Fra' John Samuel Christopher Eidinow (born September 1968) is a barrister and a

Knight of Justice The Knights of Justice or Professed Knights, form the first of the three classes of members of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta together with the professed conventual chaplains. They make vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. According to ...

of the

Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic Church, Cathol ...

and was the Presiding Fellow at

St Benet's Hall, Oxford St Benet's Hall (known colloquially as Benet's) was a permanent private hall (PPH) of the University of Oxford, originally a Catholic church, Roman Catholic religious house of studies. It closed in 2022. The principal building was located at the ...

. He currently serves as the Dean and Keeper of the Statutes at

Merton College, Oxford Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 126 ...

Early life

Eidinow was born and raised in London and was educated at

Highgate School Highgate School, formally Sir Roger Cholmeley's School at Highgate, is a co-educational, fee-charging, private day school, founded in 1565 in Highgate, London, England. It educates over 1,400 pupils in three sections – Highgate Pre-Preparato ...

Academic career

Eidinow read Classics at

, and received the degree Master of Arts from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

. In January 1992 he was appointed to a lecturership in Classics at Merton College where he was later elected a Bodley Fellow. Since 2003 he has been Director of Studies in Classics at St. Benet's Hall. In 2004 he was named a Fellow of St. Benet's. He is also Dean and Keeper of the Statutes at

Merton College Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, chancellor ...

. His research is mostly about the Roman poet

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 BC – 27 November 8 BC), Suetonius, Life of Horace commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). Th ...

, although he has also written about

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

and

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

. He was formerly Honorary Secretary of the Horatian Society. Eidinow has a

Graduate Diploma in Law The Graduate Diploma in Law/Postgraduate Diploma in Law/Common Professional Examination (GDL/PGDL/CPE) is a postgraduate law course in England and Wales that is taken by non-law graduates (graduates who have a degree in a discipline that is not ...

from

City, University of London City, University of London was a public university from 1966 to 2024 in London, England. It merged with St George's, University of London to form City St George's, University of London in August 2024. The names "City, University of London" an ...

. He is a barrister of the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

and a member of New Square Chambers.

Sovereign Military Order of Malta

In 2011 Eidinow founded the Companions of the Order of Malta, Oxford, a group of Oxford University students who serve the poor and marginalised. In 2011 Eidinow published a new English translation of the Rule written by the second Master of the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...

Raymond du Puy Raymond du Puy (c. 1083–1160) was a knight from Dauphiné then in the Holy Roman Empire and the second master of the Knights Hospitaller, also known as the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, from around 1121 until 1160. Officially, he succeeded ...

. On 16 June 2014 in

Merton College Chapel Merton College Chapel is the church of Merton College, Oxford, England. Dedicated to St Mary and St John the Baptist, the chapel was largely completed in its present form by the end of the 13th century. The building retains a number of original ...

Eidinow made his solemn vows as a Knight of Justice. He has served as Chancellor of the Grand Priory of England. In January 2023 Eidinow was elected to the Sovereign Council of the Sovereign Order of Malta in an Extraordinary Chapter General of the Order called by Pope Francis.

Publications

* "Horace’s Epistle to Torquatus", ''Classical Quarterly'' 45 (1995): 191–99. * "Purpureo bibet ore nectar: A Reconsideration", ''Classical Quarterly'' 50 (2000): 463–71. * "Dido, Aeneas, and Iulus: Heirship and Obligation in Aeneid 4", ''Classical Quarterly'' 53 (2003): 260–67. * "Horace: Critics, canons and canonicity", in Houghton, L.B.T. and Wyke, M. (eds.), ''Perceptions of Horace: A Roman Poet and his Readers'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), pp. 80–95. * "Virgil in the Works of Alexandre Dumas père: An Introduction", ''Proceedings of the Vergilian Society'' 27 (2011): 38–55.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eidinow, John. Knights of Malta People educated at Highgate School Alumni of City, University of London Alumni of Merton College, Oxford Living people 1968 births