while researching at birmingham university for his doctorate, bennett was employed by the birmingham ethnic education and advisory service trust as a community tutor and development worker. during 1986–7 he was free church chaplain at aston university. from 1985 until 1992 he was associate pastor at highgate baptist church, birmingham. in september 1987 he succeeded kenneth cracknell as director of inter-religious relations at what was then the british council of churches, where he remained until 1992. bishop jim thompson as moderator of bennett's committee led his service of induction into office. during his tenure, bennett encouraged member churches to adopt the four principles of dialogue, travelled widely speaking and lecturing to promote these principles but he often found himself especially concerned with christian-muslim relations. he issued joint press statements with zaki badawi, chair of the imams and mosques council in response to the salman rushdie affair and to the first gulf war. in 1992, having helped to establish the churches commission for interfaith relations within the new ecumenical structures for britain and ireland, he left the council to take up appointment as lecturer in religious studies at westminster college, oxford. from 1996 he was senior lecturer. bennett lived on campus as a resident tutor and assistant chaplain. in his teaching at westminster, bennett was asked to focus on anthropology alongside colleagues whose specialisms were psychology, sociology and phenomenology of religion. he was leader of the religions in contemporary society cluster for the bth final year and rs subject leader for part one (years one and two) of the bed program. while at westminster, bennett also taught part-time on a masters in spirituality at what is now the university of winchester. in 1998, he moved to baylor university, waco, texas with the rank of associate professor of religion. he was cross-listed as asia studies faculty and also taught on the baylor interdisciplinary core. he was a full member of graduate faculty. after leaving baylor in 2001, bennett has tutored part-time for the centre for the study of jewish-christian relations, cambridge (mainly distance learning). he has also taught for cambridge university's institute of continuing education. 2006–2007 he was on the full-time faculty of the unification theological seminary, barrytown, ny where he was associate professor of ministry and living traditions and director of field education. he was part-time at uts during 2005. bennett has also had honorary status as a visiting research fellow at birmingham university. 2005 to 1008 he wrote and edited for the on-line new world encyclopedia. since fall 2008 he has taught religious studies part-time at the state university of new york at new paltz. since 2012 he has served as section editor for north europe with the birmingham university based project christian-muslim relations: a bibliographical history and is currently also western europe team leader. the volumes are published by brill publishers.