Revd Dr Noel Davies OBE, BA (Oxon.), BSc (Wales), PhD (Wales), FHEA

noeldavies

Contact Details

School of Theology, Religious Studies and Islamic Studies

Job Title

Visiting Scholar of Theology

Role in the University

Scholar of Theology

Background

Qualifications

BSc (Wales-Bangor), Chemistry and Biochemistry BA (Oxford-Mansfield College), Theology Ordination Course Certificate, Mansfield College, OxfordPhD (Wales-Bangor), The History of the Council of Churches for Wales,1956-90

Professional Experience

Director - Welsh National Centre for Ecumenical Studies, Trinity College, CarmarthenLecturer (part-time) - School of Theology and Religious Studies, Trinity College, CarmarthenCo-ordinator of Training (part-time) - Coleg yr Annibynwyr Cymraeg (College of the Welsh Independents)

Academic Interests

(i)  The history and theology of the ecumenical movement in Wales and world-wide
(ii)  World Christianity in the Twentieth Century
(iii)  Theology and mission in the contemporary city centre

Publications

Books (in chronological order)

  • Wales: A Moral Society? ed. with Rowan Williams (Cytun, 1996)
  • Un er mwyn y byd [One for the world's sake: Aspects of the history of the Council of Churches for Wales, 1956-1990] (Cytûn, 1998.)
  • Wales: Language, Nation, Faith and Witness (in The Gospel and Culture Series, World Council of Churches, 1996)
  • God in the Centre: Exploring Theology and Mission in the City Centre (Department of Religious and Theological Studies, Cardiff University of Wales, 1999)
  • Religion and Ethics for AS students, UWIC Press (2003)
  • Religion and Ethics: Teachers' Handbook, UWIC Press (2003)
  • Detholion o Genesis (A Welsh-language Commentary on Genesis), Gwasg Pantycelyn/Y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd, 2005
  • The History of Ecumenism in Wales, 1956-90, UWP, (July 2008)
  • SCM Core Text on World Christianity in the 20th Century (with Martin Conway), SCM Press, (June 2008)
  • SCM Core Reader on World Christianity in the 20th Century (with Martin Conway), SCM Press, (July 2008)


Articles and Published Lectures

  • ‘Rediscovery, Reorientation, Celebration: The WCC Assembly theme as a call to National Councils’ (The Ecumenical Review, WCC, April 1998)
  • 'We intend to stay together': Wales and the Contemporary Ecumenical Movement, The Richard Morgan Memorial Lecture, October 1997, University of Wales, Bangor (Cytun, 1998)
  • Sources for a Theology of Place, Contact, September 2000
  • The Search for Christian Unity in Wales, Journal of Welsh Religious History, 2000
  • Towards a Theology of the City Centre, Theology Wales, 2001
  • 'Prosperity: Ethical Approaches from Wales', in Crucible (2006)
  • 'Ecumenism', in An Encyclopaedia of Mission and Missionaries (Berkshire Publishing [USA]/Routledge) (2008)
  • Introductory chapter in The Church in the City Centre, (editor, Paul Ballard), Epworth Press (2008)
  • Ymateb ffydd i wyddoniaeth gyfoes (The response of faith to contemporary science), Gwerddon (Welsh –language e-journal), Summer 2009

Additional Information

As first full-time General Secretary of the Council of Churches for Wales and Cytun: Churches Together in Wales, I had extensive involvement in the churches' relationships with government on a range of issues and was frequently called upon to comment on national and UK issues by the press and media, both religious and media. I was responsible for drafting a number of ecumenical responses to issues of local and devolved government in Wales.

  • My doctoral research included a study of the churches' responses to issues of independence and devolution from 1956 until 1990, a chapter of my forthcoming book is devoted to this study.
  • In 1996, following a meeting with the then Secretary of State for Wales, Mr John Redwood MP, I was joint editor (with the then Bishop of Monmouth, and now Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams) of 'Wales: A Moral Society?: An Ecumenical Response to Moral Questions in Wales.
  • In 1998, in anticipation of the establishment of the Assembly Government in Wales, I was asked to give the keynote address at a churches' conference to explore and propose key foundational ethical and moral principles for the new Assembly Government.
  • More recently, I was asked to write an article in response to a Churches Together in Britain and Ireland study on Future Prosperity. My article,  'Prosperity: Ethical Approaches from Wales', appeared in the Church of England journal, Crucible, in 2006.
    NAD/24-5-08