Research Interests:  biblical area; world religions; Judaism; Christianity; Islam; Hinduism; occultism; New Religious Movements; New Testament teachings about the person and nature of Christ; ancient Jewish messianic expectations; contemporary neo-paganism. 

Short Biography

I grew up in Hamilton, Ontario and did all my university degrees there at McMaster (B.A. 1972, M.A. 1976, Ph.D. 1979). I began majoring in French and German, and switched to Religious Studies in third year. McMaster in those days had a large, exciting department with professors from almost all the world’s religious traditions. New Testament was my specialty within Religious Studies. My doctoral thesis, written under the guidance of Ben F. Meyer and E. P. Sanders, was on the Gospel of Mark and what it teaches about the nature and person of Jesus. I also did a Minor in Hindu Religious History under David Kinsley.

I have been a professor of Religious Studies at UPEI since 1979. Since coming here, I have taught in the biblical area, but also world religions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, occultism, and New Religious Movements. I pioneered the development of UPEI’s Asian Studies programme, and chaired the Department of Religious Studies from 1985 to 1991 and again from 1997 to 2003.

Anything about religion fascinates me because it touches on such universal, perennial, and personal issues. I have done research in a number of areas: New Testament teachings about the person and nature of Christ; ancient Jewish messianic expectations; and contemporary neo-paganism, as represented by my book Goddess Unmasked: the Rise of Neopagan Feminist Spirituality.

My wife Catrin is a social worker and we are parishioners of the Cathedral Church of St. Peter (Anglican). My other interests include family history, military history, the PEI Welsh Society, and especially our four children and two delightful grandchildren.