Dr Zhe Gao

I received my B.Ec. (International Economic and Trade, 2003) and M.Phil. (Religious Studies, 2005) from Renmin University of China, and M.A. (Christian Studies, 2006) and Ph.D. (Religious Studies, 2010) from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I had taught at Minzu University of China (China) before joining University of Stirling in 2017. I now serve as an Interdisciplinary Senior Lecturer in Religion and Translation, Division of Literature and Languages (2017-) at the University. 

My academic research mainly focuses on the translatability of Christianity into Chinese culture. As one of the major participants of the Movement of Sino-Christian Studies, I consider all my research related to Christianity as translating activities, whether they are linguistic translations of English Christian literature into Chinese, or re-interpretations of Christian messages in the context of Chinese society and culture, or the practice of inter-religious dialogue between Christianity and Chinese religions – especially through doing comparative theology. During this process of fusion of horizons, the limits of the use of traditional language in Christian studies and Christian theology have been revealed and new understandings towards Christianity have emerged. My research is also deeply interdisciplinary, consists primarily of Christian theology in its most general sense, and lies at the intersection of translation, hermeneutics, economics, and cultural studies interaction.  My first book, Co-creation and Gift: A Critical Study of Theologies of Work (2015), through reflecting on the two dominant theological approaches to human work after the Reformation, tries to draft a theo-economics of human work based on the concept of “gift”. My second book, Catholicism (2015), stands as an introduction to the beliefs and practices of Roman Catholic Church, as well as its encounters with China since the 7th century. Most of my academic journal papers either are interdisciplinary Christian studies of public issues or concern the contextualization and inculturation of the Christian faith in modern China, or both. I have also translated four English academic books into Chinese and co-translated several with others. My more recent research focuses on the dialogue between Christianity and Chinese religions, especially Chinese Buddhism.  Research Interests: Sino-Christian Theology, Public Theology, Inter-religious Dialogue, Cultural Translation.

RELU912 Religion, Nationalism and Colonialism RELU914 Method and Theory of Religion RELU9AD Introduction to Christianity RELU9MM Religion, Capitalism and Consumerism TRNU9A5 Practical Translation II TRNU9A7 Practical Translation III CTTPP01 Cultural Translation