Dr. Mark Scott
Dr. Mark Scott
Professor Emeritus Religious StudiesContact Information
935 Ramsey Lake Rd
Sudbury ON P3E 2C6
Dr. Mark S. M. Scott, formerly Associate Professor and now Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at Thorneloe University, received his Ph.D. and A.M. (Religious Studies) from Harvard University, his M.A.R. (Theology) from Yale Divinity School, and his B.A. (Honours) in Religious Studies from McMaster University. He has published two monographs: Pathways in Theodicy: An Introduction to the Problem of Evil (Fortress, 2015) and Journey Back to God: Origen on the Problem of Evil (OUP, 2012 [paperback: 2015]). His articles and essays have appeared in numerous scholarly venues, including Harvard Theological Review, Journal of Early Christian Studies, Religious Studies, Open Theology, and elsewhere. His research interests include theology, philosophy of religion, early Christianity, and religion and literature.
Education
- Ph.D., A.M., Harvard University
- M.A.R., Yale Divinity School
- B.A., McMaster University
Research interests
- Early Christianity
- Philosophy of religion
- Religion and literature
- Religion and culture
- Theology
Courses Taught at Thorneloe University at Laurentian
- RLST 1116 – Ideas of Love I
- RLST 1117 – Ideas of Love II
- RLST 2136 – Christian Thought & Culture I
- RLST 2137 – Christian Thought & Culture II
- RLST 2166 – The Problem of Evil
- RLST 3286 – C.S. Lewis and the Religious Imagination
- RLST 3386 – Faith & Atheism
- RLST 4345 – Special Readings
- HUMA 5457 – Text and Belief
Courses Taught Elsewhere
- World Religions
- Augustine/Augustine and Culture Seminar
- Introduction to the New Testament
- Early Christianity/Medieval Christianity
- History of Christianity: The First Millennium
- History of Christianity: 1500-Present
- Theology in Film
- Understanding Jesus
- Introduction to Christian Ethics
- Philosophical Foundations of Theology
- Introduction to Theology: Faith, Reason, and Culture
Books
- Pathways in Theodicy: An Introduction to the Problem of Evil (Fortress Press, 2015)
- Journey Back to God: Origen on the Problem of Evil (Oxford University Press, 2012 [pbk: 2015])
Articles and Essays (selection)
- “Befriending Job: Theodicy Amid the Ashes,” Special Issue: Issues and Approaches in Contemporary Theological Thought about Evil, Open Theology 6.1 (2020): 319-326
- “Wrestling with Existence: Pondering Suffering and Grace in Lila,” Toronto Journal of Theology 33.2 (2017): 207-217.
(Video Abstract) - “Souls in the Dark: Theodicy and Domesticity in Home,”Religions 8.12.273 (2017), Special Issue on Theodicy: 1-6.
- “Beauty from Ashes: Aesthetic Transformations of Suffering in Gilead,” in CRUX 52.3-4 (2016): 11-18.
- “Light in the Darkness: The Problem of Evil in The Thin Red Line,” in Theology and the Films of Terrence Malick, eds. Christopher B. Barnett and Clark J. Elliston, (Routledge, 2016): 173-186.
- “In the Face of Mystery: Soteriological Symbolism in Gilead and Home,” in This Life, This World: New Essays on Marilynne Robinson’s Housekeeping, Gilead, and Home, ed., Jason W. Stevens (Brill, 2015): 148-170.
- “Augustine and Autobiography: Confessions a Roadmap for Self-Reflection,” Religions 6 (2015): 139-145.
- “C. S. Lewis and John Hick: An Interface on Theodicy,” Journal of Inklings Studies 4.1 (2014): 19-31.
- “Reading Together: The Art of Classroom Encounters with Primary Texts,” Teaching Theology and Religion 17.1 (2014): 80.
- “Theodicy at the Margins: New Trajectories for the Problem of Evil,” Theology Today 68.2 (2011): 149-152.
- “Suffering and Soul-Making: Rethinking John Hick’s Theodicy,” Journal of Religion 90.3 (2010): 313-334.
- “Guarding the Mysteries of Salvation: The Pastoral Pedagogy of Origen’s Universalism,” Journal of Early Christian Studies 18.3 (2010): 347-368.
- “Companion Theodicy,” Harvard Divinity Bulletin 38.3 (2010): 17-18.
