John Barbour,
Professor of Religion
John Barbour received his Ph.D. in the field of Religion and Literature from the University of Chicago Divinity School. His teaching and research interests center on the ethical and theological issues raised by works of fiction and autobiography, for instance their exploration of the nature of sin, grace, or community.
He was Chair of the Religion Department (1998-2001) and served as the first Martin Marty Regents Chair in Religion and the Academy (2004-2008).
John is married to Meg Ojala, Professor of Art, with whom he led the Global Program in 2001-02. They will lead the Term in Asia in 2008. They have two sons. He enjoys travel and swimming, hiking, biking, tennis, and kayaking on Lake Superior.
John's scholarly work includes four books: "Tragedy as a Critique of Virtue: The Novel and Ethical Reflection" (1984), "The Conscience of the Autobiographer: Ethical and Religious Dimensions of Autobiography" (1992), "Versions of Deconversion: Autobiography and the Loss of Faith" (1994), and "The Value of Solitude: The Ethics and Spirituality of Aloneness in Autobiography", published in 2004 by the University of Virginia Press.
Recent essays include "Thomas Merton's Pilgrimage and Orientalism" in "Literature, Religion, and East-West Comparison", ed. Eric Ziolkowski (2004); "Judging and Not Judging Parents" in "The Ethics of Life Writing", ed. Paul John Eakin (2004); and "The 'Bios' of Autobiography and the 'Bios' of Bioethics" in "Caring Well: Religion Narrative, and Health, ed. David H. Smith (2000). He has written the article on "Spiritual Autobiography" in "The Encyclopedia of Life Writing" and the article on "Religious Autobiography" for the second edition of the Macmillan "Encyclopedia of Religion."
Work in progress includes a study of the religious dimensions of travel narratives and a family memoir entitled "Family Conscience".
Office:
Boe Chapel 302
E-mail:
barbourj@stolaf.edu
