Current students
Mr Ming Him Ko, BEng(EEE), MPhil, MDiv, MA
Contact Mr Ming Him Ko (email at m.h.ko@durham.ac.uk)
Biography
My initial interest in pursuing academic career came from the active interactions with teachers and mentors in China Graduate School of Theology (CGST), where I equipped myself for the degree of Master of Divinity. I was fascinated by the beauty of the Hebrew language and the theology of the Old Testament in general, and the book of Chronicles in particular. After three years pastoral ministry in Christian Alliance Yan Yau Church in Hong Kong, I (together with my wife and my daughter) came to Durham to study MA in Biblical Studies in 2010-2011. My MA dissertation offers a theological interpretation of Saul's rejection (1 Sam 13, 15, 28) in light of Shema as the rule of faith by using Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics. This dissertation was supervised by Prof. Walter Moberly, and I am grateful for his insightful and fruitful gudiance.
After the graduation of MA, I continue my PhD in Durham University under the supervision of Prof. Robert Hayward, who always encourages and strengthens me at various points. My initial interest in the book of Chronicles grows high under his supervision. I am looking at the Levitical singers in the book of Chronicles, which is a special and unique depiction of temple personnel that does not have its parallel in Samuel-Kings. In this project, I propose a cosmological reading of the text related to the temple singers and articulate the cosmic significance of the Chronicler's temple and Levitical singers.
I was born in Hong Kong and live in Hong Kong. I became a Christian since I was a secondary student. I grew up in Christian Alliance Yau Oi Church, and received God's calling as a full-time minister when I was an undergraduate in Hong Kong University, where I studied electronic engineering and participated the activities of Hong Kong Campus Crusade for Christ (HKCCC). I worked as a campus staff in HKCCC for six years before I studied in CGST. I and my wife have a burden to teach and build up churches in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Research Interests
- The book of Chronicles
- Music and Psalmody in the Hebrew Bible
- Jewish Cosmology
- The Deuteronomistic History (esp. Samuel-Kings)
Publications
Journal papers: academic
- Ko, Ming Him (2012). The Rejection of Saul Reconsidered: A Theological Reading of 1Sam 13, 15, 28 in the Deuteronomistic Context (in Chinese). China Graduate School of Theology Journal 53: 27-50.