James A. Knight, MD (October 20, 1918 – July 17, 1998) was a psychiatrist,

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 ...

, medical ethicist, and ordained

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

minister.

New Orleans Times Picayune ''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,

obituary, July 18, 1998. His principal contributions were in medical student development, the intersection of psychiatry and religion, ethical issues in medicine, and the understanding of conscience. Knight was born in St. George, South Carolina, on October 20, 1918. He graduated from

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...

and earned his MD at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

. He completed his post-graduate medical training at Grady Hospital in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

, and at

Duke University Hospital Duke University Hospital is a 957-acute care bed academic tertiary care facility located in Durham, North Carolina. Established in 1930, it is the flagship teaching hospital for the Duke University Health System, a network of physicians and hos ...

in Durham, North Carolina. Additionally, Knight completed a Master of Divinity Degree at Duke University and a Master of Public Health degree from Tulane University. Knight held the Harkness Chair in Psychiatry and Religion at Union Theological Seminary in New York.Albert C. Outler
Pastoral Psychology
vol. 14, no. 9, p. 4 (1963). He then served in a variety of administrative posts, including Dean of Admissions at

Tulane University School of Medicine The Tulane University School of Medicine is located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States and is a part of Tulane University. The school is located in the Medical District of the New Orleans Central Business District. History The school wa ...

, where he promoted the admission of people of diverse ethnic and educational backgrounds into medical school. Knight was the first Dean of the newly formed Texas A&M University College of Medicine, a post he held for five years (1973 - 1978).Texas State Historical Society
accessed April 6, 2012. He subsequently left university administrative posts to finish his career as a professor at Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans and return to the Texas A&M College of Medicine as professor from 1992 - 1997.Charles C. Sprague, foreword in "Doctor-To-Be: Coping with the Trials and Triumphs of Medical School", James A. Knight, Appleton-Century-Crofts, publishers, 1981, . Knight's many awards included the Distinguished Alumni Award from

in 1971,The National Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award of Wofford College
accessed March 20, 2012. and one for his leadership of the Society for Health and Human Values.The Society for Health and Human Values became part of th
American Society for Bioethics and Humanities
as of 1998. He was a member of the

Society for the Scientific Study of Religion The Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (founded in 1949) was formed to advance research in the social scientific perspective on religious institutions and experiences. The ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion'' is published by ...

. Knight earned a fellowship from the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

for study at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1961. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he served as a

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

Chaplain on the USS Sanctuary Haven-class hospital ship. He died on July 17, 1998, at the age of 79.

External links

James A. Knight Award for Leadership in Medicine

James A. Knight Chair of Humanities and Ethics in Medicine
at Tulane University School of Medicine. * A 196
photograph of Knight
can be viewed on-line.

Selected books

* "Doctor-To-Be: Coping with the Trials and Triumphs of Medical School", James A. Knight, Appleton-Century-Crofts, publishers, 1981, . * "A Psychiatrist Looks at Religion and Health", Abington Press, New York, 1964. * "For the Love of Money: Human Behavior and Money", J.B. Lippincott, Philadelphia, 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, James A. 1918 births 1998 deaths American psychiatrists Tulane University faculty Wofford College alumni Vanderbilt University School of Medicine alumni Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine alumni 20th-century American physicians People from St. George, South Carolina