Michael Ward (born 6 January 1968) is an English

literary critic A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature' ...

and

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

. His academic focus is theological imagination, especially in the writings of

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

, and

G. K. Chesterton Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936) was an English author, philosopher, Christian apologist, journalist and magazine editor, and literary and art critic. Chesterton created the fictional priest-detective Father Brow ...

. He is best known for his book '' Planet Narnia'', in which he argues that Lewis structured ''

The Chronicles of Narnia ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' is a series of seven portal fantasy novels by British author C. S. Lewis. Illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published between 1950 and 1956, the series is set in the fictional realm of Narnia (wor ...

'' so as to embody and express the imagery of the

seven heavens In ancient Near Eastern cosmology, the seven heavens refer to seven firmaments or physical layers located above the open sky. The concept can be found in ancient Mesopotamian religion, Judaism, and Islam. Some traditions complement the seven ...

. On the fiftieth anniversary of Lewis's death, Ward unveiled a permanent national memorial to him in

Poets' Corner Poets' Corner is a section of the southern transept of Westminster Abbey in London, England, where many poets, playwrights, and writers are buried or commemorated. The first poet interred in Poets' Corner was Geoffrey Chaucer in 1400. Willia ...

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

. He won a

Mythopoeic Award The Mythopoeic Awards for literature and literary studies are given annually for outstanding works in the fields of myth, fantasy, and the scholarly study of these areas. Established by the Mythopoeic Society in 1971, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Awar ...

in 2011.

Career

Ward was born in

Cuckfield Cuckfield ( ) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Mid Sussex District, Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northea ...

West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...

. He studied at

Regent's Park College Regent's Park College (known colloquially within the university as Regent's) is a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford, situated in central Oxford, just off St Giles', England, United Kingdom. Founded in 1810, the college move ...

, Oxford,

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

, and the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

. He is currently an Associate Member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford, and Professor of Apologetics at

Houston Christian University Houston Christian University (HCU), formerly Houston Baptist University (HBU), is a private Baptist university in Houston, Texas. It is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. Its Cultural Arts Center houses three museums: the ...

. He was Senior Research Fellow at

Blackfriars Hall Blackfriars Hall is a Roman Catholic permanent private hall of the University of Oxford. Unlike a college, a hall is owned and governed by an outside institution (in this case, the resident community of the Priory of the Holy Spirit and the Engl ...

, University of Oxford (2012-2021). Ward trained for the Anglican ministry at

Ridley Hall, Cambridge Ridley Hall is a theological college located on the corner of Sidgwick Avenue and Ridley Hall Road in Cambridge (United Kingdom), which trains men and women intending to take Holy Orders as deacon or priest of the Church of England, and members ...

, and was ordained a priest in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

in 2005. He served as Chaplain of Peterhouse, Cambridge (2004-2007) and Chaplain of

St Peter's College, Oxford St Peter's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. Located on New Inn Hall Street, Oxford, United Kingdom, it occupies the site of two of the university's academic halls of the Univers ...

(2009-2012). He joined the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in 2012, and was ordained a priest within the

Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in England and Wales is a personal ordinariate in the Latin Church of the Catholic Church immediately exempt, being directly subject to the Holy See. It is within the territory of the Catholic ...

in June 2018. Ward played the part of C. S. Lewis's

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

in the 2021 film ''The Most Reluctant Convert.'' He has been an

extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...

in a number of films and television dramas, including a speaking role in ''A Very Open Prison'' and a featured cameo in ''

The World Is Not Enough ''The World Is Not Enough'' is a 1999 spy film, the nineteenth in the List of James Bond films, ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional Secret Intelligence Service, MI6 agent Jam ...

''. In 2023, he co-authored ''Popcorn with the Pope: A Guide to the Vatican Film List'' with David Paul Baird and Andrew Petiprin, which reviews all forty-five films on a list compiled under the pontificate of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

to mark the centenary of cinema.

Bibliography

Books

* ''After Humanity: A Guide to C. S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man'', Word on Fire Academic, 2021. * ''Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis,'' Oxford University Press, 2008. * ''Popcorn with the Pope: A Guide to the Vatican Film List'' (co-authored with David Paul Baird and Andrew Petiprin), Word on Fire, 2023. ISBN 978-1685789848 * ''C. S. Lewis at Poets' Corner'' (edited with Peter S. Williams), Wipf & Stock, 2016. * ''The Cambridge Companion to C. S. Lewis'' (edited with Robert MacSwain), Cambridge University Press, 2010. * ''Heresies and How to Avoid Them: Why it Matters What Christians Believe'' (edited with Ben Quash), Hendrickson, 2007.

Essays

* "An Experiment in Charity: C. S. Lewis on Love in the Literary Arts" in ''The Inklings and Culture'' (ed. Monika B. Hilder et al), Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2020. * "Afterword: A Brief History of the Oxford C. S. Lewis Society" in ''C. S. Lewis and His Circle: Essays and Memoirs from the Oxford C. S. Lewis Society'' (ed. Roger White, Judith Wolfe, and Brendan N. Wolfe), Oxford University Press, 2015. * "The Tragedy is in the Pity: C. S. Lewis and the Song of the Goat" in ''Christian Theology and Tragedy'' (eds. T. Kevin Taylor and Giles Waller), Ashgate, 2012. * "The Good Serves the Better and Both the Best: C. S. Lewis on Imagination and Reason in Apologetics" in ''Imaginative Apologetics: Theology, Philosophy and the Catholic Tradition'' (ed.

Andrew Davison Andrew Davison (December 18, 1886 – April 6, 1963) was a Canadian politician, printer and 24th Mayor of Calgary. He served as alderman from 1922 to 1926 and mayor from 1929 to 1945 - his 15 year term as mayor is the longest in the city's ...

), SCM Press, 2011. * "C. S. Lewis" in ''The Heart of Faith: Following Christ in the Church of England'' (ed. Andrew Atherstone), Lutterworth, 2008. * "Christianity and Film" in ''Christ and Culture in Dialogue'' (ed. Angus Menuge), Concordia Academic Press, 1999.

References

External links

Official website of Michael Ward
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Michael 1968 births Living people People from Cuckfield Alumni of Regent's Park College, Oxford Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Alumni of Ridley Hall, Cambridge Alumni of the University of St Andrews Fellows of Blackfriars, Oxford Houston Christian University faculty 21st-century English Anglican priests Anglican priest converts to Roman Catholicism Tolkien scholars