John Barton (theologian)

Last updated

The Reverend
John Barton
FBA
Born (1948-06-17) 17 June 1948 (age 76)
London, England
Title Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture (1991–2014)
Spouse
Mary Burn
​
(m. 1973)​
Academic background
Alma mater University of Oxford
Institutions University of Oxford

John Barton FBA (born 17 June 1948) is a British Anglican priest and biblical scholar. From 1991 to 2014, he was the Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Oriel College. In addition to his academic career, he has been an ordained and serving priest in the Church of England since 1973.

Contents

His research interests and extensive publications have been in the areas of the Old Testament prophets, the biblical canon, biblical interpretation, and Old Testament theology. From 2010 to 2013, he researched Ethics in Ancient Israel, having been funded by a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship. Barton is a foreign member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and has been a Fellow of the British Academy since 2007.

As of 2013, he continued to assist in services and other activities in the parish of Abingdon, in which he resides.

Early life and education

John Barton was born on 17 June 1948 in London, England. [1] He was educated at Latymer Upper School, a private school in Hammersmith, London. [2] He studied theology at Keble College, Oxford, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1969: as per tradition, his BA was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Oxon) degree in 1973. [3] [4]

He moved to Merton College, Oxford, to undertake postgraduate research, and completed his Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) degree in 1974. [3] His doctoral thesis was titled The Relation of God to Ethics in the Eighth Century Prophets. [5] He was awarded a Doctor of Letters (DLitt) degree, a higher doctorate, by the University of Oxford in 1988. [2]

Career

Academic career

Barton was a Junior Research Fellow at Merton College, Oxford, between 1973 and 1974. [6] In 1974, he was elected a Fellow of St Cross College, Oxford, and made a university lecturer in theology (Old Testament) at the University of Oxford. [2] He was promoted from lecturer to Reader in Biblical Studies in 1989. [2] In 1991, he was made Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture and therefore elected a Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. [6] From 2010 to 2013 he held a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship for work on a project entitled Ethics in Ancient Israel. [7] He stepped down as Oriel and Laing Professor in 2014, [2] and was made an Emeritus Fellow of Oriel College. [8] [9] Since 2014, he has been a Senior Research Fellow of Campion Hall, Oxford, a Jesuit-run permanent private hall of the University of Oxford. [2] [4]

Additional roles

He has been a Delegate of Oxford University Press [10] since 2005. From 2004 to 2010 he was joint editor of the Journal of Theological Studies and is one of two Anglophone editors for the German monograph series Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, published in Berlin. [11]

Ordained ministry

In 1973, Barton was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon and priest. [3] [12] Concentrating on his academic career, he did not hold an ecclesiastical position until 1979 when he was made chaplain of St Cross College, Oxford. [3] [2] He continued this ministry until he left St Cross College for Oriel College, Oxford in 1991. [2] In addition to his professorial appointment, he served as Canon Theologian of Winchester Cathedral between 1991 and 2003. [3] [2] He assists in services and other activities in the parish of Abingdon, in which he resides. [4] [12]

From 2000 to 2005 and from 2009 to 2010 he served on the church's General Synod, representing the clergy of the University of Oxford.[ citation needed ] He sits on the Governing Body of Ripon College Cuddesdon,[ citation needed ] and was elected President of Modern Church in 2011. [13] In 2013, Barton resigned from the office due to ill health, [14] but he continues to serve on the editorial board of the periodical, Modern Church. [12]

Research interests

Barton's research interests have included the Old Testament prophets, the biblical canon, biblical interpretation, Old Testament theology, as well as biblical ethics. [9]

Honours

In 2007, Barton was elected a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and social sciences. [6] He is also a Corresponding Fellow of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. [4] [15] [16]

In 1998, Barton was awarded an honorary Doctor of Theology (Dr. theol.) degree by the University of Bonn. [2]

A History of the Bible: The Book and Its Faiths was shortlisted for the 2020 Wolfson History Prize [17] and won the 2019 Duff Cooper Prize. [18] It was adapted for radio and broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2020. [19]

