Evangelicalism and the Oxford Movement: protestant identity in Britain, 1800-2000

Revd Dr Andrew Atherstone

Seminar Description

Evangelicalism and Tractarianism (also known as the Oxford Movement, having begun in the University of Oxford) have been two of the most influential Christian movements in modern Britain, and still have a major impact upon the churches today. Sometimes they have worked together as conservative allies, especially against liberalism or radicalism (though both have themselves adopted liberal forms). Sometimes they have viewed each other as arch-enemies, with opposing views of protestant identity. This seminar will explore the recent history and interaction of the Evangelical and Oxford Movements, their commonalities and contrasts, and the reasons behind their fluctuating fortunes.

Reading List for Evangelicalism and the Oxford Movement: protestant identity in Britain, 1800-2000

The metaphysical poets
Dr Richard Lawes

Seminar Description
In the early seventeenth century there appeared what Samuel Johnson called: ‘a race of writers that may be termed the metaphysical poets’. These English authors (most of whom never met or read each other’s work) produced some of the finest poetry of the era, often characterised by subtle wit, striking and unexpected metaphors, and ‘conceits’. These seminars will focus on the writings of John Donne, George Herbert, Richard Crashaw, Henry Vaughan, and Thomas Traherne. Their poetry explores the nature of the self and the deepest mysteries of the human soul, whether expressing profound and varied religious experience or, in the case of Donne, the delights and complexities of love.

Reading List for The metaphysical poets

Celtic Christianity: myth and reality

Revd Dr Elizabeth Hoare

Seminar Description

Celtic spirituality is extremely popular and draws interest from within the Church and without.  But who were the Celts and can we know what they believed and thought about God, faith, and the world? This seminar will examine the history of the Celtic peoples in the British Isles focusing on their spirituality. The term ‘Celtic’ covers a wide spectrum in terms of people and timescale. We will concentrate on those Celts who embraced Christianity and who lived in the borderlands of the British Isles, especially Ireland. We will also examine the current interest in Celtic spirituality and ask why it is attractive, exploring the elements which appeal to people today.

Reading List for Celtic Christianity: myth and reality

Intellect and Imagination: The Rational Religion and Theological Stories of C. S. Lewis

Dr Meriel Patrick

Seminar Description

C.S. Lewis remains one of the most popular religious thinkers and writers of the twentieth century. His work has received much praise – and much criticism. The purpose of this seminar is a close examination of a number of key strands of his theological works, both imaginative and apologetic. Themes that will be explored include: Lewis’ trilemma, Christianity and myth, theodicy (the problem of suffering), and heaven and hell. There will also be the opportunity to look at some responses to Lewis’s writings, and to consider the works in the context of other philosophers and theologians writing on similar themes.

Reading List for Intellect and Imagination:  The Rational Religion and Theological Storeis of C. S. Lewis

Philosophy of religion during the Enlightenment

Dr Meriel Patrick

Seminar Description

The Enlightenment saw the rise and triumph of reason as the supreme power in many spheres. Focusing on the works of the British empiricists, this course examines the application of reason to matters of faith during this period, and in particular to the question of whether God’s existence can be proved. The relationship between faith and reason, Locke’s cosmological argument, Berkeley’s idealism, and Hume’s criticisms of the argument for design will all be considered. While our main interest will be in the primary texts themselves, there will also be the opportunity to look at a selection of contemporary and modern responses.

Reading List for Philosphy of religion during the Enlightenment

Jane Austen and the rise of the woman novelist

Dr Emma Plaskitt

Seminar Description

This course will examine the enduringly popular novels of Jane Austen, looking at her novelistic technique and development, and her place among women writers in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In addition to studying the major novels, we will look at Austen’s juvenilia and place each text in its literary and historical context. This will involve, for example, an examination of the eighteenth-century cult of sensibility when we discuss Sense and Sensibility, the epistolary novel when we look at Lady Susan, and the contemporary vogue for gothic novels when we study Austen’s burlesque of the gothic genre, Northanger Abbey. Other themes that will be discussed include Austen’s treatment of class, economics, female friendship, courtship, and politics.

Reading List for Jane Austen and the rise of the woman novelist

Oxford Fantasists

Dr Emma Plaskitt

Seminar Description

This course will examine the lives and literature of famous University of Oxford alumni including Lewis Carroll (Christ Church), Oscar Wilde (Magdalen College), C.S. Lewis (University and Magdalen colleges), J.R.R. Tolkien (Exeter and Merton colleges), and Philip Pullman (Exeter College). Texts under discussion will include Alice in Wonderland, The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, and Northern Lights. To place readings in context, this course will also explore selected source materials used by these writers, such as George MacDonald’s Phantastes and Lilith and selected classic fairy tales and will examine each writer’s differing, and even controversial views on fairy tales and fantasy.

Reading List for Oxford Fantasists

Science and the Christian tradition
Dr John Roche

Seminar Description

There has been an enormous growth of interest and scholarship in science and religion during the past ten years. Increasingly, professional scientists who are Christians are turning their attention to the claimed conflicts between science and Christian belief and are finding that the more deeply they penetrate into these questions, the less ambiguous these conflicts become. This course examines some of the great historical debates between science and Christianity, including those related to Galileo and Darwin, and then deals with cutting-edge issues: the origins of the cosmos and of life; the mechanisms of evolution; free will, brain and mind, psychology and religious belief; ethical responsibility, and natural theology. The course will also take a measured view of contemporary controversies, particularly these involving intelligent design and evolution in schools. Oxford has been at the centre of such debates and today is one of the world’s leading centres for research in science and religion.

Reading List for Science and the Christian tradition

Reformation England:  the formation of a culture in sixteenth- and seventeeth-century England

Revd Dr Vincent Strudwick

Seminar Description

The Reformations in Europe affected all aspects of life and culture, and the English Reformations gave rise to many questions, conflict, and change. ‘What does it mean to be a Christian?’, ‘What should be the relationship of the church with the state?’ ‘How do you worship God — in church and in the world?’ These and many more questions were passionately debated. England saw new developments in literature, music, art, and architecture which were distinct from those in the rest of Europe and reflect the way change took place in the country.  A careful reading of Shakespeare’s plays give us insights into people’s concerns, and eventually the King James Bible gave what has been called the ‘skin of our language’ to this emerging culture.  All this was happening as people from Europe were settling in America, and, while the outcomes were different, many of the influences (such as Shakespeare and the Bible) were common. A study of this history helps us to understand better both England and America today. We shall visit interesting sites in Oxford that were at the heart of change.

Reading List for Reformation England:  the formation of a culture in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England