The Rev. James W. Farwell, Ph.D. (’89)
H. Boone Porter Professor of Liturgics
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Ph.D., Emory University
M.Div., The General Theological Seminary
B.A., Catholic University of America.
Cert., Institute for Buddhist Studies, Graduate Theological Union -
• Liturgical and sacramental theology;
• Liturgy suffering and trauma;
• Theories of ritual and theologies of religion;
• Christian comparative theology with attention to the tradition of Soto Zen. -
jfarwell@vts.edu
Faculty Bio
A member of the American Academy of Religion and the Society for Comparative Theology, Dr. Farwell is Past President of the North American Academy of Liturgy and convenes its Anglican Colloquium. He holds a dual appointment as Professor of Theology and Liturgy at Virginia Theological Seminary.
In over thirty years in higher education, Dr. Farwell has taught theology, religious studies, and philosophy at the college and graduate levels. He has been a priest of the Episcopal Church for 37 years.
Dr. Farwell’s publications include book chapters, essays, and journal articles on liturgical and sacramental theology, prayer book revision, dual religious belonging, and learning across religious traditions. He is the author or editor of the following books:
Ritual Excellence: Best Practices for Leading and Planning Liturgy (Seabury, 2023)
T&T Clark Handbook of Sacraments and Sacramentality, co- edited with Martha Moore Keish (T&T Clark, 2023)
The Liturgy Explained (Morehouse, 2013)
This Is the Night: Suffering, Salvation, and the Liturgies of Holy Week (T&T Clark, 2005)
His current book projects are One God, Two Truths: Christian Theology and Practice in the Light of Soto Zen (Seabury); and The Eucharist: Christianity through the Lens of Its Ritual (New York University Press). He was one of fifteen Episcopal theologians featured in Wisdom, Knowledge, and Faith: New Essays on the Future of Theology and the Episcopal Church (co-edited by Robert MacSwain and Kelli Joyce, Seabury, 2026).