Simon Andrew Oliver (born 2 October 1971) is a British

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, theologian, and academic. He was formerly

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 ...

of Philosophical Theology at the University of Nottingham, he is now the Van Mildert Professor of Divinity at the University of Durham. Oliver is also on staff with the Centre of Theology and Philosophy.

Early life and education

Oliver was born on 2 October 1971. He studied philosophy, politics and economics at Mansfield College, Oxford, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1993; as per tradition, his BA was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Oxon) degree in 1998. In 1995, he matriculated into Westcott House, Cambridge, an Anglican theological college in the Liberal Catholic tradition, to train for Holy Orders. During this time, he also studied theology at

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 ...

, graduating with a further BA degree in 1997; as per tradition, his BA was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Cantab) degree in 2000. Having left theological college in 1998, Oliver continued his studies, undertaking postgraduate studies at Peterhouse. His doctoral supervisor was

Catherine Pickstock Catherine Jane Crozier Pickstock (born 1970) is an English philosophical theologian. Best known for her contributions to the radical orthodoxy movement, she has been Norris-Hulse Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge since 2018 an ...

, and his doctoral thesis was titled ''The God of Motion: Theological Physics from Plato to Newton with a Particular Emphasis on the Work of St. Thomas Aquinas''. He completed his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 2003.

Ordained ministry and academic career

Oliver was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon in 1998 and as a priest in 1999 for the

Diocese of Ely The Diocese of Ely is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury. It is headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in Ely. There is one suffragan (subordinate) bishop, the Bishop of Huntingdon. The diocese now co ...

. From 1998 to 2001, he served his curacy as a non-stipendiary minister at All Saints,

Teversham Teversham is a small village in Cambridgeshire located roughly from Fulbourn, and is roughly from the centre of Cambridge. It is small compared to neighbouring villages. Although just a few hundred metres from the edge of Cambridge it is bord ...

and

St Andrew's Church, Cherry Hinton St Andrew's Church, Cherry Hinton is a Church of England parish church in Cherry Hinton, Cambridge. It is Grade I listed. The building dates from the late 12th century with a 13th-century chancel. It was constructed using locally available flin ...

. From 2001 to 2004, he was the

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...

of Hertford College, Oxford. In 2005, he joined the University of Wales, Lampeter, as a

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 ...

in theology. He was promoted to senior lecturer in 2006. In 2009, Oliver moved to the University of Nottingham where he had been appointed

Philosophical Theology Philosophical theology is both a branch and form of theology in which philosophical methods are used in developing or analyzing theological concepts. It therefore includes natural theology as well as philosophical treatments of orthodox and heter ...

. In November 2010, it was announced that he had been additionally appointed

Canon Theologian A canon (from the Latin , itself derived from the Greek , , "relating to a rule", "regular") is a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, i ...

of Southwell Minster; he was installed during a service at the minster on 13 February 2011. He became Head of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Nottingham in 2013. In February 2015, it was announced that Oliver would be the next Van Mildert Professor of Divinity at the University of Durham. He moved to Durham to take up the appointment in September 2015. As such, he also became a Residentiary Canon of

Durham Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of t ...

, and was installed during Evensong on 20 September 2015. He gave the 2017 Stanton Lectures at the University of Cambridge; the series was be titled "Creation's Ends: Teleology, Ethics and the Natural".

Views

Oliver is a notable member of the theological sensibility known as

radical orthodoxy Radical orthodoxy is a Christian theological and philosophical school of thought which makes use of postmodern philosophy to reject the paradigm of modernity. The movement was founded by John Milbank and others and takes its name from the title ...

. He organised the 2013 Centre for Theology and Philosophy conference: The Soul, held at

St Anne's College, Oxford St Anne's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 and gained full college status in 1959. Originally a women's college, it has admitted men since 1979. It has some 450 undergraduate and 200 ...

Personal life

Oliver is married and has two sons.

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, Simon 1971 births 21st-century English Anglican priests Academics of Durham University Academics of the University of Nottingham Alumni of Mansfield College, Oxford Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Alumni of Westcott House, Cambridge British Anglican theologians Living people