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The Revd Dr Andy Byers

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The Revd Dr Andy Byers

Tutor in New Testament

01223 741066

https://twitter.com/byers_andy

Andy joined Ridley Hall to teach New Testament in the Cambridge Theological Federation and for the Ridley Lay Ministry programme in 2021.

Originally from the U.S. and ordained in the Baptist tradition, Andy has served for thirteen years in various forms of pastoral ministry. Before moving to Cambridge, he lived for ten years in Durham where he completed his PhD, served as Chaplain for St Mary’s College, and taught New Testament, Greek, and ministry leadership at Cranmer Hall where he also launched and directed a ministry training pathway for free churches in the North East.

Daunted yet inspired by a God of biblical proportions, Andy enjoys integrating ministerial training and cultural reflection in his classroom teaching of the New Testament (and yes, even in Greek class!).

Academic Background

Academic Background

Andy’s PhD (2015) is from Durham University and explores the themes of ecclesiology, participation, and theosis in John’s Gospel. He also holds a ThM from Duke Divinity School (2007), an MDiv from Beeson Divinity School at Samford University (2001), and a BSc (in Forestry!) from the University of Georgia (1996).

Research

Research

Andy aspires to write within the rigorous discipline of biblical studies while considering how early Christian writings address church and culture in their day and in our own. Though his primary focus is on the Johannine Literature, he is currently working on “The Church of the Gospels,” a book project with Baker Academic exploring the “narrative ecclesiology” of the canonical evangelists.

He is also interested in the hermeneutical frames that shape our understandings of texts and culture, and in how these two interrelate. Since his academic work arises from a call to vocational ministry, Andy also enjoys thinking about the Bible as a source for pastoral leadership and ministerial formation.

Personal background

Personal background

Having grown up around two family farms, Andy enjoys the outdoors and delights in the significance of place and its local lore. If he could be anywhere at any given point, though, he would probably choose to be on a trail in either the Lake District (preferably in the summer warmth) or in the Appalachian Mountains (preferably not in the summer heat).

Though often with a theology or biblical studies book in hand, he loves reading fiction and even trying his hand at writing it. His wife and four kids are his favorite adventure companions… and the family dog Hagrid is usually along for the journeys.

Publications

Publications

Books

  • John and the Others: Jewish Relations, Christian Origins, and the Sectarian Hermeneutic (Baylor University Press, 2021)
  • Ecclesiology and Theosis in the Gospel of John (SNTSMS 166, Cambridge University Press, 2017)
  • TheoMedia: The Media of God and the Digital Age (Cascade Books, 2013)
  • Faith Without Illusions: Following Jesus as a Cynic-Saint (InterVarsity Press, 2011)

Co-edited Books

  • Gospel Reading and Reception in Early Christian Literature, co-edited with Madison N. Pierce and Simon Gathercole (Cambridge University Press, 2022)

Articles in Peer-Reviewed Journals

  • “‘Johannine Bishops?’ The Fourth Evangelist, John the Elder, and the Episcopal Ecclesiology of Ignatius of Antioch”, Novum Testamentum 60 (2018): 121–39
  • "The One Body of the Shema in 1 Corinthians: An Ecclesiology of Christological Monotheism", New Testament Studies 62, 4 (2016): 517–32

Chapters in Academic Books

  • “Johannine Readings of the Johannine Gospel: Reception Theology and Practice in John’s Epistles,” in Gospel Reading and Reception in Early Christian Literature, co-edited with Madison N. Pierce and Simon Gathercole (Cambridge University Press, 2022)
  • “Introduction,” with Madison N. Pierce, in Gospel Reading and Reception in Early Christian Literature, co-edited with Madison N. Pierce and Simon Gathercole (Cambridge University Press, 2022)
  • “Crowdsourcing Judgment: The Dark side of Justice in 'Hated in the Nation' and the Johannine Passion Narrative” in Black Mirror and Theology, edited by Amber Bowen and John Anthony Dunne; Theology and Popular Culture Series (Minneapolis: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic, 2022)
  • “Abide in Me: A Johannine Theology of Resilience” in Christopher C. H. Cook and Nathan H. White (eds.), Biblical and Theological Visions of Resilience: Pastoral and Clinical Insights; New Critical Thinking in Religion, Theology and Biblical Studies (London: Routledge, 2020)

Articles for a Wider Readership

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