Alex ThompsonSecond-year MDiv student Alex Thompson is the 2012–2013 recipient of Emory’s Robert T. Jones Jr. Fellowship. Inaugurated in 2008, the fellowship provides full funding for one year of graduate study at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Fellows are selected based on their records of intellectual excellence and high potential for postgraduate success in their chosen field. Thompson will pursue a Master of Letters in Scripture and Theology while at St. Andrews.

“This interdisciplinary program explores issues of biblical interpretation in dialogue with Christian history, hermeneutics, and systematic theology,” Thompson explains. “I hope to explore more fully the connections between these often disparate branches of theology, focusing specifically on the issues regarding Paul’s theology and his interpretation of the Old Testament.”

Thompson also hopes to connect to a worshipping community and continue to grow in the faith through daily practices of prayer and meditative reading, drawing inspiration from Scotland’s rich Christian heritage of monasticism and pilgrimage.  “My plan is to grow not only academically, but spiritually, as I continue to explore my ministerial vocation,” he says.