George Pattison (born 1950) is a retired English

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest. His last post prior to retirement was as Professor of Divinity at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. He was previously Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

. From 2017-2019 he was a Senior Co-Fund Fellow at the Max Weber Center at the University of Erfurt. He has also been an Affiliate Professor in Systematic Theology at the University of Copenhagen (2011 -) and an Honorary Professor in the Faculty of Theology at the University of St Andrew's (2021-)

Early life and education

He holds a

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD or BDiv; la, Baccalaureus Divinitatis) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology ...

and MA from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and a PhD from the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charte ...

Academic career

Pattison was Dean of the Chapel of

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

(1991–2001), and then an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a ...

at the

University of Århus Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra G ...

(2002–03). In 2004, Pattison succeeded

John Webster John Webster (c. 1580 – c. 1632) was an English Jacobean dramatist best known for his tragedies '' The White Devil'' and ''The Duchess of Malfi'', which are often seen as masterpieces of the early 17th-century English stage. His life and car ...

as Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

. He was also a Canon of

Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford Christ Church Cathedral is the cathedral of the Anglican diocese of Oxford, which consists of the counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. It is also the chapel of Christ Church, a college of the University of Oxford. This dual r ...

from 2004 to 2013. Pattison became 1640 Chair of Divinity at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 2013, succeeding Werner Jeanrond who then became Master of St Benet's Hall at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

in 2012. In 2017, Pattison gave the

Bampton Lectures The Bampton Lectures at the University of Oxford, England, were founded by a bequest of John Bampton. They have taken place since 1780. They were a series of annual lectures; since the turn of the 20th century they have typically been biennial ...

at the University of Oxford; the series was titled "A Phenomenology of the Devout Life". These have now been published as first of a three part 'Philosophy of Christian Life' under the same title. Parts 2 and 3 are entitled "A Rhetorics of the Word" and "A Metaphysics of Love". Pattison's works range from historical, theological and philosophical engagement with the critical reception of German Idealism in such figures as

Søren Kierkegaard Søren Aabye Kierkegaard ( , , ; 5 May 1813 – 11 November 1855) was a Danish theologian, philosopher, poet, social critic, and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote critical texts on ...

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centur ...

and

Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...

to theological studies of the aesthetics of film and the visual arts. His latest work has used existential phenomenology to explore themes of

ontology In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being, as well as related concepts such as existence, becoming, and reality. Ontology addresses questions like how entities are grouped into categories and which of these entities exis ...

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

and the meaning of

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

Selected works

* ''Art, Modernity and Faith'' (1991) * ''Kierkegaard: the Aesthetic and the Religious'' (1992) * ''Agnosis: Theology in the Void'' (1996) * ''Kierkegaard and the Crisis of Faith'' (1997) * ''The End of Theology and the Task of Thinking about God'' (1998) * ''Anxious Angels'' (1999) * ''The Later Heidegger'' (2000) * ''A Short Course in the Philosophy of Religion'' (2001) * ''Dostoevsky and the Christian Tradition'' (ed. with D.Thompson, 1991) * ''A Short Course in Christian Doctrine'' (2005) * ''The Philosophy of Kierkegaard'' (2005) * ''Thinking about God in an Age of Technology'' (2006) * ''Crucifixions and Resurrections of the Image: Reflections on Art and Modernity'' (SCM, 2009) * ''God and Being'' (OUP, 2011) * ''A Phenomenology of the Devout Life'' (OUP, 2018) * ''A Rhetorics of the Word' (OUP, 2019) * ''A Metaphysics of Love' (OUP, 2021)

References

Post vacant {{DEFAULTSORT:Pattison, George 1950 births 20th-century Anglican theologians 20th-century English Anglican priests 21st-century English theologians 21st-century Anglican theologians 21st-century English Anglican priests Alumni of Durham University Graduate Society English Anglican theologians Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford Fellows of King's College, Cambridge Lady Margaret Professors of Divinity Living people Systematic theologians

Early life and education

Academic career

Selected works

See also

References