Former PhD Theses

The Centre is proud of the approximately 150 students who have completed PhD studies with us, both in Edinburgh and in its earlier incarnation in Aberdeen. Those marked with a diesis (‡) can be found in hard copy form in the Centre archives, although some have subsequently been digitised.

2020s

2010s

2000s

1990s

1980s

  • B. Violet James (1989), ‘American Protestant missions and the Vietnam war’ ‡
  • Robert L. Kennedy (1989), ‘Best intentions: contacts between German Pietists and Anglo-American Evangelicals 1945-54’ ‡
  • Robert L. Kennedy (1988), ‘Turning westward. Anglo-American Evangelical and Pietist interactions through 1954’ ‡
  • Gerishon N. M. Kirika (1988), ‘Aspects of the religion of the Gikuyu of Central Kenya before and after the European contact, with special reference to prayer and sacrifice’ ‡
  • Samuel S. Simbandumwe (1988), ‘Israel in two African prophet movements: an inquiry into the Mount Zion-Jerusalem concept as reflected in the aspects of hymns and prayer-songs of the Kimbangu and Shembe prophet movements’ ‡
  • Philippa J. Baylis (1987), ‘Andrew Lang and the study of religion in the Victorian era with special reference to his high god theory’ ‡
  • Murumba Jem Oguogho (1987), ‘A critique of African liberation theologies from the perspective of Latin American liberation theology and North American black theology’ ‡
  • Theodore Paul Christian Gabriel (1986), ‘Inter-religious conflict in India: the dynamics of Hindu-Muslim relations in North Malabar 1498-1947’ ‡
  • Mark Onesosan Ogharaerumi (1986), ‘The translation of the Bible into Yoruba, Igbo and Isekiri languages of Nigeria, with special reference to the contributions of mother-tongue speakers’ ‡
  • Donald John Mackay (1985), ‘The once and future kingdom: Kongo models of renewal in the Church at Ngombe Lutete and in the Kimbanguist Movement’ ‡
  • John Mason Hitchen (1984), ‘Training ‘Tamate’: formation of the nineteenth century missionary worldview: the case of James Chalmers’ ‡
  • Aaron Chikwendu Owoh (1984), ‘Church growth and self-reliance in Zambia: the indigenous United Church in Zambia’ ‡
  • Ismail bin Ab-Rahman (1983), ‘Inter-religious controversy in India; the interpretation of Jesus in theworks of Rammohun Roy and Sayyid Ahmad Khan’ ‡
  • Kwame Bediako (1983), ‘Identity and integration: an enquiry into the nature and problems of theological indigenization in selected early Hellenistic and modern African writers’ ‡
  • Amran Bin Kasimin (1983), ‘Religion and social change amongst the indigenous peoples of the Malay peninsula’ ‡
  • Gerald John Pillay (1983), ‘A historico-theological study of Pentecostalism as a phenomenon within a South African community’ ‡
  • Jonathon James Bonk (1982), ‘“All things to all men”? Protestant missionary identification in theory and in practice, 1860-1910, with special reference to the London Missionary Society in Central Africa and Central China’
  • J. R. Cabbage (1982), ‘Order and chaos in Mende religion’ ‡
  • Daniel Iwayo Ilega (1982), ‘Gideon M. Urhobo and the God’s Kingdom society in Nigeria’ ‡
  • Cyril Chukwunqnyerem Okorqcha (1982), ‘Salvation in Igbo religious experience: its relation on Igbo Christianity’ ‡
  • David A. Shank (1980), ‘A prophet of modern times: the thought of William Wade Harris, West African precursor of the Reign of Christ’ ‡

1960s–1970s

  • Michael Bame Bame (1978), ‘Pastoral care and the ontic reality of the incorporeal components of man’s being’ ‡
  • Samuel Onwo Onyeidu (1978), ‘The African lay agents of the Church Missionary Society in West Africa 1810-1850’ ‡
  • William John Roxborough (1978), ‘Thomas Chalmers and the mission of the Church with special reference to the rise of the missionary movement in Scotland’ ‡
  • Chee Pang Choong (1977), ‘Doctrinal and exegetical issues in the Hindu-Christian debate during the nineteenth century Bengal renaissance with special reference to St. Paul’s teaching on the religions of the nations’ ‡
  • James Leland Cox (1977), ‘The development of A. G. Hogg’s theology in relation to non-Christian faith: its significance for the Tambaram meeting of the International Missionary Council, 1938’ ‡
  • David Chidiebele Okeke (1977), ‘Policy and practice of the Church Missionary Society in Igboland 1857-1929’ ‡
  • Samuel Prempeh (1977), ‘The Basel and Bremen missions and their successors in the Gold Coast and Togoland, 1914-1926: a study in Protestant missions and the First World War’ ‡
  • Gabre Ammanuel Mikre-Sellassie (1976), ‘Church and missions in Ethiopia in relation to the Italian war and occupation and the Second World War’ ‡
  • Godwin Onyemaechi Mgbechi Tasie (1969), ‘Christianity in the Niger Delta, 1864-1918’ ‡
  • J. M. Orr (1967), ‘The contribution of Scottish Missions to the rise of responsible churches in India’ ‡

Recent Posts

Reflections on Yale-Edinburgh 2026

Written by Centre PhD student, Kpanie Addy, SJ.

Professor Emma Wild-Wood (Centre Co-Director) and Professor Jeremy Carette (Head of School) welcoming delegates to Yale-Edinburgh 2026.

With the theme “Popular, Folk, Grassroots and Pop Culture in World Christianity and the History of Mission,” the 2026 Yale-Edinburgh Conference promised an intellectually stimulating encounter. Held at New College, University of Edinburgh, from 10th to 12th June 2026, it more than met that expectation. Not many conferences witness the eruption of rhythmic sounds and harmonious melodies, with bodies gently gyrating to depict the performative aspects of religious practices, all of which align with the quest to advance academic inquiry. This distinctive feature of the 2026 Y-E Conference pointed to the richness of the field of World Christianity and the need to delve deeper into how religion is evoked, religious soundscapes, and the theatre of Christian ritual. The conference began with a gracious welcome from Professor Jeremy Carette, Head of the School of Divinity, followed by a preview by Professor Emma Wild-Wood, CSWC co-director. The eighty-five participants were then ushered into three days of thought-provoking scholarly exchanges, consisting of forty-eight in-person presentations and two hybrid panels, each comprising three presentations, held in Hong Kong and Nairobi. 

Presentations addressed a wide range of themes, including World Christianity and Music; Popular Culture and Christianity in the Digital Age; Mediating Christianity in Popular Culture; Christian Popular Culture, Social Justice and Liberation. Papers were grouped into panels to foster conversations across geographic specialisations, enriching presenters’ insights through regional, thematic, and disciplinary perspectives. Notwithstanding the emergent hybridity, traditional themes in world Christianity, such as the translation principle, resonated across many papers while also introducing novelty to these enduring motifs. 

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