Peter Sherlock | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Vice-Chancellor of University of Divinity | |
| Assumed office 2012 | |
| Dean of United Faculty of Theology | |
| In office 2008–2012 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Peter Sherlock 26 October 1972 |
| Alma mater | University of Melbourne, University of Oxford |
| Profession | academic, historian |
Peter Sherlock (born 26 October 1972)[1] is an Australian academic and inaugural Vice-Chancellor of the University of Divinity in Melbourne, a role he has held since 2012. He specialises in the cultural history of Renaissance and Reformation Europe, and is a recognised authority on historic monuments.[2]
Sherlock completed a MA in history at the University of Melbourne.[3] He held a Commonwealth Scholarship at Corpus Christi College, Oxford from 1997 to 2000.[2] His D.Phil thesis from the University of Oxford was titled, Funeral Monuments: Piety, Honour and Memory in Early Modern England.[4] From 2004 to 2008 Sherlock was an Australia Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne.[5]
Throughout his career Sherlock has made significant contributions to ecumenical theological education and Australian Universities. He served as Dean of the United Faculty of Theology from 2008 to 2012[5][6] and was appointed as the inaugural Vice-Chancellor of the University of Divinity in 2012.[2][5] He has been the Chair of the Council of Deans of Theology since 2015 and Treasurer of the Australian and New Zealand Association for Medieval and Early Modern Studies since 2014.[7][5] He was elected as President of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Theological Schools in 2022.[8]
Sherlock has also contributed to Australian public theological debate. Between 2013 and 2014 he wrote a column providing religious perspectives on contemporary issues called Theophilus for The Conversation.[9] He has been a guest on several Australian Broadcasting Commission's Radio National programs[10][11] and also appeared on episodes of The Drum.[12]
Sherlock's contributions to the Anglican Church includes serving as the Lay Canon of St Paul's Cathedral Melbourne from 2010 to 2016.[13] He was editor of the Journal of Anglican Studies from 2020 to 2021.[14][15] Sherlock he has spoken publicly in favour of the Anglican Church of Australia supporting same-sex marriage. He has been in a long-term same-sex relationship and married his partner in 2018.[16] Sherlock delivered the 48th Barry Marshall Memorial Lecture, 'Why Australia Needs Theology', at Trinity College, Melbourne in 2017.[17][18]
Sherlock's research explores Renaissance and Reformation Europe history and theology, especially the commemoration of the dead and cultures of remembering and forgetting. He is a recognised authority on historic monuments.[19] He has also published in the areas of gender and religion, on theological education, and contributed multiple entries in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.[20]
