doctoral studies. His 1977 doctoral dissertation was entitled Vedāntic approaches to God.
, Lott contributed to the cause of birds through his writings, which include:
In 1996 David C. Scott and Israel Selvanayagam brought out a festschrift
published for the United Theological College and entitled Re-Visioning India's Religious Traditions in Lott's honour on his turning sixty.
In 1998 and 2000 Lott delivered the Cambridge Teape Lectures in Cambridge and India respectively.
.
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
and Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
. Of the Indian languages, he knew Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
and Kannada.
Background
After theological studies at Richmond Methodist Theological College, he joined for a graduate course in divinity at King's College, London and earned a B. D. degree in 1959.The Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society designated Lott as a missionary to India and sent him in 1959 to minister in the Diocese of Dornakal of the Church of South India
Church of South India
The Church of South India is the successor of the Church of England in India. It came into being in 1947 as a union of Anglican and Protestant churches in South India. With a membership of over 3.8 million, it is India's second largest Christian church after the Roman Catholic Church in India...
.
Lott was ordained in 1962 in the Cathedral of the Epiphany in Dornakal during the Bishopric of P. Solomon as a Presbyter of the Church of South India.
Andhra Pradesh
Lott first taught at the Andhra Union Theological College, DornakalDornakal
Dornakal is a town in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh. The town is important as a railway junction from where a branch line emanates to Manuguru and is also on the Vijayawada - Warangal mainline it connects South India...
from 1962 to 1964 along with Victor Premasagar
Victor Premasagar
Victor Premasagar was the fourth successor of Frank Whittaker as Bishop in Medak. He was an Indian churchman and Old Testament scholar. He also became Moderator of the Church of South India.-Early years:...
, then Lecturer of Old Testament. The Principal of the College in Dornakal at that time was C. S. Sundaresan and the College was affiliated to the Senate of Serampore College (University)
Senate of Serampore College (University)
The Senate of Serampore College is located in Serampore Town, in Hooghly District, West Bengal, India.Serampore was granted the status of university in 1829, making it India's first institution to have the status of a university....
.
With the 1964 merger of the College in Dornakal into the newly-formed ecumenical Andhra Christian Theological College in Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry is a city and municipal corporation of the Andhra Pradesh state in India. It is located east of the state capital, Hyderabad, on the banks of the River Godavari. Known as the Cultural Capital, Rajahmundry is noted for its intense Veda culture and intellect...
, then headed by W. D. Coleman, Lott began taking classes in the river town of Rajahmundry. Later in 1972, Lott moved to Hyderabad along with the College when it was relocated to Hyderabad.
During Lott's teaching career in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
from 1962 to 1976, Lott taught New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and Religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
s to students pursuing L.Th., B.Th., and B.D.
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....
in Dornakal
Dornakal
Dornakal is a town in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh. The town is important as a railway junction from where a branch line emanates to Manuguru and is also on the Vijayawada - Warangal mainline it connects South India...
, Rajahmundry, and Hyderabad.
In 1973, the Andhra Christian Theological College released Service for All Seasons, Lott's ecumenical worship book, which continues to be the primary worship book for students of Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
, Lutheran, Anglican, Pentecostal, and Methodist backgrounds studying theology at the seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in Hyderabad. The book was also adopted in a Church setting by the United Church in Defence Colony in Sainikpuri
Sainikpuri
Sainikpuri lies to the northeast of the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. It is a co-operative housing society for retired defence personnel. Sainikpuri actually started off as a housing society for Army officers, but now has houses which belong to other defence services as well as a few...
, Hyderabad, which serves an ecumenical congregation.
Karnataka
From 1977, Lott began teaching Religions at the United Theological College, Bengaluru along with G. D. Melanchthon, then Professor of Religions. The college enjoyed autonomous status with the Senate of Serampore College. Lott mentored students pursuing theology who came from diverse backgrounds. During the late seventies during the Principalship of Joshua Russell Chandran, Lott encountered a student who would not complete his M.Th. thesis in Religions. The student's thesis was on self-proclaimed avatarAvatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
Sai Baba
Sathya Sai Baba
Śri Sathya Sai Baba , born as Sathyanarayana Raju was an Indian guru, spiritual figure, mystic, philanthropist, and educator. He claimed to be the reincarnation of Sai Baba of Shirdi, a spiritual saint and miracle worker who died in 1918 and whose teachings were an eclectic blend of Hindu and...
; when Lott offered revision suggestions, the student balked, since he believed that the "spirit of Sathya Sai Baba" had already taken control of the thesis and it could not be revised, lest the spirit got disturbed.
Higher Studies
While teaching at Rajahmundry, Lott took study leave for the academic year 1969–1970 and completed postgraduate studies (M.Litt.) at the University of Lancaster in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. His dissertation was later published under the title God and the universe in the Vedāntic theology of Rāmānuja.
In 1975, Lott again went on study leave to the University of Lancaster to pursue doctoral studies. His 1977 doctoral dissertation was entitled Vedāntic approaches to God.
Writings
- 1973 - Service for All Seasons
- 1975 - India's Religions (in Telugu)
- 1976 - God and the universe in the Vedāntic theology of Rāmānuja: A Study in his use of the self-body Analogy
- 1980 - Vedāntic approaches to God
- 1986 - Worship in an Indian Context: Eight Intercultural Liturgies
- 1988 - Vision, Tradition & Interpretation: Theology, Religion & Religious Studies
- 1998 - Healing Wings: Acts of Jesus for Human Wholeness
- 2005 - Religious Faith, Human Identity: Dangerous Dynamics in Indian & Global Life
- 2008 - Faces of Vision: Images of Life & Faith (with Jyoti Sahi)
Ornithology
An amateur ornithologistOrnithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
, Lott contributed to the cause of birds through his writings, which include:
- "On the occurrence of White-naped Tit Parus nuchalis in southern India"
- The Birds of the Cauvery Valley
Honours
In 1985 the Indian Institute of World Culture, Bengaluru, invited Lott to deliver the Justice B. Vasudevamurthy Memorial Lecture.In 1996 David C. Scott and Israel Selvanayagam brought out a festschrift
Festschrift
In academia, a Festschrift , is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during his or her lifetime. The term, borrowed from German, could be translated as celebration publication or celebratory writing...
published for the United Theological College and entitled Re-Visioning India's Religious Traditions in Lott's honour on his turning sixty.
In 1998 and 2000 Lott delivered the Cambridge Teape Lectures in Cambridge and India respectively.
Retirement
Lott retired on health grounds in 1988 from the United Theological College. From 1989 he began pastoral work in the inner city community of Leicester in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
See also
Other religious scholars of India- B. V. Subbamma
- Y. D. TiwariY. D. TiwariYisu Das Tiwari was an Indian theologian and a leading participant in Hindu-Christian dialogue.He was a Scholar in Sanskrit, Hindi and Greek. The Bible Society of India entrusted him with revision of the Hindi Bible into a contemporary version.-History:Yisu Das Tiwari was born Badri Prasad...
- Stanley Jedidiah SamarthaStanley Jedidiah SamarthaStanley Jedidiah Samartha was an Indian theologian and a participant in inter-religious dialogue.Samartha's major contribution was through the World Council of Churches sub-unit "Dialogue with People of Living Faiths and Ideologies" of which he was the first Director.Western Scholars on Hinduism...
- D. S. AmalorpavadassD. S. AmalorpavadassDuraiswami Simon Amalorpavadass was a third-world theologian who played a vital role in the renewal of life and mission of the Roman Catholic Church in India, particularly after Vatican II...