James F. McGrath e-mail:
Butler University web page: http://blue.butler.edu/~jfmcgrat/
4600 Sunset Avenue blog: http://blue.butler.edu/~jfmcgrat/blog/
Indianapolis, IN 46208 Tel. (317) 940-9364
Qualifications and Studies:
Doctor of Philosophy
- University of Durham (awarded July 1998). Title: “John's Apologetic Christology: Legitimation and Development in Johannine Christology.” Supervisor: Prof. James Dunn.
Bachelor of Divinity
- University of London (awarded July 1995). 2:1 honors and second prize.
Cambridge Diploma in Religious studies
- University of Cambridge (awarded August 1993). With distinction.
Work Experience:
Present Employment:
Tenured and promoted to Associate Professor of Religion, Butler University, Indianapolis, February 2008
Assistant Professor of Religion, Butler University, Indianapolis, August 2002-present
Classes taught: The Bible; The Historical Jesus; The Gospel of John; The Book of Revelation; Paul and the Early Church; Heresy in Early Christianity; Religion and Science; Religion and Science Fiction; Religious Faith and Scientific Vocations Seminar; Change and Tradition: China and Islam; South Asian Civilizations
Part-time consultant, World Bible Translation Center, Fort Worth, Texas, August 2000-present
Previous Employment:
Classes taught: Semester 1: Biblical Interpretation, New Testament Background; Semester 2: New Testament Theology; Gospel of Matthew
Classes taught: Introductory New Testament Greek (2 semesters); Cross-Cultural Missions; Johannine Literature and General Epistles
Assistant Professor of New Testament, Emanuel University, Romania, September 1999 – May 2001.
Assistant Professor of New Testament, University of Oradea, Romania, September 1999 – May 2001.
Courses taught:
Semester 1: Intertestamental Period, New Testament Study (1) - Galatians, Elements of Biblical Linguistics, Exegesis in Greek (1): Romans 1-4
Semester 2: New Testament Study (2) - Matthew, Exegesis in Greek (2): Romans 5-8, New Testament Theology (2)
Summer program: Culture, Communication and the Christian Mission
Other duties: Supervision of final-year dissertations, coordination of timetable for full-time and part-time (distance learning) programs, curriculum development, coordination of Staff Theological Research Seminar, co-editor and part of editorial board for Emanuel University's theological journal Perichoresis.
Assistant Professor of New Testament, Emanuel Bible Institute of Oradea, Romania, 1998-1999 academic year.
Courses taught:
Semester 1: Intertestamental Period, New Testament Exegesis (1) - Galatians and Ephesians, Elements of Biblical Linguistics
Semester 2: New Testament Exegesis (2) - Matthew, Exegesis in Greek (2): Hebrews, New Testament Theology (2)
Summer program: Biblical Interpretation, New Testament Themes, Culture, Communication and the Christian Mission
Other duties: Supervision of final-year dissertations, planning of curriculum and development of distance learning program.
Academic Publications:
Books:
John's Apologetic Christology (SNTS Monograph Series, 111), Cambridge University Press, 2001.
[Paperback edition released 2004]
The Only True God: Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism (forthcoming from University of Illinois Press)
The Burial of Jesus: History and Faith (under review)
Articles and chapters:
“History and Fiction in the Acts of Thomas: The State of the Question” (under
review)
“Jesus as Prophet in the Testimonium Flavianum” (under review)
“Rebuilding the Temple – Jesus’ Timetable for the Dawn of a New Age?” (under
review)
“Androids and Atheism: An Exploration of Future Technology and Religious
Diversity” forthcoming in Religion, Science & Technology: Methods for the
Interpretation of Culture, edited by Robert M. Geraci.
“Artificial Minds and Human Religions: An illustration of the diversity of
possible intersections between religious thought and practice and
technological advances”, forthcoming in the proceedings of the conference
Transdisciplinary Approaches of the Dialogue between Science, Art and Religion
in the Europe of Tomorrow.
