The Revd Dr Olga Fabrikant-Burke
Lecturer in Old Testament and Tutor
Admissions Tutor for Ordinands
As Lecturer in Old Testament, Olga teaches a wide range of modules in biblical studies, Old Testament, and Biblical Hebrew at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She also oversees admissions for ordination training at Ridley as Admissions Tutor for Ordinands.
Olga is passionate about cultivating and renewing the scriptural imagination of the Church, especially by fostering the formation of those training for leadership, whether lay or ordained. Olga wants Ridley students to have a transformative encounter with the Bible, to delight in the scriptural riches, to become adept and agile interpreters of the Old Testament, and to come to see the world through the lens we find in Scripture. As a priest and as a scholar, Olga aspires to inform the pastoral vocation by cutting-edge scholarship and rigorous study and set the scholarly vocation in serious conversation with the demands of parish life.
In her research and teaching, Olga seeks to combine historical rigour and theological depth, recognising and respecting the historical situatedness of the Old Testament as a product of the social, intellectual, and exegetical world of ancient Israel and its enduring significance as Jewish and Christian Scripture.
- Personal background
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Personal background
Born and bred in the bustling city of Moscow, Olga came to faith at university, while she was studying Computer Science and preparing to embark on a career in IT. Her carefully constructed plans went out of the window when Olga felt her heart “strangely warmed.” Eventually, she moved to Cambridge to train for ordination in the Church of England as an ordinand from the Diocese in Europe and spent six formative years at Ridley Hall.
It was during her time at Ridley that she discovered a passion for the Old Testament. After completing her Tripos and MPhil at Corpus Christi College, Olga went on to pursue a PhD in Old Testament studies as a Gates Cambridge Scholar at Trinity College. Unable to stay away from Ridley for long, she returned to teach Old Testament in 2021, first as a part-time Teaching Associate and then as a full-time Lecturer.
Her husband, Simeon, has a PhD in Early Christianity and works in Research Strategy at the University of Cambridge. When Olga is not teaching or writing, she is probably reading or escaping on long walks while listening to podcasts (The Rest is History is her favourite). But with a boisterous young son, Olga and Simeon do not have much time to spare!
- Roles outside Ridley
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Roles outside Ridley
Prior to Olga’s appointment at Ridley, she served as Chaplain at Trinity College, Cambridge. As a former University Chaplain, Olga continues to take an interest in ministry to students and young adults, as well as in sensitive and well-informed religious leadership in secular environments and in cosmopolitan and multicultural settings. Olga and her family worship at St Barnabas, Cambridge.
Olga is an Affiliated Lecturer and a member of the Old Testament Subject Committee in the Faculty of Divinity of the University of Cambridge. In addition, she serves on the Ministry Team of the Diocese in Europe as a Special Educational Adviser for Theological Training.
Olga is also a member of the Society for Old Testament Study (SOTS), the Society of Biblical Literature, the Young Priest Theologians Network, as well as New Wine.
- Publications
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Publications
Articles in Peer-Reviewed Journals:
- “Deus Inimicus: Divine Word and Hostile Divine Presence in the Book of Jeremiah”, Perichoresis 21, no. 4 (2023): 4–21
- “Rethinking Divine Hiddenness in the Hebrew Bible: The Hidden God as the Hostile God in Psalm 88”, Harvard Theological Review 114, no. 2 (2021): 159–81
- “Tradition as Innovation: Ancient Harmonistic Theologising in the Temple Sermon (Jeremiah 7:1-8:3)”, The Journal of Theological Studies 71, no. 2 (2020): 458–85
Articles for a Wider Readership:
- “And Finally. . . Make the Old Testament Strange Again”, The Expository Times 134, no. 11 (2023): 522–522
- “‘Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets’: Why We Should Follow Jesus’ Example in Preaching from the Old Testament”, The Ridley Connection, Summer 2022
- “Reinventing Evensong”, Trinity College News, June 2020
Book Reviews:
- Jeremiah Through the Centuries. By MARY CHILTON CALLAWAY, The Journal of Theological Studies 74, no. 2 (2023): 758–759.
- The Book of Jeremiah. By JOHN GOLDINGAY, The Journal of Theological Studies 74, no. 2 (2023): 756–757.
- In Quest of the Historical Adam: A Biblical and Scientific Exploration. By WILLIAM LANE CRAIG, The Expository Times 134, no. 2 (2022): 86–87.
- Social Identity and the Book of Amos. By ANDREW M. KING, The Expository Times 133, no. 8 (2022): 351–52.
- Jeremiah 52 in the Context of the book of Jeremiah. By HENK DE WAARD, The Journal of Theological Studies 73, no. 1 (2022): 271–273.
- The Book of Jeremiah: Composition, Reception, and Interpretation. Edited by JACK LUNDBOM, CRAIG A. EVANS, andBRADFORD ANDERSON, The Journal of Theological Studies 71, no. 1 (2020): 298–301.
- New Perspectives on Old Testament Prophecy and History: Essays in Honour of Hans M. Barstad. Edited by RANNFRID I. THELLE, TERJE STORDALEN, and MARVYN E. J. RICHARDSON, The Journal of Theological Studies 69, no. 2 (2018): 739–742.
- Jeremiah: An Introduction and Study Guide: Prophecy in a Time of Crisis. By MARY E. MILLS, The Journal of Theological Studies 69, no. 1 (2018): 232–234.
- Research and Teaching
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Research and Teaching
Olga has a particular interest and expertise in prophecy, prophetic literature, and the rich ancient literary and exegetical culture behind the production of these texts. Her research has revolved around exegesis and hermeneutics, both ancient and modern, as well as historical theology of the Old Testament.
As a scholar of ancient exegesis, Olga seeks to contribute to the understanding of ancient encounters with Scripture through her research. Addressing the issues of historicity, divine revelation, and human interpretation, her doctoral project, currently in preparation for publication, reconsidered the abiding spectre of false prophecy in the book of Jeremiah as a product of ancient exegetical imagination. Olga’s current project centres on prophetic biographies in the Hebrew Bible.
But driving Olga’s research and teaching has always been more than an academic desire to understand ancient interpretation on its own terms and for its own sake. Thus, Olga is interested in retrieving and deploying the hidden riches of ancient biblical interpretation for the benefit of the modern Church.
By attending to wise and surprising voices from the past, not only do students learn to interpret the Bible in ways that differ from their own exegetical competencies and cultural intuitions, but they also discover fresh ways of exegeting, sympathetically yet critically, wider cultural practices that surround Christians today. Equipped with robust interpretative tools, ancient and modern, students can have the confidence to tackle any challenge that the Old Testament may throw at them—and to do so with delight, passion, and rigour.
- Academic Background
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Academic Background
- PhD in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, University of Cambridge, 2021 (Trinity College)
- MPhil in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, University of Cambridge, 2016 (Corpus Christi College)
- MA (Cantab), University of Cambridge, 2015 (Corpus Christi College)
- Workshops, Study Days, Lectures, & Retreats
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Workshops, Study Days, Public Lectures, & Retreats
Some select recent speaking engagements:
“Where is God? Divine Presence and Absence in Ezekiel,” Resourcing Faith: a series of study mornings, Diocese of Ely, Cambridge, UK (July 2023).
“Spirituality for Exiles: Encountering the Absent God in the Old Testament,” Clergy Study Day for the Diocese of Chichester, Hove, UK (June 2023)
“Sacral Kingship in the Psalter,” The Diocese in Europe Vocations Event, London, UK (March 2023)