Books

Sole authorship

  1. Barton, John (1980). Amos's Oracles against the Nations. Society for Old Testament Study monograph series. Vol. 6. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9780521225014. OCLC   5241529.
  2. ——— (1984). Reading the Old Testament: Method in Biblical Study. London & Philadelphia, PA: Darton, Longman & Todd & Westminster Press. ISBN   9780664245559. OCLC   10507716.
  3. ——— (1986). Oracles of God: Perceptions of Ancient Prophecy in Israel after the Exile. London: Darton, Longman & Todd. ISBN   9780232516661. OCLC   16922767.
  4. ——— (1989). Love Unknown: Meditations on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. London: SPCK. ISBN   9780281044405. OCLC   869153450.
  5. ——— (1988). People of the Book? The Authority of the Bible in Christianity. Bampton lecture, 1988. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN   9780664250669. OCLC   18739764.
  6. ——— (1991). What is the Bible?. London: SPCK. ISBN   9780281045280. OCLC   927643761.
  7. ——— (1995). Isaiah 1-39. Old Testament Guides. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press. ISBN   9781850755418. OCLC   463409488.
  8. ——— (1997). The Spirit and the Letter: Studies in the Biblical Canon. London: SPCK. ISBN   9780281050116. OCLC   475988728.
  9. ——— (1997). Making the Christian Bible. London: Darton, Longman & Todd. ISBN   9780232517873. OCLC   38040897. - American edition How the Bible came to be
  10. ——— (1998). Ethics and the Old Testament. London: SCM Press. ISBN   9780334027188. OCLC   925328303.
  11. ——— (2001). Joel and Obadiah: A Commentary. Old Testament Library. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox. ISBN   9780664219666. OCLC   46685175.
  12. ——— (2003). Understanding Old Testament Ethics. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox. ISBN   9780664225964. OCLC   491719760.
  13. ——— (2005). Living Belief: Being Christian, Being Human. London: Continuum. ISBN   9780826488510. OCLC   60590135.
  14. ——— (2007). The Nature of Biblical Criticism. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox. ISBN   9780664225872. OCLC   1056607006.
  15. ——— (2007). The Old Testament: Canon, Literature and Theology: Collected Essays of John Barton. Society for Old Testament Study monographs. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. ISBN   9780754654513. OCLC   1057586494.
  16. ——— (2012). The Theology of the Book of Amos. Old Testament Theology. New York & Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9780521855778. OCLC   809074127.
  17. ——— (2014). Ethics in Ancient Israel. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780199660438. OCLC   902755851.
  18. ——— (2019). A History of the Bible: The Story of the World's Most Influential Book. New York: Viking. ISBN   9780525428770. OCLC   1110588094.
  19. ——— (2022). The Word: On Translations of the Bible. London: Allen Lane. ISBN   9780241448816. OCLC   1350405277.

Joint authorship

  1. ———; Morgan, Robert (1988). Biblical Interpretation . Oxford Bible series. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780192132567. OCLC   862147418.
  2. ———; Bowden, Julia (2004). The Original Story: God, Israel and the World. London: Darton, Longman & Todd. ISBN   9780232524857. OCLC   255303000.

Edited

  1. ———; Balentine, Samuel E., eds. (1994). Language, Theology, and the Bible: Essays in Honour of James Barr. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN   9780198261919. OCLC   907242123.
  2. ———; Reimer, David J., eds. (1996). After the Exile: Essays in Honour of Rex Mason. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press. ISBN   9780865545243. OCLC   35317733.
  3. ———, ed. (1998). The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation. Cambridge Companions to Religion. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9780521485937. OCLC   864267009.
  4. ———; Sauter, Gerhard, eds. (2000). Offenbarung und Geschichten: ein deutsch-englisches Forschungsprojekt. Beiträge zur theologischen Urteilsbildung. Vol. 10. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang. ISBN   9783631367230. OCLC   247059146. - English version Revelation and Story: Narrative Theology and the Centrality of Story
  5. ———; Muddiman, John, eds. (2001). The Oxford Bible Commentary. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780199277186. OCLC   870267288.
  6. ———, ed. (2002). The Biblical World. Vol. 1. New York & London: Routledge. ISBN   9780415275736. OCLC   659913169.
  7. ———; Rowland, Christopher, eds. (2003). Apocalyptic in History and Tradition. Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha, Supplement series. Vol. 43. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press. ISBN   9780826462084. OCLC   954735187.
  8. ———; Wolter, Michael, eds. (2003). Die Einheit der Schrift und die Vielfalt des Kanons/The Unity of Scripture and the Diversity of the Canon. Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft und die Kunde der älteren Kirche (BZNW). Vol. 118. Berlin: W. de Gruyter. ISBN   9783110176384. OCLC   899037209.
  9. ———, ed. (2004). The Biblical World. Vol. 2. New York & London: Routledge. ISBN   9780415275743. OCLC   659913172.
  10. ———; Stavrakopoulou, Francesca, eds. (2010). Religious Diversity in Ancient Israel and Judah. London: T & T Clark International. ISBN   9780567032164. OCLC   876469857.
  11. ———, ed. (2016). The Hebrew Bible: a Critical Companion. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press. ISBN   9780691154718. OCLC   953843897.

