François Bovon (13 March 1938 – 1 November 2013) was a Swiss biblical scholar and historian of early Christianity. He was the Frothingham Professor Emeritus of the History of Religion at
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...
. Bovon was a graduate of the
University of Lausanne
The University of Lausanne (UNIL; french: links=no, Université de Lausanne) in Lausanne, Switzerland was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzer ...
and held a doctorate in theology from the
University of Basel
The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...
(supervised by
Oscar Cullmann
Oscar Cullmann (25 February 1902, Strasbourg – 16 January 1999, Chamonix) was a French Lutheran theologian. He is best known for his work in the ecumenical movement and was partly responsible for the establishment of dialogue between the Luther ...
). From 1967 to 1993, he taught in the Faculty of Theology at the
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...
. Bovon was an honorary professor at the
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...
and in 1993 he received an
honorary doctorate
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...
from the Faculty of
Theology at
Uppsala University
Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation.
The university rose to significance during ...
,
Sweden. He was president of the Swiss Society of Theology from 1973 to 1977 and president of the
Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas in 2000.
Bovon was the author of numerous books on early Christianity, and co-edited the first volume of ''Écrits apocryphes chrétiens'' in the series La Pléiade (published by Gallimard).
Catalogue of La Pléiade.
/ref> He also wrote several books on Luke the Evangelist and the Gospel of Luke, including a major critical commentary (in the series EKK).
Select publications
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bovon, Francois
1938 births
People from Lausanne
Swiss Protestant theologians
Swiss historians of religion
Swiss biblical scholars
New Testament scholars
University of Lausanne alumni
University of Basel alumni
University of Geneva faculty
Harvard Divinity School faculty
2013 deaths