“Entuziasmul fără
cunoştiinţe este o problemă serioasă pentru religie”, interview published in Cătălin
Mosoia,
În dialog cu…despre
ştiinţă şi religie (Bucharest:
Curtea Veche, 2007) 129-139.
“Was Jesus Illegitimate?
The Evidence of His Social Interactions” Journal for the Study of the
Historical Jesus 5.1 (January 2007) 85-105.
“Jesus as 'False Prophet'” forthcoming in Who Do My Opponents Say That I
Am? Investigating the Accusations Against Jesus (Library of Historical
Jesus Studies), Scot McKnight and Joseph Modica (editors), T&T Clark, 2007.
“Of Robots, Rights and Religion: The Theology and Ethics of Artificial
Intelligence”, forthcoming in Religion and Science Fiction, ed. James
F. McGrath (SUNY Press).
“Temelia escatologică a soteriologiei pauline” in 'Care
Imparte Drept Cuvântul Adevarului'. Volum Omagial Ioan Bunaciu, ed.
Otniel Bunaciu, Radu Gheorghiţă
and Emil Bartoş
(Oradea: Editura Reformatio, 2005
ISBN
973-86076-5-5)
pp.75-84.
"Neo as Messianic Superhero of the Matrix" in
The Gospel According to
Superheroes, ed. B. J. Oropeza (Peter Lang, 2005)
""Two Powers" and Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism" (with Jerry Truex), Journal of Biblical Studies 4:1 (January 2004).
“The Desert of the Real: Christianity, Buddhism and Baudrillard in The Matrix and Popular Culture”, forthcoming in the conference proceedings to be edited by Marcus Leaning and Birgit Pretzsch (Inter-Disciplinary Press, 2004), and in an expanded form in a traditional-format book with the same editors from Rodopi Press.
“‘A Glutton and a Drunkard’? What Would Jesus Drink?”, Religion and Alcohol: Sobering Thoughts, ed. C. K. Robertson (Peter Lang, 2004).
“Religion, But Not as We Know It: Spirituality and Sci-Fi,” in Religion in Entertainment, ed. C. K. Robertson (Peter Lang: 2002).
“‘Două Puteri’ şi monoteismul timpuriu iudaic şi creştin” [“‘Two Powers’ and Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism”], Caietae Silvanae 1 (2002).
“Christology on Two Fronts: A New Testament Model for 'Doing' Christology in a Pluralistic Context,” Religion and Theology 6/1 (1999): 65-82.
“A Rebellious Son? Hugo Odeberg and the Interpretation of John 5.18,” New Testament Studies 44 (1998): 470-473.
“Change in Christology: New Testament Models and the Contemporary Task,” Irish Theological Quarterly 63/1 (1998): 39-50.
“Going Up and Coming Down in Johannine Legitimation,” Neotestamentica 31/1 (1997): 107-118
“Prologue as Legitimation: Christological Controversy and the Interpretation of John 1:1-18,” Irish Biblical Studies 19 (June 1997): 98-120.
“Uncontrived Messiah or Passover Plot? A Study of A Johannine Apologetic Motif,” Irish Biblical Studies 19 (January 1997): 2-16.
“A Survey of Recent Literature on the Fourth Gospel,” Theological Gathering 4 (Fall 1997) [http://private.fuller.edu/~talarm/iss4/iss4s1.html].
“Food for Thought: The Bread of Life Discourse (John 6:25-71) in Johannine Legitimation,” Theological Gathering 2 (Winter 1997) [http://private.fuller.edu/~talarm/iss2/iss2a4.html]
“Johannine Christianity - Jewish Christianity?” Koinonia VIII.1 (1996): 1-20.
Bibliographical:
With Jerry Truex, “Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism: A Select Bibliography”, in Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism, ed. Loren T. Stuckenbruck and Wendy E. S. North (JSNTSup 263); London/New York: T&T Clark (Continuum), 2004, pp.235-242.