Festschrift

  1. Dell, Katharine J.; Joyce, Paul M., eds. (2013). Biblical Interpretation and Method: essays in honour of John Barton. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780199645534. OCLC   857990808.

Personal life

In 1973, Barton married Mary Burn. Together they have one daughter. [2]

Barton lives in the parish of Abingdon. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bible</span> Collection of religious texts

The Bible is a collection of religious texts or scriptures which to a certain degree are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, Islam, the Baháʼí Faith, and other Abrahamic religions. The Bible is an anthology originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek. The texts include instructions, stories, poetry, prophecies, and other genres. The collection of materials that are accepted as part of the Bible by a particular religious tradition or community is called a biblical canon. Believers in the Bible generally consider it to be a product of divine inspiration, but the way they understand what that means and interpret the text varies.

The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Israelites. The second division of Christian Bibles is the New Testament, written in Koine Greek.

Teresa Morgan is an English academic and cleric, best known as the author of Literate Education in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds and Roman Faith and Christian Faith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce M. Metzger</span> American biblical scholar (1914–2007)

Bruce Manning Metzger was an American biblical scholar, Bible translator and textual critic who was a longtime professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and Bible editor who served on the board of the American Bible Society and United Bible Societies. He was a scholar of Greek, New Testament, and New Testament textual criticism, and wrote prolifically on these subjects. Metzger was an influential New Testament scholar of the 20th century. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1986.

Charles Harold Dodd was a Welsh New Testament scholar and influential Protestant theologian. He is known for promoting "realized eschatology", the belief that Jesus' references to the kingdom of God meant a present reality rather than a future apocalypse. He was influenced by Martin Heidegger and Rudolf Otto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Bauckham</span> British theologian (born 1946)

Richard John Bauckham is an English Anglican scholar in theology, historical theology and New Testament studies, specialising in New Testament Christology and the Gospel of John. He is a senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge.

James Barr was a Scottish Old Testament scholar, known for his critique of the notion that the vocabulary and structure of the Hebrew language may reflect a particular theological mindset. At the University of Oxford, he was the Oriel Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture from 1976 to 1978, and the Regius Professor of Hebrew from 1978 to 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. K. M. Adam</span> American theologian (born 1957)

Andrew Keith Malcolm Adam, known as A. K. M. Adam, is a biblical scholar, theologian, author, priest, technologist and blogger. He is Tutor in New Testament and Greek at St. Stephen's House at Oxford University. He is a writer, speaker, voice-over artist, and activist on topics including postmodern philosophy, hermeneutics, education, and the social constitution of meaning.

Encyclopaedia Biblica: A Critical Dictionary of the Literary, Political and Religion History, the Archeology, Geography and Natural History of the Bible (1899), edited by Thomas Kelly Cheyne and J. Sutherland Black, is a critical encyclopedia of the Bible. In theology and biblical studies, it is often referenced as Enc. Bib., or as Cheyne and Black.

Graham Norman Stanton (1940–2009) was a New Zealand biblical scholar who taught at King's College, London, and as Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge. A New Testament specialist, Stanton's special interests were in the Gospels, with a particular focus on Matthew's Gospel; Paul's letters, with a particular focus on Galatians; and second-century Christian writings, with a particular interest in Justin Martyr.

