Michael Ward (born 6 January 1968) is an English literary critic and theologian. His academic focus is theological imagination, especially in the writings of

C.S. Lewis CS, C-S, C.S., Cs, cs, or cs. may refer to: Job titles * Chief Secretary (Hong Kong) * Chief superintendent, a rank in the British and several other police forces * Company secretary, a senior position in a private sector company or public se ...

J.R.R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...

, and

G.K. Chesterton Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936) was an English writer, philosopher, Christian apologist, and literary and art critic. He has been referred to as the "prince of paradox". Of his writing style, ''Time'' observed: "Wh ...

. He is best known for his book '' Planet Narnia'', in which he argues that C.S. Lewis structured '' The Chronicles of Narnia'' so as to embody and express the imagery of the seven heavens. On the fiftieth anniversary of Lewis's death, Ward unveiled a permanent national memorial to him in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey. Ward was born in

Cuckfield Cuckfield ( ) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Mid Sussex District, Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeas ...

, West Sussex. He studied at

Regent's Park College Regent's Park College (known colloquially within the university as Regent's) is a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford, situated in central Oxford, just off St Giles'. Founded in 1810, the college moved to its present site in ...

, Oxford,

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite ...

, and the University of St Andrews. He is currently an Associate Member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford, and Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. He was Senior Research Fellow at

Blackfriars Hall Blackfriars Priory (formally the Priory of the Holy Spirit) is a Dominican religious community in Oxford, England. It houses two educational institutions: Blackfriars Studium, the centre of theological studies of the English Province of the D ...

, University of Oxford (2012-2021). Ward trained for the Anglican ministry at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, and was ordained a priest in the Church of England in 2005. He served as Chaplain of Peterhouse, Cambridge (2004-2007) and Chaplain of St Peter's College, Oxford (2009-2012). He joined the Catholic Church in 2012, and was ordained a priest within the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in June 2018. Ward played the part of C.S. Lewis's vicar in ''The Most Reluctant Convert.'' He has been an extra in a number of films and television dramas, including a speaking role in ''A Very Open Prison'' and a featured cameo in '' The World Is Not Enough''.

Bibliography

Books

* ''After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man'', Word on Fire Academic, 2021. * ''C.S. Lewis at Poets' Corner'' (edited with Peter S. Williams), Wipf & Stock, 2016. * ''The Cambridge Companion to C.S. Lewis'' (edited with Robert MacSwain), Cambridge University Press, 2010. * ''Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis'', Oxford University Press, 2008. * ''Heresies and How to Avoid Them: Why it Matters What Christians Believe'' (edited with Ben Quash), Hendrickson, 2007.

Essays

* "An Experiment in Charity: C.S. Lewis on Love in the Literary Arts" in ''The Inklings and Culture'' (ed. Monika B. Hilder et al), Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2020. * "Afterword: A Brief History of the Oxford C.S. Lewis Society" in ''C.S. Lewis and His Circle: Essays and Memoirs from the Oxford C.S. Lewis Society'' (ed. Roger White, Judith Wolfe, and Brendan N. Wolfe), Oxford University Press, 2015. * "The Tragedy is in the Pity: C.S. Lewis and the Song of the Goat" in ''Christian Theology and Tragedy'' (eds. T. Kevin Taylor and Giles Waller), Ashgate, 2012. * "The Good Serves the Better and Both the Best: C.S. Lewis on Imagination and Reason in Apologetics" in ''Imaginative Apologetics: Theology, Philosophy and the Catholic Tradition'' (ed. Andrew Davison), SCM Press, 2011. * "C.S. Lewis" in ''The Heart of Faith: Following Christ in the Church of England'' (ed. Andrew Atherstone), Lutterworth, 2008. * "Christianity and Film" in ''Christ and Culture in Dialogue'' (ed. Angus Menuge), Concordia Academic Press, 1999.

References

External links

Official website of Michael Ward
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Michael 1968 births Living people People from Cuckfield Alumni of Regent's Park College, Oxford Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Alumni of Ridley Hall, Cambridge Alumni of the University of St Andrews Fellows of Blackfriars, Oxford Houston Christian University faculty 21st-century English Anglican priests Anglican priest converts to Roman Catholicism