Reviews:
Review of Larry W. Hurtado, The Earliest Christian Artifacts: Manuscripts and Christian Origins, Review of Biblical Literature [http://www.bookreviews.org] (September 2007).
Review of N. Clayton Croy, The Mutilation of Mark’s Gospel, Teaching Theology & Religion 9:1 (2006): 65-66.
Review of James C. VanderKam, The Dead Sea Scrolls Today, in Folia Orientalia 33 (1997): 235-237.
Review of Paul N. Anderson, The Christology of the Fourth Gospel: Its Unity and Disunity in the Light of John 6, in Theological Gathering 3 (1997) [http://private.fuller.edu/~talarm/iss3/iss3r2.html].
Review of John O'Neill, Who Did Jesus Think He Was?, in Theological Gathering 3 (1997) [http://private.fuller.edu/~talarm/iss3r3.html].
Review of Alan Watson, Jesus and the Jews. The Pharisaic Tradition in John, in Theological Gathering 3 (1997) [http://private.fuller.edu/~talarm/iss3/iss3r4.html].
Review of Lawrence H. Schiffman, Reclaiming the Dead Sea Scrolls. The History of Judaism, the Background of Christianity, the Lost Library of Qumran, in Qumran Chronicle Vol.6 No.1/4 (December 1996): 167-170.
Review of Barbara Thiering, Jesus of the Apocalypse. The Life of Jesus after the Crucifixion, in Qumran Chronicle Vol.6 No.1/4 (December 1996): 170-172.
Bartos, Emil, “The Dynamics of Deification in the Theology of Dumitru Staniloae”, in Lucian Turcescu (ed.), Dumitru Staniloae: Tradition and Modernity in Theology, Iasi/Oxford/Palm Beach: The Center for Romanian Studies, 2002, pp.207-248.
Editorial:
Religion and Science Fiction (book under contract with SUNY Press)
Academic Papers (Lectures, Seminars and Conferences):
"Jesus as Prophet and False Prophet", paper read at the SBL Midwest Regional Meeting, Bourbonnais, IL, February 17th, 2007.
“History and Fiction in the Acts of Thomas: The State of the Question”, paper read at the Eastern Great Lakes Biblical Society conference in Erie, PA, on March 24th, 2006.
“"Destroy This Temple": Issues of History in John 2”, paper presented to the
John, Jesus and History section of the 2005 SBL Annual Meeting in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“Was Jesus Illegitimate? The Evidence of His Social Interactions”, paper
presented to the Historical Jesus section of the 2005 SBL Annual Meeting in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“Worship and Monotheism in the Book of Revelation”, SBL Midwest Regional
Meeting, Deerfield, IL, February 19th, 2005.
"Rebuilding the Temple: Jesus' Timetable for the Dawn of a New Age?"”,
presented to the
Historical Jesus section of the 2003 SBL Annual Meeting in Atlanta,
Georgia.
“Worship and the Question of Jewish Polytheism in the Hellenistic Age”, presented to the Hellenistic Judaism section of the 2003 SBL Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.
“The Desert of the Real: Christianity, Buddhism and Baudrillard in The Matrix and Popular Culture”, paper read at the conference Visions of Humanity in Cyberculture, Cyberspace and Science Fiction (Monday 11th August - Wednesday 13th August 2003, Prague, Czech Republic).
“Scientific Cosmology and Christianity: Models for their Interaction”, paper read on Thursday, March 27th, 2003 at the “Scientific Cosmology and Christianity” Science Symposium at Wheaton College.
“‘Two Powers’ and Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism”, paper read on Saturday, November 17th, 2001 to the Early Jewish and Christian Mysticism Group at the SBL Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado.
“John: Defender and Developer of the Faith. A Distinctive Gospel and its Distinctive Context”, academic paper read at American Baptist Seminary of the West, Berkeley, CA, on October 30th, 2001.