- “Shades of Grace: Origen and Gregory of Nyssa’s Soteriological Exegesis of Song of Songs 1:5,” Harvard Theological Review 99:1 (2006): 65-83.
- “God as Person: Karl Barth and Karl Rahner on Divine and Human Personhood,” Religious Studies and Theology 25:2 (2006): 161-190.
2019
“The Oxford Inklings for a New Generation,”
“C. S. Lewis and the Gift of Failure,”
Invited Lectures: Campus Inklings and OCRCC
September 23-24, 2019
University of Ottawa
“Befriending Job: Theodicy amid the Ashes,”
Conference: Compassion and Theodicy: Practice, Thought, & Tradition
July 20, 2019
Oxford University
“Faith and Doubt in Gilead: Beyond Spiritual Dichotomies,”
Conference: “The Problem with God: Christianity and Literature in Tension”
March 2019
Harvard Divinity School, Cambridge, MA
2018
“The Principle of Cooperation in a Polarized Age–A Response to Sarah Coakley’s ‘Is there a Future for Natural Theology?'”,
Interface: A Lecture Series in Science and Theology
October 2018
Regent College, Vancouver BC
2017
“Beauty from Ashes: Aesthetic Transformations of Suffering in Gilead,”
CSSR Panel: Contemporary Approaches to Suffering, Evil, and Theodicy
May 2017
Ryerson University
2016
“Origen’s Theological Story about God and Evil: A Platonist or Christian Theodicy?” at the International Workshop on Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity
December 2016, Department of Philosophy, Classics, History of Art and Ideas
University of Oslo, Norway
“Origen” Seminar Leader at The Fr. Robert Crouse Seminar: An Annual Study Seminar for Clergy
May 2016, St. Thomas’ Anglican Church, Huron St
Toronto, Ontario
2015
“Divine Presence and Absence in a World of Woe: The Problem of Evil in Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life,” Conference Paper
June 2015, Protestantism on Screen: Religion, Politics, and Aesthetics in European and American Movies
Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, LEUCOREA
Wittenburg, Germany
2014
“Augustine and Autobiography: Confessions as a Roadmap for Self-Reflection,” Paper
Oct 2014, Teaching the Christian Intellectual Tradition Augustine Across the Curriculum
Samford University
2013
“C. S. Lewis and John Hick: An Interface on Theodicy,” Conference Paper
September 2013, Christian Faith and the University
McGill University
2012
“Origen of Alexandria: The Patron Saint of Universalism?,” Conference Paper
November, 2012, Theology and Religious Reflection
American Academy of Religion, Chicago
2011
“Tensions and Turmoil in Medieval and Reformation Christianity,” Invited Lecture
April 2011, World Religions, Extension School
Harvard University
2010
Keynote Address
“Theodicy and Natural Disasters,”
The Florida Center for Science and Religion
Florida Southern College, April 06, 2010
2009
“The Patristic Sources of John Hick’s Soul-Making Theodicy,” Conference Paper
May 2009, Canadian Society of Patristic Studies
Carleton University
2008
“Origen the Christian or Origen the Platonist?” Conference Paper
April 2008, Graduate Student Conference in Patristic Studies
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
2007
“The Wisdom of Silence: Job and the Mystery of Evil,” Conference Paper
May 2007, Canadian Society of Biblical Studies (Founders Prize Essay)
University of Saskatchewan
2005
“Shades of Grace: Origen and Gregory of Nyssa’s Soteriological Exegesis of Song of Songs 1:5”
May 2005, Canadian Society of Patristic Studies (Essay Prize Winner)
University of Western Ontario
- Lent – CTV News North, February 17, 2021
- The History of Shrove Tuesday – CTV News North, February 16, 2021
- A Look at the History of Halloween – CTV News North, October 27, 2020
- Impact of the Pandemic on Easter Celebrations – CTV News North, April 09, 2020
- The True Meaning of Christmas – CTV Northern Ontario, Dec. 23, 2019
- The Origins of Halloween – CTV Northern Ontario, Oct. 29, 2019
- The Religious Significance of Good Friday and Easter – CTV Northern Ontario, Mar. 18, 2019
- Ash Wednesday – CTV Northern Ontario, Mar. 6, 2019
- History of Love – CTV Northern Ontario, Feb. 14, 2019
- Ideas of Love – CBC Radio One, Sudbury, Feb. 14, 2019
- ‘He Has A Reason’: How Natural Disasters Test The Faithful – NPR, Sept. 4, 2017