Dorothy Ann Lee (born 1953) is an Australian theologian and Anglican priest, formerly dean of the

Trinity College Theological School, Melbourne Trinity College Theological School (TCTS) is an educational division of Australia's Trinity College, the oldest residential college of the University of Melbourne. It is also one of the constituent colleges of the University of Divinity. The Scho ...

, a college of the

University of Divinity The University of Divinity is an Australian collegiate university of specialisation in divinity. It is constituted by eleven theological colleges from eight denominations. The University of Divinity is the direct successor of the second oldest ...

, and continuing as Frank Woods Distinguished Professor of New Testament. Her main research interests include the narrative and theology of the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

s, particularly the Gospel of John, spirituality in the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

, the Transfiguration and Anglican worship.

Early life

Lee was born in Scotland. Her father was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

minister and her childhood was shared between the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and Australia. She studied classics at the University of Newcastle, New South Wales, graduating BA (Hons) in 1975 before completing a BD (Hons) in 1984 and a PhD in 1991 at the University of Sydney. She was ordained as a minister of the

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Uni ...

in 1984 before being received into the

Anglican Church of Australia The Anglican Church of Australia, formerly known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion. It is the second largest church in Australia after the ...

in 2008.

Academic career

Between 1983 and 1989, Lee lectured in New Testament at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's ...

and the United Theological College in Sydney. She then moved to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

as lecturer at the Uniting Church Theological Hall, being appointed professor of New Testament in 1994. From 1998 to 2008 she also held the position of dean of chapel at

Queen's College (University of Melbourne) Queen's College is a residential college affiliated with the University of Melbourne providing accommodation to more than 300 students who attend the University of Melbourne, the Victorian College of the Arts, RMIT University and Monash Universi ...

. After becoming an Anglican, Lee was appointed as lecturer at the Trinity College Theological School in 2008, becoming its dean in 2011. Lee has acted as president of the Fellowship for Biblical Studies and is a member of the Doctrine Commission of the Anglican Church of Australia. She also holds an adjunct title of senior fellow in classics in the School of Historical Studies at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

. In October 2012, Lee was elected one of the 10 foundation professors of the MCD University of Divinity, Australia's first specialist university. In October 2014 she was elected a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Melbourne, Australia. It is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Melbourne and the seat of the Archbishop of Melbourne, who is also the metropolitan archbishop of the Province of Victoria. ...

. She was elected a fellow of the

Australian Academy of the Humanities The Australian Academy of the Humanities was established by Royal Charter in 1969 to advance scholarship and public interest in the humanities in Australia. It operates as an independent not-for-profit organisation partly funded by the Australia ...

in 2015. Lee was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Order (distinction), honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of Australia, Queen of Aus ...

in the 2024 Australia Day Honours for "significant service to the

". Lee is the sister of Australian composer Ruth Lee Martin.

Selected works

Books

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Articles and chapters

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Digitised version of no. 34 (2004) available on JSTOR Open Community CollectionsUniversity of Divinity Digital Collections
 

Mannix Library Mannix Library is an academic theological library located in East Melbourne, Australia. The library specialises in the areas of theology, philosophy, biblical studies and associated disciplines, and supports teaching and research at Catholic T ...

. * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Dorothy 1953 births Australian Anglican theologians Australian biblical scholars University of Sydney alumni University of Newcastle (Australia) alumni Living people New Testament scholars Australian Anglican priests Converts to Anglicanism from Presbyterianism Christian feminist theologians Uniting Church in Australia ministers 21st-century Anglican priests Anglican biblical scholars Australian feminist writers Women Christian theologians Female biblical scholars Christian feminist biblical scholars Members of the Order of Australia Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities Academic staff of the University of Divinity