Dr. Darren J.N. Middleton
Director of the BIC Professor of Literature and Theology
Baylor Interdisciplinary Core
Dr. Darren J.N. Middleton is the fourth Director of the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core, appointed August 01, 2022. In addition to his administrative role, he holds a tenured faculty appointment in the BIC as Professor of Literature and Theology. Born and raised in Nottingham, England, Dr. Middleton earned his B.A. in Religious Studies from the University of Manchester, a M.Phil in Modern Christian Doctrine from the University of Oxford, and his Ph.D. in Literature and Theology from the University of Glasgow. Following his doctoral studies, Dr. Middleton was an instructor of Religious Studies at Rhodes College for five years before beginning service at Texas Christian University.
Dr. Middleton comes to Baylor and the Honors College following a 24-year tenure at Texas Christian University where he was a great friend to honors education, an award-winning professor, and highly productive scholar. He is the author or editor of thirteen books, and over 50 articles and book chapters, addressing such varied subjects as Greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis, Japanese author Shusaku Endo, English novelist Graham Greene, and American writer Cormac McCarthy, along with studies of the Rastafari, an interest growing out of childhood friendship with Jamaican immigrants to his hometown.
I continue my work in two areas. First, I am drawn to authors of Christian historical fiction, and I teach them as well, so I followed my 2022 book, "The Writer and the Cross," with a 2023 article on Louis de Wohl, a Roman Catholic novelist during the Second World War. Second, I am writing a book on the Rastafari -- using oral history and fieldwork to examine how and why selected reggae music soundtracks five decisive moments in the history of this global religious movement. I continue to teach my BIC capstone course, "Memoir and Meaning," and in the near future I hope to offer a World V class on the "Rastafari and Reggae Music in Global Contexts."
My wife, Dr. Elizabeth Flowers (Religion), and I continue to have fun with the Baylor in Oxford program. Every summer we take students to Christ Church college, where I was a student, and I offer two courses, "Religion and Literature in Oxford" and "British Sports in a Global Society," which enable me to indoctrinate BIC-ers in Philip Pullman, P. D. James, and cricket as well as soccer!