David Broughton Knox: An Enigmatic Life by Marcia Cameron

I'm not quite certain that I like reading biographies. They are a strange beast, because someone else is telling your story. It's really the question of when it comes to analysing a life, which viewpoint is the most accurate? Some would say the individuual who is being studied, as they were the only one present all the time. Though we know if we analyse ourselves that self-analysis is not always the most balanced. Therefore is a life best studied from the perspective of those closest to the person and events? Everyone has bias and just because you happen to get supposed balanced perspectives from a good ratio of critics and admirers there is no guarantee you will necessarily get the truth. Is it best then to attempt an independent analysis of the cold hard facts or the fruitfulness of the individuals efforts? Again, this approach is also lacking in that achievements rarely give a holistic view of a man. Biographies are a strange beast.

Subtitled "The Father of Contemporary Sydney Anglicanism", I have just finished reading Marcia Cameron's biography of D.Broughton Knox. Broughton Knox was principal of Moore Theological College for 26 years from 1959-1984. His impact in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney has been enormous. During his time at Moore College, Broughton helped educate over two-thirds of the total number of students since the College's inception. During his leadership over a thousand students had graduated from the college, most of whom took up positions within the diocese, the number of faculty had increased threefold, the academic standards raised, a 50% increase in student enrolments from the beginning of his tenure to the end, the expansion of the college library to today be the largest in Australia, and the purhcasing of many properties to house the increasing size of the college and incorporate married students. While no man is an island, Broughton Knox's impact has been dramatic. His life story based purely on achievement is enough to keep you entertained, and entertain it did.

Of added benefit is that next year my wife Sarah and I will begin studying at Moore College, and it is fascinating to know and understand more of the history. Having spent the last 7 years involved with Sydney Anglicans, it is quite astonishing to see how the people who have shaped me theologically fit into the story of the life of Broughton Knox, and at numerous times they are either mentioned by name or I can clearly locate some of their history within the book.

And yet as Marcia Cameron herself points out, one of the problems of a posthumous biography is that it does not allow the subject the right of reply. For Broughton Knox, holding a position as influential as principal of Moore, combined with some potentially alienating foibles meant that the potential for criticism was great. Throughout the book there is a continuous stream of criticism towards Knox. While this is both necessary and in probability largely true, I could not help but feel as I read through that particularly with some of the more critical comments, perhaps the end result was not a balanced view. There is no doubt we all have our faults and shortcomings. When analysing a life through biography it is important to include these failures to give an accurate view of a man. Yet my feeling was that much of the negative comment towards Knox was theological rather than personal. That is, really Broughton Knox is not the 'Father of Contemporary Sydney Anglicanism' but more accurately the 'Father of Contemporary Sydney Evangelicalism'. And being such a prominent conservative evangelical ensured there were many who disagreed with his theological position on a host of issues.

This is not to discount the personal disagreements and personality issues, or where Knox failed in his family or ministry roles, but the melding of the boundaries between philosophical differences and personality differences seems almost unfair. Much criticism comes from the view that Broughton was overly intellectual and not practical enough in theological education. Also that in many ways he was Christian first and Anglican second and this affected many of his decisions regarding the college. Similarly that he was a complementarian and held seemingly outdated views on divorce and remarriage. It appears many of the criticisms were at this theological/philosophical level, which then became attacks on the person.

Another difficulty of the posthumous biography is that of attributing motivation. How does the predisposition of one's father affect the son? Or how much can you make of the incidental situational context? For example it came as no surprise that Broughton Knox's view of women in ministry was attacked for being inconsistent in the later chapters when comments like this come from one of the chapters detailing the early years;

Another potential influence [of university] was the presence of women undergraduates in all his classes. In Latin there were 34, in Greek two, in English and history a minimum of 60 each year. Every year some women performed extremely well in their examinations. For instance, in Latin I, when Broughton gained a pass, one woman gained a High Distinction and two others gained Distinctions. He was competing with women on equal terms and they sometimes outclassed him. For one who set a high value upon intellect, he could not but recognise that women were not necessarily fitted only for domesticity.

Now it becomes clear later on that Broughton held a conservative view of male headship (shown in service not dominance) and female submission in the home as well as the church. The way this particular paragraph is written suggests that the base position from which Broughton came was that women were fitted only for domesticity and that he needed to broaden his mind. Now this may well be true, but it seems quite a strech to infer this from the fact three women beat him in Latin I at university.

All in all I enjoyed this book. I havn't read enough biographies to compare the writing with that of others, but one criticism I had is that my attention was assumed, not won. After a brief amusing anecdote, the earlier chapters read a bit more like an essay than a biography as the extended family history of the Knox-Young families are shared. There is a host of interesting stories here, but for the most part it's too dry and long for so early within the story. However what shines through the writing is the priorities that Broughton Knox had. He was a principled man who stood firm in those convictions. It seems this almost abject stubbornness could have proven problematic had it not been for one of these principles being that everything should be tested against the Bible for its truth to be accepted. I have been encouraged to read of the way God worked through this weak vessel to protect the gospel of the Lord Jesus and to train many of the proclaimers of that gospel. I am incredibly indebted to the faithfulness of Broughton Knox for the way he helped shape the men and women who have shaped me and my beliefs.