Andrew Wilson (born December 26, 1950), full name Andrew Murray Wilson, is the Director of Scriptural Research[1] and Professor of Scriptural Studies of the Unification Theological Seminary (UTS), the main seminary of the international Unification Church.[2]
World Scripture and its reception
Wilson edited World Scripture: A Comparative Anthology of Sacred Texts (published 1991),[3] a comparative anthology that contains over 4,000 scriptural passages from 268 sacred texts and 55 oral traditions.[4] Gifford Lecturer Ninian Smart wrote the book's foreword.[3] Its publisher quotes include praise for its contribution to comparative religion from clergy, scholars, and practitioners of multiple faith traditions,[3] and it has been briefly and favorably mentioned in multiple non-UTS publications.[5] Peace studies professor Lester Kurtz called the online version of the book, which is available in multiple online locations,[6] a "wonderful compendium".[7] The online version of World Scripture is linked to by many collegiate[8] and independent[9] websites as a comparative religion resource.
Other accomplishments
In Controversial New Religions, James R. Lewis describes Wilson as "a leading Unification scholar."[10] Wilson has been editor of UTS's academic Journal of Unification Studies since its inception in 1997[11][12] and of all the contributors of this journal, he has the most hits, with 194,242, with his paper entitled "40th Anniversary Forum: The Unification Church in America".[13] Wilson led the translation committee for the main scripture of the Unification Church, Exposition of the Divine Principle.[14][15] and co-author of Cultivating Heart and Character: Educating for Life's Most Essential Goals.[16] Wilson serves as senior advisor[17] and chair of the editorial board[18] for the Unification Church-sponsored New World Encyclopedia.
Born a Jew,[10] Wilson performs speaking[19] and leadership roles[20] in the Unification Church's Middle East Peace Initiative, with a focus on Christian–Jewish reconciliation.[21] He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1971, and later obtained an M.T.S from Harvard Divinity School and Ph.D. from Harvard.[22] Wilson was subject to a forced deprogramming attempt in 1975, and in late 1980 protested a Harvard talk on the subject by cult critic Margaret Thaler Singer.[22] Wilson joined the faculty of Unification Theological Seminary in 1985, the year his Ph.D. thesis was published.[23] At UTS, Wilson currently teaches a variety of scriptural studies, living traditions, and theology courses.[24]