Christopher M. Tuckett is a British biblical scholar and Anglican priest. He holds the Title of Distinction of Professor of New Testament Studies at the University of Oxford and is a Fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford.

Richard Alan Burridge is a Church of England priest, biblical scholar and a former Dean of King's College London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brevard Childs</span> Old Testament scholar and professor

Brevard Springs Childs was an American Old Testament scholar and Professor of Old Testament at Yale University from 1958 until 1999, who is considered one of the most influential biblical scholars of the 20th century.

Pheme Perkins is a Professor of Theology at Boston College, where she has been teaching since 1972.

Iain William Provan is a British Old Testament scholar, now living in Canada. He was Marshall Sheppard Professor of Biblical Studies at Regent College in Vancouver from 1997 until his retirement on December 31, 2022.

Andrew T. Lincoln is a British New Testament scholar who serves as Emeritus Professor of New Testament at the University of Gloucestershire.

Michael J. Gorman is an American New Testament scholar. He is the Raymond E. Brown Professor of Biblical Studies and Theology at St. Mary's Seminary and University, where he has taught since 1991. From 1995 to 2012 he was dean of St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute.

John William Rogerson (1935–2018) was an English theologian, biblical scholar, and priest of the Church of England. He was professor of biblical studies at University of Sheffield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James F. McGrath</span> Religious studies scholar

James Frank McGrath is the Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University. He is known for his work on Early Christianity, Mandaeism, criticism of the Christ myth theory, and the analysis of religion in science fiction. McGrath received his Ph.D. from Durham University in 1998.

Joshua Roy Porter was a British Anglican priest, theologian and author. Having been chaplain and fellow of Oriel College, Oxford, from 1949 to 1962, he was Professor of Theology at the University of Exeter from 1962 to 1986.

References

  1. ↑ "John Barton". Massachusetts Bible Society . Archived from the original on 20 July 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Barton, Rev. Prof. John". Who's Who 2018 . Oxford University Press. 1 December 2017. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.6714. ISBN   978-0-19-954088-4.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "John Barton" . Crockford's Clerical Directory (online ed.). Church House Publishing . Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "john.Barton". Campion Hall. University of Oxford. Archived from the original on 25 July 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  5. ↑ J., Barton (1974). The relation of God to ethics in the eighth century prophets. E-Thesis Online Service (Ph.D). The British Library Board. Archived from the original on 25 July 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 "British Academy - Elections to the Fellowship - British Academy". britac.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  7. ↑ Leverhulme Trust Staff (January 2010). "The Leverhulme Trust Newsletter [Major Research Fellowships, Humanities: Professor John Barton]" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "Emeritus Fellows". Oriel College. University of Oxford. 6 January 2016. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  9. 1 2 "University of Oxford, Theology Faculty - Prof. John Barton (Emeritus)". ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  10. ↑ "Oxford University Press - Annual Report HomePage". Global.oup.com. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  11. ↑ De Gruyter Company, Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft (Supplements to the Journal for Old Testament Scholarship) at http://www.degruyter.com/view/serial/16135. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Modern Church Staff (11 April 2015). "Editorial board". modernchurch.org.uk. Archived from the original on 23 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  13. ↑ Anthony Wollard, “Mind the Gap” in Signs of the Times, No. 42 - July 2011, see "Modern Church - - Mind the gap". Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015..
  14. ↑ Anthony Woollard, ”Endings and Beginnings” in Signs of the Times, No. 49 - April 2013, see "Modern Church - - Endings and beginnings". Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.. Accessed September 22, 2015,
  15. ↑ "Gruppe 8: Religionsvitenskap og teologi" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. Archived from the original on 3 September 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2011.
  16. ↑ "2008 - British Academy". britac.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  17. ↑ "Shortlist announced for £40k Wolfson History Prize". Books+Publishing. 30 April 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  18. ↑ Comerford, Ruth (1 April 2020). "John Barton wins 2019 Duff Cooper Prize". The Bookseller. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  19. ↑ "A History of the Bible by John Barton". BBC Online . Retrieved 30 December 2020.

Further reading

Academic offices
Preceded by Oriel and Laing Professor of
the Interpretation of Holy Scripture
1991–2014		Succeeded by
Non-profit organization positions
Preceded by President of Modern Church
2011–2013		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.