British theologian
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.
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
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 .
——— (1984). Reading the Old Testament: Method in Biblical Study . London & Philadelphia, PA: Darton, Longman & Todd & Westminster Press.
ISBN
9780664245559 .
OCLC
10507716 .
——— (1986). Oracles of God: Perceptions of Ancient Prophecy in Israel after the Exile . London: Darton, Longman & Todd.
ISBN
9780232516661 .
OCLC
16922767 .
——— (1989). Love Unknown: Meditations on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus . London: SPCK.
ISBN
9780281044405 .
OCLC
869153450 .
——— (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 .
——— (1991). What is the Bible? . London: SPCK.
ISBN
9780281045280 .
OCLC
927643761 .
——— (1995). Isaiah 1-39 . Old Testament Guides. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press.
ISBN
9781850755418 .
OCLC
463409488 .
——— (1997). The Spirit and the Letter: Studies in the Biblical Canon . London: SPCK.
ISBN
9780281050116 .
OCLC
475988728 .
——— (1997). Making the Christian Bible . London: Darton, Longman & Todd.
ISBN
9780232517873 .
OCLC
38040897 . - American edition How the Bible came to be
——— (1998). Ethics and the Old Testament . London: SCM Press.
ISBN
9780334027188 .
OCLC
925328303 .
——— (2001). Joel and Obadiah: A Commentary . Old Testament Library. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.
ISBN
9780664219666 .
OCLC
46685175 .
——— (2003). Understanding Old Testament Ethics . Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.
ISBN
9780664225964 .
OCLC
491719760 .
——— (2005). Living Belief: Being Christian, Being Human . London: Continuum.
ISBN
9780826488510 .
OCLC
60590135 .
——— (2007). The Nature of Biblical Criticism . Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.
ISBN
9780664225872 .
OCLC
1056607006 .
——— (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 .
——— (2012). The Theology of the Book of Amos . Old Testament Theology. New York & Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
ISBN
9780521855778 .
OCLC
809074127 .
——— (2014). Ethics in Ancient Israel . Oxford: Oxford University Press.
ISBN
9780199660438 .
OCLC
902755851 .
——— (2019). A History of the Bible: The Story of the World's Most Influential Book . New York: Viking.
ISBN
9780525428770 .
OCLC
1110588094 .
——— (2022). The Word: On Translations of the Bible . London: Allen Lane.
ISBN
9780241448816 .
OCLC
1350405277 .
Joint authorship
———; Morgan, Robert (1988).
Biblical Interpretation . Oxford Bible series. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
ISBN
9780192132567 .
OCLC
862147418 .
———;
Bowden, Julia (2004). The Original Story: God, Israel and the World . London: Darton, Longman & Todd.
ISBN
9780232524857 .
OCLC
255303000 .
Edited
———;
Balentine, Samuel E. , eds. (1994). Language, Theology, and the Bible: Essays in Honour of James Barr . Oxford: Clarendon Press.
ISBN
9780198261919 .
OCLC
907242123 .
———;
Reimer, David J. , eds. (1996). After the Exile: Essays in Honour of Rex Mason . Macon, GA: Mercer University Press.
ISBN
9780865545243 .
OCLC
35317733 .
———, ed. (1998). The Cambridge Companion to Biblical Interpretation . Cambridge Companions to Religion. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
ISBN
9780521485937 .
OCLC
864267009 .
———;
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
———;
Muddiman, John , eds. (2001). The Oxford Bible Commentary . Oxford: Oxford University Press.
ISBN
9780199277186 .
OCLC
870267288 .
———, ed. (2002). The Biblical World . Vol. 1. New York & London: Routledge.
ISBN
9780415275736 .
OCLC
659913169 .
———;
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 .
———;
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 .
———, ed. (2004). The Biblical World . Vol. 2. New York & London: Routledge.
ISBN
9780415275743 .
OCLC
659913172 .
———;
Stavrakopoulou, Francesca , eds. (2010). Religious Diversity in Ancient Israel and Judah . London: T & T Clark International.
ISBN
9780567032164 .
OCLC
876469857 .
———, ed. (2016). The Hebrew Bible: a Critical Companion . Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press.
ISBN
9780691154718 .
OCLC
953843897 .
Festschrift
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]
References
^
"John Barton" .
Massachusetts Bible Society . Archived from
the original on 20 July 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017 .
^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
"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 .
^
a
b
c
d
e
"John Barton" .
Crockford's Clerical Directory (online ed.).
Church House Publishing . Retrieved 21 December 2017 .
^
a
b
c
d
"john.Barton" . Campion Hall . University of Oxford. Archived from
the original on 25 July 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2017 .
^ J., Barton (1974).
The relation of God to ethics in the eighth century prophets . E-Thesis Online Service (Ph.D). The British Library Board. Retrieved 21 December 2017 .
^
a
b
c
"British Academy - Elections to the Fellowship - British Academy" . britac.ac.uk . Archived from
the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016 .
^ 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 .
^
"Emeritus Fellows" . Oriel College . University of Oxford. 6 January 2016. Archived from
the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017 .
^
a
b
"University of Oxford, Theology Faculty - Prof. John Barton (Emeritus)" . ox.ac.uk . Retrieved 11 April 2016 .
^
"Oxford University Press - Annual Report HomePage" . Global.oup.com. Archived from
the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015 .
^ 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.
^
a
b
c
d Modern Church Staff (11 April 2015).
"Editorial board" . modernchurch.org.uk . Archived from
the original on 23 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016 .
^ 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 . .
^ 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,
^
"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 .
^
"2008 - British Academy" . britac.ac.uk . Archived from
the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016 .
^
"Shortlist announced for £40k Wolfson History Prize" . Books+Publishing . 30 April 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020 .
^ Comerford, Ruth (1 April 2020).
"John Barton wins 2019 Duff Cooper Prize" . The Bookseller . Retrieved 14 May 2021 .
^
"A History of the Bible by John Barton" .
BBC Online . Retrieved 30 December 2020 .
Further reading
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