University Lecturer in Christian Theology
Christian Theology subject specialist
Simeon Zahl is accepting applications for PhD students.
Biography:
Dr Zahl is University Lecturer in Christian Theology. He received his first degree in German History and Literature from Harvard (2004), and his doctorate in Theology from Cambridge (2009). Following his doctorate, Simeon spent several years as a post-doc at Cambridge (2008-11) before taking up a Junior Research Fellowship at St John’s College, Oxford (2011-16). Prior to his current appointment he was Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology at the University of Nottingham (2016-18).
Subject area and speciality
Research Interests
Dr Zahl is an historical and constructive theologian whose work spans the period from 1500 to the present. His current research is on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, with a particular focus on religious experience and the role of emotion and embodiment in theological knowledge-production. He also works on the theology of the Reformation era, especially Martin Luther. Further interests include soteriology, nineteenth century theology, and the contributions to theology of affect theory and cognitive science.
Dr Zahl is open to supervising doctoral research in most major areas of Christian theology. Topics of particular interest include the Holy Spirit, salvation, theology and emotion, Martin Luther, and the role of subjectivity and embodiment in theological discourse.
Key Publications
Journal Articles and Book Chapters
- ‘Tradition and its “Use”: The Ethics of Theological Retrieval’, Scottish Journal of Theology 71/3 (2018), 308-23 (link)
- ‘Non-Competitive Agency and Luther’s Experiential Argument Against Virtue’, Modern Theology (2018) (link)
- ‘Experience’, in The Oxford Handbook of Nineteenth Century Christian Thought. Oxford University Press, 2017, 177-95 (link)
- ‘On the Affective Salience of Doctrines’, Modern Theology 31/3, 2015, 428-44 (link)
- ‘Atonement’ in The Oxford Handbook of Theology and Modern European Thought. Oxford University Press, 2013, 611-32 (link)
- 'Rethinking “Enthusiasm”: Christoph Blumhardt on the Discernment of the Spirit’, International Journal of Systematic Theology 12/3 (2010), 341-63 (link)
Monograph
- Pneumatology and Theology of the Cross in the Preaching of Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt: The Holy Spirit Between Wittenberg and Azusa Street. T & T Clark/Continuum, 2010.
Edited Volumes
- The Vocation of Theology Today. Cascade, 2013 (with Rachel Muers and Tom Greggs)
- The Modern Theologians Reader. Wiley-Blackwell, 2011 (with David F. Ford and Mike Higton)
