David Neil Hempton (born 1952) is a Northern Irish historian of evangelicalism, dean of

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, go ...

, and fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...

Biography

Hempton was born on 19 February 1952, in Northern Ireland. He earned his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree (1974) from the

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

and his

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

degree (1977) from the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

. Hempton began teaching at Queen's University in 1979, where he was professor of modern history and director of the school of history. He joined the faculty of

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original c ...

in 1998, where he was professor of the history of Christianity, and in 2008 named "Outstanding Teacher of the Year" at the divinity school. In 2007, he was appointed as the first Alonzo L. McDonald Family Professor of Evangelical Theological Studies at

, and in 2012 it was announced he would succeed William A. Graham as dean of the school. In 2020 he was admitted as a member of the

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ga, Acadamh Ríoga na hÉireann), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier learned society and one its leading cultural i ...

Selected publications

*''Methodism and Politics in British Society, 1750–1850'', winner of

The Whitfield Prize The Whitfield Prize (or Whitfield Book Prize) is a prize of £1,000 awarded annually by the Royal Historical Society to the best work on a subject of British or Irish history published within the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland during the cal ...

(1984) *''The Religion of the People: Methodism and Popular Religion C. 1750–1900'' (1996) *''Religion and Political Culture in Britain and Ireland: From the Glorious Revolution to the Decline of Empire'' (1996) *''Methodism: Empire of the Spirit'', winner of the Jesse Lee Prize (2005) *''Evangelical Disenchantment: Nine Portraits of Faith and Doubt'' (2008) *''The Church in the Long Eighteenth Century'', winner of the Albert C. Outler Prize (2011)

References

External links

Hempton's faculty page at Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School faculty Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Historians from Northern Ireland Reformation historians Boston University faculty Queen's University at Kingston faculty Queen's University at Kingston alumni Alumni of the University of St Andrews Male non-fiction writers from Northern Ireland Members of the Royal Irish Academy Living people 1952 births {{UK-historian-stub