FBA
Regius Chair In Humanity
- 51cg
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- Email Address
- john.behr@abdn.ac.uk
- Office Address
- School/Department
- School of Divinity, History, Philosophy & Art History
Biography
I was appointed to the Regius Chair in Humanity at the 51cg in the summer of 2020, having taught at St Vladimir’s Seminary since 1995, serving there as Dean from 2007–17. My early work was on asceticism and anthropology, focusing on St Irenaeus of Lyons and Clement of Alexandria (OUP 2000). I am writing a series of books on “The Formation of Christian Theology”, two volumes of which have already appeared: vol. 1, The Way to Nicaea (SVS Press 2001) and vol. 2 The Nicene Faith (SVS Press 2003). On the basis of these two volumes, I published a synthetic work, The Mystery of Christ: Life in Death (SVS 2006). This was followed by an edition and translation of the fragments of Diodore of Tarsus and Theodore of Mopsuestia, setting them in their historical and theological context (OUP 2011). More recently I have published a more poetic and meditative work entitled Becoming Human: Theological Anthropology in Word and Image (SVS Press, 2013) and a full study of St Irenaeus: St Irenaeus of Lyons: Identifying Christianity (OUP, 2013). Most recently I have completed a new critical edition and translation of Origen’s On First Principles, together with an extensive introduction, for OUP (2017), and John the Theologian and His Paschal Gospel: A Prologue to Theology (OUP 2019).
Ask about Graduate Programmes in New Testament and Early Christianity
I teach on a number of graduate-level courses, on campus and online. If you would like to get involved and find out more, get in touch here
- Research
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Research Overview
My research interests cover the wide range of Early Christianity (Patristics), especially scriptural interpretation and anthropology, questions of life and death, and the hermeneutics of reading texts, together with the intersection of issues arising from this field with contemporary hermeneutics and phenomenology (especially that of Michel Henry), as well as modern Eastern Orthodox theology.
Current Research
I am currently working on a new edition and translation of On the Making of the Human Being by Gregory of Nyssa and a new edition and translation of the works of Irenaeus; I am also preparing a study on the intersection of Christology, ecclesiology, and anthropology.
- Publications
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Book Symposium on Gregory of Nyssa’s On the Human Image of God: An Appreciation of Responses
International Journal of Systematic Theology, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 188-196Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Speaking of Incarnation: Modern Predicaments and Ancient Paradigms
The God Who is For Us: Explorations in Constructive Dogmatics. Crisp, O. D., Nimmo, P. T. (eds.). Zondervan Academic, pp. 117–135, 19 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE]
In Accordance with the Scriptures: The Shape of Christian Theology
Wipf & Stock. 164 pagesBooks and Reports: Books- [ONLINE]
The Time of the Word: Radner and the Two-Testament Bible
Figural Reading and the Fleshly God: The Theology of Ephraim Radner. Baylor University Press, pp. 89–104Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE]
The exegetical dimensions of the Nicene debate
International Journal of Philosophy and Theology, vol. 86, no. 2-4, pp. 96-107Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Holman Hunt’s The Light of the World and Iconography: “In Your Light We See Light”
Holman Hunt and The Light of the World in Oxford. Bockmuehl, M. (ed.). 1st edition. Routledge, pp. 137–49, 13 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE] DOI:
Unveiling Scripture: Creation in an Apocalyptic Key
T&T Clark Handbook of the Doctrine of Creation. Goroncy, J. (ed.). T&T Clark, pp. 545–57, 13 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE] DOI:
Becoming Human in a Technological World
Human Flourishing in a Technological World: A Theological Perspective. Zimmermann, J. (ed.). Oxford University Press, pp. 116-130, 15 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Personhood, Consciousness, and Technology: A Dialogue with Jaron Lanier
Human Flourishing in a Technological World: A Theological Perspective. Oxford University Press, pp. 305-324, 20 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Seeing, Embodying, and Proclaiming Christ
International Journal of Systematic Theology, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 413-424Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Nature makes an ascent from the Lower to the Higher: Gregory of Nyssa on Human Distinctiveness
Zygon, vol. 58, no. 2, pp. 539-553Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Nos traditions théologiques revisitées pour faire face au défi écologique
Recherches de Science Religieuse, vol. 111, no. 2, pp. 247-257Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Gregory of Nyssa: On the Human Image of God
Oxford University Press (OUP), Oxford. 384 pagesBooks and Reports: Books- [ONLINE]
‘For this reason the Father loves me’: Drawing Divinity into Himself to Minister Divinity to us
International Journal of Systematic Theology, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 47-59Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Our Mother Church: Mary and Ecclesiology
International Journal for the Study of the Christian Church, vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 333-344Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
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From Adam to Christ: From Male and Female to Being Human
Orthodox Tradition and Human Sexuality. Arentzen, T., Purpura, A. M., Papanikolaou, A. (eds.). Fordham University Press, pp. 303-319, 13 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Humanity: from Part I - Doctrines
The New Cambridge Companion to Christian Doctrine. Allen, M. (ed.). Cambridge University Press, pp. 37-52, 16 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
Irenaeus' Gratitude and Derrida's Gift: Time, Death, Life
Philosophy, Theology and the Sciences, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 519-36Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI:
Reading from the End, Looking Forward
Oxford Handbook of the Bible in Orthodox Christianity. Pentiuc, E. (ed.). Oxford University Press (OUP), pp. 519-538, 19 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
'beloved disciple'
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Dialogue of the Redeemer
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Didymus the Blind (c.313-98)
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Gnosticism
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI:
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Irenaeus, St (c.130-c.200)
The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Louth, A. (ed.). 4 edition. Oxford University Press, pp. 980-981, 2 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
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James, St, 'the Less'
The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 4 edition. Oxford University Press, pp. 993, 1 pageChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI:
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