Charles Ernest Burland Cranfield (13 September 1915 – 27 February 2015) was a British theologian, academic, and

Christian minister In Christianity, a minister is a person authorised by a church or other religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance ...

Biography

Cranfield was born in Winchmore Hill, London on 13 September 1915 to parents Charles Ernest Cranfield (a town clerk and Methodist preacher) and Beatrice Mary, née Tubbs (an artist). Cranfield attended

Mill Hill School Mill Hill School is a 13–18 co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private, Day school, day and boarding school in Mill Hill, London, England that was established in 1807. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' ...

and gained a first class degree in classics in 1936 from

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Jesus College was established in 1496 on the site of the twelfth-century Benedictine nunnery of St Radegund's Priory, Cambridge, St ...

. He went on to study Theology at Wesley House, Cambridge until 1939. He was ordained as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

minister in 1941, served as a military chaplain during the Second World War, and then worked with prisoners-of-war and as a parish minister during the post-war period. He moved into academia and was appointment a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

in theology at the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...

in 1950. He was awarded a

personal chair Academic ranks in the United Kingdom are the titles, relative seniority and responsibility of employees in universities. In general the country has three academic career pathways: one focused on research, one on teaching, and one that combines ...

as Professor of Theology in 1978, and maintained his links with the university as

Emeritus Professor ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

from his retirement in 1980. He moved away from Methodism and became a minister in the Presbyterian Church of England (which later became the

United Reformed Church The United Reformed Church (URC) is a Protestant Christian church in the United Kingdom. As of 2024 it had approximately 44,000 members in around 1,250 congregations with 334 stipendiary ministers. The URC is a Trinitarian church whose theolog ...

) in 1954. On 7 April 1953, Cranfield married Ruth Elizabeth Gertrude Bole in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. They had twin daughters who both went on to become Church of Scotland ministers. Cranfield died on 27 February 2015 as a result of pneumonia and was buried at South Road Cemetery.

Honours

Cranfield received an honorary

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or '), also termed Doctor of Literature in some countries, is a terminal degree in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In the United States, at universities such as Drew University, the degree ...

from the

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen (abbreviated ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; ) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1495 when William Elphinstone, Bis ...

in 1980. In 1982, Cranfield was elected a

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

(FBA), the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and social sciences. He was awarded the 1989 Burkitt Medal for Biblical Studies by the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

Works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cranfield, Charles 1915 births 2015 deaths 20th-century British theologians 20th-century British Methodist ministers New Testament scholars British Methodist ministers United Reformed Church ministers Academics of Durham University World War II chaplains Fellows of the British Academy