“John, Jesus and 'the Jews'. A distinctive Gospel in its distinctive context”, lecture given on March 16th, 2001 at Heythrop College, University of London.
“Extraterestrii si Evanghelicii în Dialog. Implicatiile teologice ale existentei vietii inteligente extraterestre” [“Evangelicals and Extraterestrials in Dialogue. Theological Implications of the Existence of Intelligent Extraterrestrial Life”], paper read at the theological seminar of the Areopagus Center, Timisoara, Romania, November 1st, 2000.
“Reformati si întotdeauna reformându-se. O regândire a sensului învataturii pauline si a semnificatiei sale pentru contextul evanghelic românesc” [“'Reformed and Ever Being Reformed'. The New Perspective on Paul and its Implications for Romanian Evangelicalism”], public lecture given at the Areopagus Center, Timsoara, Romania, November 1st, 2000.
“Temelia Escatologica a Soteriologiei Pauline” ["The Eschatological Foundation of Pauline Soteriology"], paper presented March 1st, 2000 at the 7th annual Academic Conference, Emanuel University, March 31st – April 1st, 2000.
“Is John's Christology Monotheist?”, paper presented at the Staff Theological Research Seminar, Emanuel Bible Institute, November 20th, 1998.
“Are Christians Monotheists? The Answer of St. John’s Gospel” Lecture given at the North of England Institute for Christian Education Sixth Form Study Day, University of Durham, March 27th, 1998.
“John's Apologetic Use of Ps. 82:6 and the Development of Johannine Christology,” read at the Durham Postgraduate New Testament Seminar, February 16th, 1998.
“Christology on Two Fronts: A New Testament Model for 'Doing' Christology in a Pluralistic Context,” read on November 20th, 1997 at the conference The Myriad Christ: Plurality and the Quest for Unity in Contemporary Christology, Catholic University of Leuven, November 18th-21st, 1997.
“Change in Christology: New Testament Models and the Contemporary Task,” read at the Durham Postgraduate New Testament Seminar, May 13th, 1996.
“Going Up and Coming Down in Johannine Apologetic,” presented to the Johannine Literature Seminar on September 14th, 1996, at the British New Testament Conference, University of Aberdeen, September 12th-14th, 1996.
“An Introduction to Wayne A. Meeks' ‘A Hermeneutic of Social Embodiment,’” read at the Durham Postgraduate Contemporary Theology Seminar, February 22nd, 1996.
Other publications:
“Same rules”, Letter to the Editor, NUVO 10/10/2007 <http://www.nuvo.net/articles/same_rules_/>
“Description of Islam Painted Just One Side”, Letter to the Editor, Indianapolis Star, 7/4/04 <http://www.indystar.com/articles/5/159797-6815-022.html>
“Authentic Power and Gentleness: A Meeting With Peteris Vasks”, <http://www.lmic.lv/>
"Bible cannot determine homosexual marriage laws", The Butler Collegian Vol.118 Issue 14 (Wednesday, January 21st, 2004) <http://dawgnet.butler.edu/archive/040116/pictures/040116.pdf>
Current Areas of Interest and Research:
The historical figure of Jesus (in
particular social status)
The Thomas traditions in Syria and India
Jewish and Christian monotheism from the first century through the early
Rabbinic period
Early Jewish-Christian relations and the mutual interaction and development of
early Jewish and Christian traditions
Sociological perspectives on the development of early Christian beliefs and
practices
Cultural and anthropological insights into the New Testament and its world
(especially, at present, counter-cultural images of God in the Jesus
tradition)
The ‘New Perspective on Paul’
Hermeneutics and the use of the Bible in theology, practice and ethics
The interface and creative interaction of science and theology.
Religions and religious themes in science fiction literature and film.
Professional Societies:
Member, Society of Biblical Literature 1998 - present
Member, Metanexus Institute, 2003-present