BA (Stirling) BD (Aberdeen) Phd (Stirling) DMin (Aberdeen/ Pittsburgh)
Senior Lecturer
- About
-
- Email Address
- ksjeffrey@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 274276
- Office Address
KCF2
Kings College
Old Aberdeen
AB24 3UB
Scotland, UK
- School/Department
- School of Divinity, History, Philosophy & Art History
Biography
Born in Northern Ireland and brought up in Holywood, where he attended Sullivan Upper School, Ken Jeffrey went to Stirling University in 1988 to study History.
After graduating, he travelled to Malawi and taught English and Bible Knowledge for two years at Livingstonia Secondary School.
In 1994, he returned to Aberdeen University and gained a first class honours BD. Ken undertook post graduate research with Prof David Bebbington at Stirling University and studied the 1859 Revival in the north east of Scotland. He was awarded his PhD in 2000, while his thesis was published by Paternoster under the title When the Lord walked the land.
Between 2000 and 2002, he served as a Probationary Minister at Rubislaw Parish Church in Aberdeen, before being ordained and inducted as minister of The Parish Church of Cupar Old and St Michael of Tarvit in Fife where he served for almost twelve years. During this time, he undertook further studies at Aberdeen University and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and was awarded a DMin degree.
In January 2014 he was appointed as the new Director of the Centre for Ministry Studies at Aberdeen University. The CMS has nurtured an innovative working relationship between the academy and the church, providing education and training for people involved in Christian ministry at home and abroad through undergraduate and postgraduate courses and a calendar of annual activities and events.
Ken also created a collaborative partnership between Aberdeen University and Zomba Theological College in Malawi where he delivered the MTh Ministry Studies programme to ministers of the Central Church Africa Presbyterian.
More recently, Ken has transitioned within the Divinity department towards Modern Church History. His current research interests include Billy Graham and the All Scotland Crusade of 1955. In 2019 he was promoted to Senior Lecturer, while in 2021 he became Padre of 7SCOTS, 51st Highland, 7th Battalion of The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
Qualifications
- BA History1992 - University of Stirling
- BD Divinity1997 - University of Aberdeen
- PhD History2000 - University of Stirling
- DMin Divinity2016 - University of Aberdeen and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
- PgDip Leadership and Management2022 - City and Guilds/ ILM
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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- Coordinator of the Centre for Ministry Studies, 2014-2023
- Divinity (Department) Theology Online Programme Coordinator, 2018-22
- DHPA (School) Senior Personal Tutor, 2018-22
- Divinity (Department) Undergraduate Programme Coordinator, 2022-
- DHPA (School) Director of Education, 2022-
- External Memberships
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- External Examiner:
Birmingham University, England (DPT Programme) (2016-2021)
Union Theological College, Northern Ireland (2017-2021)
Highland Theological College, UHI, Scotland (2023-2027 )
Spurgeon's College, London (2024-2028)
- MTh External Examiner at:
Moore Theological College, Sydney, Australia
- PhD External Examiner at:
Glasgow University, Scotland
- Membership of Scholarly Societies
Christianity and History Forum
Ecclesiastical History Society (Committee Member, 2020-2023)
Fellow of Advance HE
Fellow Royal Historical Society
Scottish Church History Society
Latest Publications
Reconsidering the Impact of the All Scotland Crusade of 1955 upon Children and Young People
Scottish Church History, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 143-158Contributions to Journals: ArticlesBilly Graham, the All Scotland Crusade of 1955 and the Social Gospel
Social Christianity in Scotland and Beyond, 1800-2000: Essays in Honour of Stewart J. Brown. Mair, L., Kloes, A. (eds.). Edinburgh University Press, pp. 217-237, 21 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersReligious conversion in the sermons of Billy Graham during the All Scotland Crusade of 1955
Scottish Church History, vol. 51, no. 2, pp. 157-173Contributions to Journals: Articles‘Strangely Un-warmed’: The absence of emotion in the experience of conversion during the All Scotland Crusade of 1955
Expository Times, vol. 133, no. 12, pp. 509–520Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe threat of crisis in the sermons of Billy Graham during the All Scotland Crusade in 1955
Scottish Church History, vol. 51, no. 1, pp. 53-69Contributions to Journals: Articles
- Research
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Research Overview
I am interested in the history of Evangelicalism, religious revivals and Christian missions. I have undertaken research in modern Scottish revivals, the nineteenth century missionary movement in Malawi and the 1955 All Scotland Crusade. More broadly, my interests extend to modern Scottish church history from the eighteenth century and the intersection between church history and practical theology.
Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Divinity, History.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.
Research Specialisms
- Christian Studies
- Divinity
- History
- Theology
Our research specialisms are based on the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) which is HESA open data, published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
Current Research
My current research project is concerned with the American evangelist Billy Graham and his participation in the All Scotland Crusade of 1955.
Past Research
- The 1859 Revival in the north east of Scotland
- The industrial mission of Robert Laws of Livingstonia
- The All Scotland Crusade of 1955
Knowledge Exchange
As coordinator of the Centre for Ministry Studies, I have facilitated, since 2014, more than sixty events including courses, day conferences, lectures, Retreats, seminars and Summer Schools that have given the Divinity Department, and our friends, an opportunity to engage publicly with church leaders from around the world.
Our current engagements include:
- Aberdeen Academy of Theology
- Annual conference for the north east Presbyteries of the Church of Scotland
- Worship Leading and Preaching courses for the north east Presbyteries of the Church of Scotland
Supervision
RECENTLY COMPLETED DOCTORAL SUPERVISION
- Dr Sheila Akomiah (Ghana): The changing landscape of the church in post-Christendom Britain: New churches in Glasgow 2000-2016
- Dr Sara Blakeney (America): The Discipleship of Millennials in Missional Communities in Texas
- Dr Paul Coulter (Northern Ireland): Church and Mission in Four Aspects: Locating church planting within a missionary ecclesiology for the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church in contemporary Northern Ireland
- Dr Erin Crider (America): Planting the Word: Theological reflection on the operant missional ecclesiology of US church planting movements 1960s-present
- Rev Dr Rubens Muzio (Brazil): Sanctification in seventeenth-century English Puritan pastoral theology
- Dr Nam Vo (Vietnam): Spiritual Formation Practices and Youth Ministry in Vietnam
- Rev Dr Stuart Sheehan (America): The Changing Theological functions of Corporate Worship among Southern Baptists: What they were and what they became, 1638-2008
- Rev Dr Brian Theu (Malawi): The Impact of Witchcraft Beliefs and Practices on members of Church of Central Africa Presbyterian: A Case Study of Livingstonia Synod
CURRENT POSTGRADUATE SUPERVISION
- Rev Timothy Ang (Singapore): Representations of Revival in Eighteenth-Century British Methodism
- Rev Sam Crossley (England): Revivals in the Potteries, 1807-1886: From 'Mow Cop' to 'Gipsy Smith'
- Rev Seonkuk Kim (South Korea): Disappearing GenZ: A missional challenge in the changing context of South Korea
- Mr Billy Linscott (America): The Evangelical Church and the Urban Poor in Kansas
- Rev Gavin Lymberopoulos (America): Loosening the Noose: How Ecumenical, Interracial, Christian Women’s Conferences Helped Strangle Lynching in the Progressive Era
- Rev Ronald Matandakufa (Scotland): The death of a church: A theological analysis of the decline of the Church of Scotland
- Mr Steven Moore (England): Toxic Church Leadership: A theological examination of its causes, manifestations and outcomes
- Mrs Frances Ren (China): Joy restored to the Young Professionals in China: Towards a Contextual and Practical Theology of Play
- Rev Andrew Saunders (Nepal): Exploring resistance to contextualisation in Nepal's theological colleges
- Ms Bethany Watt (Scotland): Presbyterian Secession in north east Scotland
- Rev Dr George Weagba (Liberia): A contemporary survey of narrative preaching among United Methodist Pastors in Liberia
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
1. Undergraduate:
- A History of Christian Missions
- A History of Evangelicalism
- An Introduction to Pastoral Care
- An Introduction to Christian Spirituality
- Scottish Church History and Theology
- Scottish Revivals
- Theology and Practice of Preaching
2. PGT: MTh Ministry Studies: (At Aberdeen University and Zomba Theological College, Malawi)
- Spiritual Formation
- Leadership
- Preaching
- Christian Practices
3. PGT: MTh
- A History of Spiritual Formation Literature and Practices
4. PGT: MLitt Scottish Heritage
- Scottish Church History: From Columba to Graham and Beyond
Non-course Teaching Responsibilities
I have provided courses for the Presbytery of the North East and the Northern Isles of the Church of Scotland in:
- Preaching
- Worship Leading