S. G. F. Brandon
Encyclopedia
Samuel George Frederick Brandon (1907–21 October 1971) was a British priest and scholar of comparative religion
Comparative religion
Comparative religion is a field of religious studies that analyzes the similarities and differences of themes, myths, rituals and concepts among the world's religions...

. He became professor of comparative religion at the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...

 in 1951.

Biography

Brandon was a graduate of the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...

. He was ordained in 1932 after Anglican training at Mirfield
Mirfield
Mirfield is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on the A644 road between Brighouse and Dewsbury...

, and then spent seven years as a parish priest before enrolling as an army chaplain in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, after which he began a successful academic career in 1951.

As he flew over the Mediterranean Sea on 21 October 1971, he died of an infection he contracted while working in Egypt, .

Ideas

His thinking on New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....

 themes grew out of The Fall of Jerusalem and the Christian Church (1951). His most celebrated position is the controversial one, that a political Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

 was a revolutionary figure, influenced in that by the Zealots; this he argued in the 1967 book Jesus and the Zealots: A Study of the Political Factor in Primitive Christianity. It has generated much in the way of opposing views. The Trial of Jesus of Nazareth (1968) raises again, amongst other matters, the question of how the Fall of the Temple in 70 CE shaped the emerging Christian faith, and in particular the Gospel of Mark
Gospel of Mark
The Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...

.

He was a critic of the myth-ritual theory
Cambridge Ritualists
The Cambridge Ritualists, the myth and ritual school, were a recognised group of classical scholars, mostly in Cambridge, England, including Jane Ellen Harrison, Gilbert Murray , A. B. Cook, and others...

, writing a 1958 essay "The Myth and Ritual Position Critically Examined" attacking its assumptions.

Brandon also claimed that the Pauline epistles
Pauline epistles
The Pauline epistles, Epistles of Paul, or Letters of Paul, are the thirteen New Testament books which have the name Paul as the first word, hence claiming authorship by Paul the Apostle. Among these letters are some of the earliest extant Christian documents...

 and the accounts of Jesus Christ found in the Gospels
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...

 represented two opposing factions of Christianity.

Selected works

  • The Fall of Jerusalem and the Christian Church (1951)
  • Time and Mankind: An Historical and Philosophical Study of Mankind's Attitude to the Phenomena of Change (1954)
  • Man and His Destiny in the Great Religions: An Historical and Comparative Study (1962)
  • Creation Legends of the Ancient Near East (1963)
  • History, Time, and Deity (1965)
  • The Judgment of the Dead: The Idea of Life after Death in the Major Religions (1967)
  • Jesus and the Zealots: A Study of the Political Factor in Primitive Christianity (1967)
  • The Trial of Jesus of Nazareth (1968)
  • Religion in Ancient History: Studies in Ideas, Men, and Events (1969)
  • Ancient Empires (1970)

As editor

  • The Saviour God: Comparative Studies in the Concept of Salvation (1963)
  • A Dictionary of Comparative Religion (1970)

See also

Scholars who have advanced related ideas:
  • Haim Cohn
  • Robert Eisenman
    Robert Eisenman
    Robert Eisenman is an American Biblical scholar, theoretical writer, historian, archaeologist, and "road" poet. He is currently Professor of Middle East Religions, Archaeology, and Islamic Law and director of the Institute for the Study of...

  • Robert Eisler
    Robert Eisler
    Robert Eisler was an Austrian Jewish art historian and Biblical scholar. He was a follower of the psychology of Carl Jung. His writings cover a great range of topics, from cosmic kingship and astrology to werewolves....

  • Hyam Maccoby
    Hyam Maccoby
    Hyam Maccoby was a British Jewish scholar and dramatist specializing in the study of the Jewish and Christian religious tradition. His grandfather and namesake was Rabbi Hyam Maccoby , better known as the "Kamenitzer Maggid," a passionate religious Zionist and advocate of vegetarianism and animal...

  • Hugh J. Schonfield
    Hugh J. Schonfield
    Hugh Joseph Schonfield was a British Bible scholar specializing in the New Testament and the early development of the Christian religion and church. He was born in London, and educated there at St Paul's School and King's College, doing postgraduate religious studies in Glasgow, Doctor of Sacred...

  • Paul Winter
    Paul Winter
    Paul Winter is an American saxophonist , and is a six-time Grammy Award nominee.- Biography :Paul Winter attended Altoona Area High School and graduated in 1957...


External links

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