John Hedley Brooke (born 1944) is a British
historian of science
The history of science covers the development of science from ancient times to the present. It encompasses all three major branches of science: natural, social, and formal.
Science's earliest roots can be traced to Ancient Egypt and Mesopo ...
specialising in the
relationship between science and religion
The relationship between religion and science involves discussions that interconnect the study of the natural world, history, philosophy, and theology. Even though the ancient and medieval worlds did not have conceptions resembling the modern ...
.
Biography
Born on 20 May 1944, Brooke is the son of Hedley Joseph Brooke, and Margaret Brooke, née Brown. He was educated at
King Edward VI Grammar School,
Retford
Retford (), also known as East Retford, is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England, and one of the oldest English market towns having been granted its first charter in 1105. It lies on the River Idle and the Chesterf ...
, then
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.
The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer academically excellent students of all ...
. On 30 August 1972, he married Janice Marian Heffer.
["Prof John Hedley Brooke." Debrett's People of Today. Debrett's Peerage Ltd., 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2009. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC]
Academic career
He was a Research Fellow at Fitzwilliam College from 1967 to 1968, then a Tutorial Fellow at the
University of Sussex
, mottoeng = Be Still and Know
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £14.4 million (2020)
, budget = £319.6 million (2019–20)
, chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar
, vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil
, ...
from 1968 to 1969. He was on the faculty of
Lancaster University
Lancaster University (legally The University of Lancaster) is a public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several pla ...
from 1969 to 1999, rising from
Lecturer
Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...
to Professor of History of Science. With Geoffrey Cantor he gave the
Gifford Lectures
The Gifford Lectures () are an annual series of lectures which were established in 1887 by the will of Adam Gifford, Lord Gifford. Their purpose is to "promote and diffuse the study of natural theology in the widest sense of the term – in o ...
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 1995. He was appointed the first Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion 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 1999, where he directed the
Ian Ramsey
Ian Thomas Ramsey (31 January 1915 – 6 October 1972) was a British Anglican bishop and academic. He was Professor of the Philosophy of Religion at the University of Oxford, and Bishop of Durham from 1966 until his death in 1972. He wrote e ...
Centre and was a Fellow of
Harris Manchester College, Oxford
Harris Manchester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It was founded in Warrington in 1757 as a college for Unitarian students and moved to Oxford in 1893. It became a full college of th ...
. After his retirement in 2006, he became an Emeritus Fellow of Harris Manchester College and was a Distinguished Fellow of the
Institute of Advanced Study in 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 ...
in 2007.
[
He was the editor of the ''British Journal for the History of Science'' from 1989 to 1993. He was the president of the ]British Society for the History of Science
The British Society for the History of Science (BSHS) was founded in 1947 by Francis Butler, Joan Eyles and Victor Eyles.
Overview
It is Britain's largest learned society devoted to the history of science, technology, and medicine. The society's ...
from 1996 to 1998, and has been the president of Science and Religion Forum since 2006.[ He was also the president of the ]International Society for Science and Religion
The International Society for Science and Religion (ISSR) is a learned society established in 2001 for the purpose of the promotion of education through the support of inter-disciplinary learning and research in the fields of science and religion c ...
(ISSR) from 2008 to 2011.Presidents
, International Society for Science and Religion
The International Society for Science and Religion (ISSR) is a learned society established in 2001 for the purpose of the promotion of education through the support of inter-disciplinary learning and research in the fields of science and religion c ...
. Retrieved on 2009-6-25 Brooke was subsequently made an Honorary Fellow (HonFISSR).
Evaluations of John Hedley Brooke's contribution to the historiography of "science and religion" can be found in: ''Science and Religion: New Historical Perspectives'' (ed. T Dixon, G N Cantor and S Pumfrey) 2010 and ''Rethinking History, Science and Religion: An Exploration of Conflict and the Complexity Principle'' (ed. B Lightman) 2019
Publications
Books
*'' Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives'' (1991 and 2014)
*''Thinking About Matter'' (1995)
*''Reconstructing Nature: The Engagement of Science and Religion'' (with G. N. Cantor, 1998)
*''Science in Theistic Contexts'' (ed. 2001)
*''Heterodoxy in Early Modern Science and Religion'' (ed. 2005)
*''Religious Values and the Rise of Science in Europe'' (ed. 2005)
*''Science & Religion around the World'' (ed. 2011)
Other publications number more than one hundred journal articles and book chapters including contributions to:The Cambridge Companion to Darwin; The Cambridge Companion to the "Origin of Species"; The Cambridge Companion to Science and Religion
The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Science; The Oxford Handbook of Nineteenth-Century British Philosophy; The Oxford Handbook of the Reception History of the Bible; The Oxford Handbook of Natural Theology (editorial consultant)
References
External links
*
Biography of Brooke
Institute of Advanced Study
Biography of Brooke
Gresham College
Gresham College is an institution of higher learning located at Barnard's Inn Hall off Holborn in Central London, England. It does not enroll students or award degrees. It was founded in 1596 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham, and hosts ove ...
Biography of Brooke
International Society for Science and Religion
The International Society for Science and Religion (ISSR) is a learned society established in 2001 for the purpose of the promotion of education through the support of inter-disciplinary learning and research in the fields of science and religion c ...
* Biographical Recorded history: Catalogue Ref: C1672/08 Hedley Brooke, John http://sounds.bl.uk/Oral-history/Science
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooke, John Hedley
1944 births
Academics of Durham University
Academics of Lancaster University
Academics of the University of Sussex
Alumni of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fellows of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fellows of Harris Manchester College, Oxford
Living people
Members of the International Society for Science and Religion
People educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Retford
Writers about religion and science