Richard Alan Burridge (born 11 June 1955) is a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

priest, biblical scholar and a former Dean of King's College London.

Early life and education

Burridge was born on 11 June 1955 to Alan Burridge and Iris Joyce Burridge (''née'' Coates). Burridge played guitar in the band Exousia in the 1970s, and continues to record as a solo artist. He was educated at

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

where he received an MA and the

University of Nottingham , mottoeng = A city is built on wisdom , established = 1798 – teacher training college1881 – University College Nottingham1948 – university status , type = Public , chancellor ...

where he read for a PhD. His doctoral thesis on the genre of the gospels was published in 1992 as ''What are the Gospels? A Comparison with Graeco-Roman Biography''. It played a part in establishing that the Gospels were read as biographies in the first centuries after Christ, and that they belonged to a recognised literary genre of biographies rather than being unprecedented writings which reflected the faith and life of the post-Easter church.

Career

Early career

Burridge's early career was as a school teacher. From 1978 to 1982, he was a

schoolmaster The word schoolmaster, or simply master, refers to a male school teacher. This usage survives in British independent schools, both secondary and preparatory, and a few Indian boarding schools (such as The Doon School) that were modelled afte ...

teaching classics and a house tutor at

Sevenoaks School Sevenoaks School is a highly selective coeducational independent school in Sevenoaks, Kent, England. It is the second oldest non-denominational school in the United Kingdom, dating back to 1432, only behind Oswestry (1407). Over 1,000 day pupils ...

, an independent school in

Sevenoaks Sevenoaks is a town in Kent with a population of 29,506 situated south-east of London, England. Also classified as a civil parish, Sevenoaks is served by a commuter main line railway into London. Sevenoaks is from Charing Cross, the traditio ...

, Kent.

Ordained ministry

Burridge trained for the Anglican priesthood at

St John's College, Nottingham St John's College, Nottingham, founded as the London College of Divinity, was an Anglican and interdenominational theological college situated in Bramcote, Nottingham, England. The college stood in the open evangelical tradition and stated that i ...

. He was ordained deacon in 1985 and priest in 1986 and was curate at St Peter and St Paul, Bromley, Kent (1985–1987).

Academic career

Burridge was Dean of King's College London 1994–2019, and he was elected as a

Fellow of King's College King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

( FKC) in 2002. From 2007 to 2012, he was Director of

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

Studies, and in 2008 he was appointed to a Personal Chair in Biblical Interpretation. He was a member of the

General Synod The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly, is the legislative body of the Church of ...

, and chaired their validation panel for

ordination training Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...

and

theological education 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 s ...

(1996–2004); he is currently serving as a representative of the Church Commissioners and as deputy chair on the Church of England's Ethical Investment Advisory Group. He was a trustee of

Cumberland Lodge Cumberland Lodge is a 17th-century Grade II listed country house in Windsor Great Park 3.5 miles south of Windsor Castle. Since 1947 it has been occupied by the charitable foundation known as Cumberland Lodge, which holds residential conferences ...

between 1998 and 2008.

Role at King's College London

The Dean of King's College London is an ordained person responsible for overseeing the spiritual development and welfare of all students and staff as well as fostering vocations among the worshipping community. When King's was founded in 1829 it was with the express purpose of ensuring that its students received an education that took seriously the religious dimension to life. Throughout the history of King's its deans have been key people in ensuring this continues. The college motto, ''sancte et sapienter'' ("with holiness and with wisdom"), reflects both the college's Anglican foundation and its continuing commitment to religious life and theological education. The modern-day King's includes members from a wide array of backgrounds, cultures and faiths. Today the dean is responsible for the university's provision for its diverse religious community. Richard Burridge retired as Dean of King's College London in 2019.

Personal life

In 1979, Burridge married Susan Morgan; they divorced in 2009. Together they had two daughters. In 2014, he married Megan Warner.

Selected publications

Books

* - revision of his doctoral thesis. * * * * * *

Articles and chapters

* * * *

References

External links

King's College London Staff Profile

"The King's Values: Consumer Culture and Higher Education"
Dean's first inaugural lecture pdf transcript ("''cogito ergo sum''" being replaced by "''tesco ergo sum''")
"(Re-) tell me the old, old Story: Narrative, Genre and the Bible"
second Professorship inaugural lecture podcast (moralism of "''the Bible says''" as genre-mistake, scripture's library of diverse texts properly seen as "The Books" rich in diversity) {{DEFAULTSORT:Burridge, Richard Alan Living people 1955 births Alumni of University College, Oxford Deans of King's College London Academics of King's College London 21st-century English theologians British biblical scholars 20th-century English Anglican priests Alumni of St John's College, Nottingham Anglican biblical scholars 21st-century Christian biblical scholars Fellows of King's College London Ratzinger Prize laureates