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Richard Bauckham

Richard Bauckham
FRSE FBA
Born (1946-09-22) 22 September 1946 (age 78)
London, England
TitleRetired Professor of New Testament Studies and Bishop Wardlaw Professor in the University of St Andrews
Parent(s)John Robert Bauckham (1911–1980) and Stephiana Lilham (Lilian) (1911–1998)
Academic background
Alma materClare College, University of Cambridge
Thesis (1972)
Academic work
InstitutionsRidley Hall, Cambridge
Main interestsNew Testament Christology and the Gospel of John
Notable worksJesus and the Eyewitnesses

Richard John Bauckham FRSE FBA[1] (/ˈbɔːkəm/; born 22 September 1946) is an English Anglican scholar in theology, historical theology and New Testament studies, specialising in New Testament Christology and the Gospel of John. He is a senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge.

In 2006, Bauckham published his most widely-read work Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, a book that defends the historical reliability of the gospels. Bauckham argues that the synoptic gospels are based "quite closely" on the testimony of eyewitnesses, and the Gospel of John is written by an eyewitness. This opposes the view that the four gospels were written later and not via interviews with direct eyewitnesses, but were rather the result of a longer chain of transmission of stories of Jesus filtered through early Christian communities over time.

The book was well-received, earning the 2007 Christianity Today book award in biblical studies and the Michael Ramsey Prize in 2009. Bauckham updated and expanded the book to respond to critics in a second edition, published in 2017.

Life and career

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Bauckham was born in London and studied at the University of Cambridge, where he read history at Clare College (1966–72) and was a fellow of St John's College (1972–75). He taught theology for one year at the University of Leeds and for fifteen years at the University of Manchester from 1977–1992. At Manchester, he was the Lecturer in the History of Christian Thought. Bauckham moved to the University of St Andrews in 1992 to be a Professor of New Testament Studies and the named professorship of Bishop Wardlaw Professor. He retired in 2007 in order to concentrate on research and writing.

He is a fellow of the British Academy and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Bauckham is a senior scholar at Ridley Hall in Cambridge, and a visiting professor at St Mellitus College in London.

Research and teaching areas

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Bauckham has been published in a variety of fields in New Testament studies and early Christianity. He has also published on the theology of the German theologian Jürgen Moltmann. His current research interests include Jesus and the Gospels, New Testament Christology, and the relevance of the Bible to ecological issues.

He gave the Sarum Lectures for 2006 on "Beyond Stewardship: The Bible and the Community of Creation". He also gave a series of the Scottish Journal of Theology Lectures in Aberdeen on "The Gospels as History: Comparisons with Ancient and Modern Historiography".

Honours

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Works

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Books

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Chapters

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Journal articles

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Festschrift

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References

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  1. ^ The cambridge university calendar : for the year, 1973-74. [London]: Cambridge University Press. 1974. p. 81. ISBN 0521203961. OCLC 650401611.
  2. ^ "BURKITT MEDAL FOR BIBLICAL STUDIES 2008". Prizes and medals. British Academy. Archived from the original on 8 November 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
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