Faculty

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Joseph C. Atkinson

Associate Professor of Sacred Scripture
S.T.L. and S.T.D. Program Advisor
Registrar
Joseph Atkinson portrait
202-526-3799
  • McGivney Hall 310

RESEARCH AREAS

  • Developing the Theology of the Domestic Church
  • Hermeneutics and their Relationship to Scriptural Interpretation
  • The Nature of Scripture
  • The Purity Rituals of Israel, especially the Mikveh
  • Theological Meaning of Water in OT and its relationship to NT Baptism
  • Ezra-Nehemiah
  • Ecclesiology in Acts

Joseph C. Atkinson

Associate Professor of Sacred Scripture
S.T.L. and S.T.D. Program Advisor
Registrar
Back to Faculty List

Education

S.T.D., Pontifical John Paul II Institute, Washington, D.C.

S.T.L., Pontifical John Paul II Institute, Washington, D.C.
M.Div., Montreal Diocesan Theological College
B.Th., McGill University

B.Ed., Acadia University
B.A., English, Kings College

Bio

Dr. Atkinson’s work has included foundational research in developing the biblical and theological foundation of the family. He is a primary authority on the concept of the Domestic Church, which explores the ecclesial structure and meaning of the family. The Domestic Church is an ancient idea that has achieved critical prominence since Vatican II. He teaches on the biblical structure and meaning of marriage and the family, on the Jewish background of the family, on the nature and role of covenant, and on hermeneutics and the role of symbol. He has produced a 13-part series with EWTN on the Domestic Church and has authored numerous articles on Scriptural exegesis and the biblical vision of the family including “Ratzinger’s ‘Crisis in Biblical Interpretation’: 20th Anniversary Assessment,” “Nuptiality as a Paradigmatic Structure of Biblical Revelation,” and  “Paternity in Crisis: Biblical and Philosophical Roots of Fatherhood,” and presented the research report, “Primordial Biblical Triptych: The Symbolic Structure of Water in the OT,” at the Catholic Biblical Association.  His work also includes “The Revelation of Love in the Song of Songs” in The Way of Love (Ignatius Press) and “Family as Domestic Church: Developmental Trajectory, Legitimacy and Problems of Appropriation” (Theological Studies). His book The Biblical and Theological Foundations of the Family: The Domestic Church is published by CUA Press. He is founder of the Theology of the Family Project which promotes the recovery of the Biblical vision of marriage and family. He serves as the Executive Director of the Catholic Biblical Association.

Courses

JPI 532/707

Biblical Theology of Marriage and Family: Old Testament

The purpose of this course is to help the student discover the biblical vision of the person, marriage, and family […]

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JPI 661/861

Biblical Theology of Marriage and Family: New Testament

This course builds on the Old Testament course and provides an introduction to the New Testament with a focus on […]

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JPI 715

Covenantal Reality: Biblical Foundations

Covenant is at the heart of God’s relationship to his people. This course will examine the numerous covenants within the […]

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JPI 719

Issues in the Gospel of John

This course deals with the Gospel of John and the critical themes that form its architectural structure. This course will […]

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JPI 743

The Church of the Apostles and the Modern Church

The problems that the modern Church faces can be seen as problems of identity. The struggle after the Vatican II […]

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JPI 816

Domestic Church: Biblical Foundations

John Paul II stated that the future of humanity “passes by way of the family.” The purpose of this course […]

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JPI 956

Covenant, Nuptiality, and the Biblical Vision of Reality

At the heart of biblical revelation is a vision of creation that is relational and covenantal. It is the reality […]

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JPI 967

The Pauline Vision of Marriage and Family

For St. Paul, marriage and family become radically redefined in Christ. This course examines how Paul develops his Christological vision, […]

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JPI 991

Biblical Foundations of Ecclesiology: People, Kingdom, & Body

The aim of this course is to explore at a critical level the foundations for ecclesiology in the Scriptures. Little […]

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JPI 946

Domestic Church: Water and the Mystery of Baptism

The family in the Old Testament became a special sphere of holiness, inextricably tied to the covenant. Critically, the purity/holiness […]

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JPI 1007

Water and the Mystery of Salvation

In the Old Testament, water has a theological meaning and symbolic structure which plays a critical role in the plan […]

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JPI 768

Revelation, Scripture, and the Nature of Exegesis

Dei verbum teaches that Scripture is the “soul of theology,” thus showing its fundamental importance to the theological endeavor. This […]

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JPI 1010

The Church as Body and Christ as Head: The “One-Flesh Union”

At the heart of creation lies a mystery which is termed in Hebrew the basar ’echad or the “one-flesh union.”  […]

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JPI 719a

The Human and Divine Jesus in the Gospel of John

This course will be a close reading of the Gospel of John, which will serve as the primary text. The […]

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Books

Biblical and Theological Foundations of the Family The Domestic Church.

Biblical and Theological Foundations of the Family: The Domestic Church. (CUA Press, 2014).

Atkinson Guardian of The Redeemer

Guardian of the Redeemer: Redemptoris Custos. [Annotated Commentary] (Pauline Books & Media, 2014).


Select Articles

“Human Freedom’s Encounter with Revelation: Exegesis as the Intersection of History and Theology.” in Reading and Living Scripture: Essays in Honor of William S. Kurz, S. J., edited by Jeremy Holmes and Kent Lasnoski. Steubenville, OH: Emmaus Academic, 2021.

"Without a Vision, the People Perish: Biblical Foundations for Renewal of the Family." in Renewing Catholic Family Life: Experts Explore New Directions in Family Spirituality and Family Ministry, edited by Gregory Popcak. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing, 2020.

“The Universal Call to Holiness and the Family.” Josephinum Journal of Theology 24.1-2 (May 2018): 1-20.

“Let Man Not Separate.” In Inseparable: Five Perspectives on Sex, Life, and Love in Defense of Humanae Vitae, edited by Todd Aglialoro and Stephen Phelan. San Diego: Catholic Answers Press, 2018.

“The Scriptural Foundations for Humanae Vitae.” In Why Humanae Vitae Is Still Right, edited by Janet Smith. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2018.

“The Family: The Church In Miniature.” The Catechetical Review 2.3 (July-September, 2016): 14-28.

“Jesus, Divorce and the Kingdom of Heaven.” Anthropotes Vol. XXX, No. 3 (2014): 63-94.

“The Experience of the Body and the Divine: A Spiritual Perspective.” Communio: International Catholic Review 37.2 (Summer 2010): 309-328.

“The Interpenetration of Inspiration and Inerrancy as a Hermeneutic for Catholic Exegesis.” Letter and Spirit, Vol. 6 (2010): 191-224.

“St. Paul and Marriage: A Hermeneutic.” Anthropotes Vol. XXV, No. 1-2 (2009): 179-198.

“Family as Domestic Church: Developmental Trajectory, Legitimacy, and Problems of Appropriation.” Theological Studies 66 (2005): 592-604.

“Paternity in Crisis: Biblical and Philosophical Roots of Fatherhood.” Josephinum Journal of Theology 9.1 (Winter 2002): 3-21.

“My Family, A Church?” Catholic Online.


YouTube video

Biblical and Theological Foundations of the Family: The Domestic Church Book Discussion

YouTube video

Symbolism as Agent of Ontology: The One-Flesh Union, Nature of God & Holiness

YouTube video

The Somatic Structure of Faith: The Family as Domestic Church

Full Youtube Playlist