Oliver O'Donovan

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Oliver O'Donovan

Oliver O'Donovan (cropped).png
O'Donovan giving a talk in 2023
Born
Oliver Michael Timothy O'Donovan

(1945-06-28) 28 June 1945 (age 78)
London, England
Spouse
Joan Lockwood O'Donovan
(m. 1978)
Parents
Ecclesiastical career
Religion Christianity (Anglican)
Church Church of England
Ordained
  • 1972 (deacon)
  • 1973 (priest)
Academic background
Alma mater Wycliffe Hall, Oxford
Thesis The Problem of Self-Love in St. Augustine (1975)
Doctoral advisor
Influences Augustine of Hippo [1]
Notable students John Hughes
Influenced James K. A. Smith [2]

Oliver Michael Timothy O'Donovan FRSE FBA (born 28 June 1945) is a British Anglican priest and academic, known for his work in the field of Christian ethics. He has also made contributions to political theology, both contemporary and historical. He was Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at the University of Oxford from 1982 to 2006, and Professor of Christian Ethics and Practical Theology at the University of Edinburgh from 2006 to 2013.

Contents

Early life and education

O'Donovan was born on 28 June 1945. [3] He is the son of Joan Knape and Michael Francis O'Donovan (1906–1966), better known as Frank O'Connor, eminent Irish writer of short stories and memoirs. [4]

His doctoral thesis on the problem of self-love in Augustine of Hippo was completed under both Henry Chadwick at Oxford and Paul Ramsey at Princeton.

Career

Ordained ministry

O'Donovan was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon in 1972 and as a priest in 1973. [5] A scholar-priest, he has never undertaken parish ministry. [3] [5] He was a Canon Residentiary of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, from 1982 to 2006. [5] He served on the General Synod of the Church of England from 2005 to 2006. [3] Since November 2015, he has been a Canon Provincial (of the Province of York) and the Provincial Theologian at York Minster. [6] He has also held permission to officiate in the Diocese of York since 2015. [5]

O'Donovan has been active in ecumenical dialogue. He was part of the Anglican–Orthodox Joint Doctrinal Discussions from 1982 to 1984, and a member of the Anglican–Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) from 1985 to 1990. [3]

Academic career

O'Donovan taught at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford (1972–1977), and at Wycliffe College, Toronto (1977–1982). He was Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology and Canon of Christ Church at the University of Oxford (1982–2006). He then held the post of Professor of Christian Ethics and Practical Theology at the School of Divinity, New College, Edinburgh (2006–2013), and was an associate director of the Centre for Theology and Public Issues. He is a past President of the Society for the Study of Christian Ethics. [7]

In 2001 he delivered the Stob Lectures at Calvin Theological Seminary. [8] In 2007 he delivered the New College Lectures at New College, University of New South Wales. [9] O'Donovan cites these New College Lectures as his first opportunity to explore the ideas that would become his "Ethics as Theology" trilogy of books. [10] In 2008 he delivered a lecture at Princeton Theological Seminary upon receiving the Abraham Kuyper Prize for Excellence in Reformed Theology and Public Life. [11]

In 2021, he delivered the Gifford Lectures on The Disappearance of Ethics at the University of St Andrews. [12] O'Donovan has held distinguished visiting lectureships in the universities of Durham and Cambridge, the Gregorian University in Rome, McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, the University of Hong Kong, and Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California.

Personal life

In 1978 he married Joan Lockwood O'Donovan. They have jointly authored two books on the history of Christian political thought, and have two sons, Matthew and Paul.

Honours

He has been a Fellow of the British Academy since 2000 and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh since 2009. [13] In 2023, he received an honorary doctorate from the Swiss private university STH Basel. [14]

Publications

Books

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References

  1. 1 2 Phillips, Elizabeth (2012). Political Theology: A Guide for the Perplexed. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark (published 2013). p. 52. ISBN   978-0-567-25926-4.
  2. Leeman, Jonathan (5 January 2018). "Doing Political Theology, Waiting for King Jesus". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "O'Donovan, Rev. Canon Oliver Michael Timothy" . Who's Who . A & C Black. 2019. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U28763 . Retrieved 22 January 2023.(Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. McLaughlin, Brighid. "Perfectly Frank". Irish Independent . Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Oliver Michael Timothy O'Donovan" . Crockford's Clerical Directory (online ed.). Church House Publishing . Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  6. "Admission of Six new Canons Provincial". Diocese of York. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  7. "Edinburgh University Divinity School: Prof. Oliver O'Donovan". University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
  8. "Past Stob Lectures". Calvin Theological Seminary. Archived from the original on 7 September 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2008.
  9. "New College Lectures". New College, Sydney. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  10. O'Donovan, Oliver (2013). Self, World, and Time. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing CO. pp. xii. ISBN   978-0-8028-6921-0.
  11. "Awards and Prizes". Princeton Theological Seminary. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  12. "The St Andrews Gifford Lectures". st-andrews.ac.uk. University of St Andrews.
  13. "2 March 2009 Press Release" (PDF). Royal Society of Edinburgh. Retrieved 14 February 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  14. "Ehrenpromotion für Professor Dr. Oliver O'Donovan an der STH Basel". 23 March 2023.
  15. "Finding and Seeking - Oliver O'Donovan". Eerdmans. 30 November 2014. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  16. "Self, World, and Time - Oliver O'Donovan". Eerdmans. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
Academic offices
Preceded by Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology
1982–2006
Succeeded by