Scholar finding sums are uplifting (7)
I believe the answer is:
erasmus
'scholar' is the definition.
(Erasmus is an example)
'sums are uplifting' is the wordplay.
'uplifting' is a reversal indicator.
'sums'+'are'='sumsare'
'sumsare' back-to-front is 'ERASMUS'.
'finding' is the link.
(Other definitions for erasmus that I've seen before include "Desiderius -, fifteenth and sixteenth century Dutch humanist" , "Fifteenth to sixteenth century Dutch humanist, use arms (anag.)" , "Humanist critical of Church" , "religious scholar" , "Learned person" .)