St Andrew, Scotland, February 11, 2026
Photo: YouTube
The University of St Andrews has appointed Professor Marcus Plested to the 1643 Chair of Divinity, marking a historic first for the institution. Professor Plested is the first Orthodox theologian to hold the Chair and is believed to be the first Orthodox scholar appointed to a senior Divinity post in the University’s 613-year history.
Founded in 1413 through a papal bull issued by the Avignon Antipope Benedict XIII, the University of St Andrews is the oldest university in Scotland and the third-oldest in the English-speaking world, after Oxford and Cambridge. The Chair of Divinity, established in 1643, is regarded as one of the most prestigious posts in theological scholarship.
Professor Plested’s research centers on the Christian East, with particular attention to Patristic, Byzantine, and modern Orthodox theology, as well as dialogue between Orthodox and Western Christian traditions, reports St Andrews.
Educated in London, Professor Plested studied modern history before reading theology at Merton College, Oxford. He taught for many years at the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies and the Faculty of Divinity in Cambridge, before moving to the United States in 2013. He has since been affiliated with the Center of Theological Inquiry and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, and has published widely in Patristic, Byzantine, and modern Orthodox theology.
Commenting on his appointment, Professor Plested said that, as an Orthodox theologian and the first non-Protestant to occupy the Chair, the role offers an opportunity to advance dialogue between Orthodox, Protestant, and Catholic theology, as well as with the modern secular world. He also noted St Andrews’ long history as a spiritual center and place of pilgrimage, associated with the relics of the Apostle Andrew, expressing hope that his appointment would continue this tradition of encounter between the Greek East and the Latin West.
Professor William Tooman, Head of the School of Divinity and Principal of St Mary’s College, said that St Mary’s has long been recognized for building bridges between theology, Biblical studies, and the wider world, and described Professor Plested as a distinguished theologian whose scholarship has enriched contemporary understanding of the Christian East.
Follow OrthoChristian on Facebook, Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe and Gab!
