Thomas James Thorburn (1858 - 16 January 1923), best known as T. J. Thorburn was a British
Doctor of Divinity
A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...
and writer.
Biography
Thorburn was born in
Derby
Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...
. He was married to Emily Jane. They had two children, Charles and Evelyn.
He gained a B.A. degree in the Natural Science Tripos in 1879 at
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 250 graduate students. The c ...
, and was second master at
Chesterfield Grammar School
Chesterfield may refer to:
Places Canada
* Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan
* Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom
*Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England
** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constituen ...
from 1882 to 1885. He was then Senior Science Master at
Sheffield Grammar School
Sheffield Grammar School began in 1604 as "The Free Grammar School of James King of England within the Town of Sheffield in the County of York" in buildings in the Townhead area of Sheffield, resulting from the benefaction of John Smith of Crow ...
, before his appointment as Headmaster of
Caistor School. In 1897 he was appointed headmaster of
Odiham Grammar School, Hampshire. He was later the headmaster of
Hastings Grammar School
Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England,
east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west at Senlac Hill in 1066. ...
.
Thorburn was a firm believer in the
historicity of Jesus
The historicity of Jesus is the scholarly question in Biblical criticism and early Christian history of whether Jesus historically existed or was a purely mythological figure. Scholarly discussions questioning the historical existence of Jesus ...
and an opponent of the
Christ myth theory
The Christ myth theory, also known as the Jesus myth theory, Jesus mythicism, or the Jesus ahistoricity theory, is the fringe view that the story of Jesus is a work of mythology with no historical substance. Alternatively, in terms given by ...
. Though a theological conservative and defender of the canonical history as traditionally presented, Thorburn did dissent from common evangelical bibliology.
In his book ''The Mythical Interpretation of the Gospels'' (1916) he combated the ideas of mythicists
Arthur Drews
Christian Heinrich Arthur Drews (; 1 November 1865 – 15 July 1935) was a German people, German writer, historian, philosopher, and important representative of German Monism, monist thought. He was born in Uetersen, Duchy of Holstein, Holstein, ...
,
J. M. Robertson
John Mackinnon Robertson (14 November 1856 – 5 January 1933) was a prolific Scottish journalist, advocate of rationalism and secularism, and Liberal Member of Parliament for Tyneside from 1906 to 1918.
Robertson was best known as an advoca ...
and
William Benjamin Smith. It was entered into a competition and Thorburn won a prize of $6,000 from the
Bross Foundation.
[Wilder, Amos N. (2014). ''Modern Poetry and the Christian Tradition: A Study in the Relation of Christianity to Culture''. ]Wipf and Stock
Wipf and Stock is a publisher in Eugene, Oregon, publishing works in theology, biblical studies, history and philosophy.
History
Wipf and Stock was established in 1995 following a joint venture between John Wipf of the Archives Bookshop in Pasade ...
. p. 282.
Publications
*
A Critical Examination of the Evidences for the Doctrine of the Virgin Birth' (1908)
*
The Resurrection Narratives and Modern Criticism' (1910)
*
Jesus the Christ: Historical or Mythical? A Reply to Professor Drews' Die Christusmythe' (1912)
*
The Mythical Interpretation of the Gospels: Critical Studies in the Historic Narratives' (1916)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thorburn, T.J.
1858 births
1923 deaths
People from Derby
Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge