Thomas Kelly Cheyne, (18 September 18411915) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

and

Biblical critic Biblical criticism is the use of critical analysis to understand and explain the Bible. During the eighteenth century, when it began as ''historical-biblical criticism,'' it was based on two distinguishing characteristics: (1) the concern to ...

Biography

He was born in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and educated at Merchant Taylors' School, London, and

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. Subsequently, he studied German theological methods at

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

. He was ordained in 1864 and held a fellowship at

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the ...

, from 1868 to 1882. During the earlier part of this period he stood alone in the university as a teacher of the main conclusions of

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

criticism at that time. In 1881 he was presented to the

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically o ...

of Tendring, in

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

, and in 1884 he was made a member of the Old Testament revision company. He resigned the living of Tendring in 1885 on his appointment to be Oriel Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture, which carried with it a canonry at

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

. In 1889 he delivered the

Bampton lectures The Bampton Lectures at the University of Oxford, England, were founded by a bequest of John Bampton. They have taken place since 1780. They were a series of annual lectures; since the turn of the 20th century they have typically been biennial ...

at Oxford. In 1908 he resigned his professorship. In June 1901, he received an honorary

doctorate of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

from the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

, and in March 1902 he was awarded the degree

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Docto ...

(D.Litt.) from the University of Oxford. IN 1882 he married Frances Godfrey. After her death in 1907, he married the poet Elizabeth Gibson in 1911. He consistently urged in his writings the necessity of a broad and comprehensive study of the Scriptures in the light of literary, historical and scientific considerations. His publications include commentaries on the ''Prophets and Hagiographa'', as well as lectures and addresses on theological subjects. He was a joint editor of the '' Encyclopaedia Biblica'' (London, 1899-1903), a work embodying the more advanced conclusions of English biblical criticism. In the introduction to his ''Origin of the Psalter'' (London, 1891) he gave an account of his development as a critical scholar. His publications include translations, commentaries, and supplemental research. He became a member of the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...

by 1912. "If there has been any Prophet in recent times," he would write in his 1914 work 'The Reconciliation of Races and Religions', "it is to Bahá'u'lláh that we must go. Character is the final judge. Bahá'u'lláh was a man of the highest class – that of Prophets."

Publications

Books

In his lifetime Cheyne published over a dozen volumes. *''The Relations Between Civilized and Uncivilized Races: A Prize Essay Read in the Theatre, Oxford'' was perhaps his first publication in 1864. *'' Encyclopaedia Biblica'' co-edited with J. Sutherland Black in 1903, revised 1907, is still widely cited, even in Wikipedia. *''The Reconciliation of Races and Religions'' may have been his last publication, August 1914, by A. and C. Black, and has been reprinted as late as 2004 (as ,) *''Founders of Old Testament Criticism: Biographical, Descriptive, and Critical Studies'' - Wipf and Stock 9781592443789 *''Job and Solomon: Or the Wisdom of the Old Testament'' - Wipf and Stock 9781597521512 *''The Mines of Isaiah Re-explored'' - Wipf and Stock 9781597521550 *''Introduction to the Book of Isaiah'' - Wipf and Stock 9781592449095 *''The Origin and Religious Contents of The Psalter: In the Light of Old Testament Criticism and the History of Religions'' - Wipf and Stock 9781606082577 *''Aids to the Devout Study of Criticism: Part I: The David Narrative, Part II: The Book of Psalms'' - Wipf and Stock 9781606085004
''Traditions & Beliefs of Ancient Israel''
(1907) - Various reprints

Articles

Several articles in the ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

'', 9th edition (1875–89) and 10th edition (1902-03), including on

Circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Top ...

Deluge A deluge is a large downpour of rain, often a flood. The Deluge refers to the flood narrative in the Biblical book of Genesis. Deluge may also refer to: History *Deluge (history), the Swedish and Russian invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Com ...

and

Hittites The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-cent ...

.Important Contributors to the ''Britannica'', 9th and 10th Editions
1902encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 29 November 2018.

Notes

External links

* * *
New York Times Obituary
- family history
THOMAS KELLY CHEYNE (1841-1915), BIBLICAL SCHOLAR AND BAHĀ'Ī
by Stephen N. Lambden (Ohio University)

by Stephen N. Lambden (Ohio University) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheyne, Thomas Kelly 1841 births 1915 deaths Fellows of Oriel College, Oxford English Bahá'ís Oriel and Laing Professors of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture Converts to the Bahá'í Faith from Anglicanism 20th-century Bahá'ís Thomas Kelly Biblical criticism British biblical scholars Anglican biblical scholars Fellows of the British Academy