The N. T. Wright Project
Nicholas Thomas (Wright), known to most readers as N. T. Wright (or occasionally “Tom Wright”), is one of the most prolific and influential Christian theologians and New Testament scholars of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Born on 1 December 1948 in Morpeth in Northumberland, England, Wright was educated at Sedbergh School and then at Exeter College, Oxford, where he read Literae Humaniores (Classics) and then theology. After ordination in the Church of England in 1975, he pursued postgraduate work at Oxford (Merton College) and in 1981 completed his DPhil on the subject of Paul’s theology (his thesis was entitled The Messiah and the People of God: A Study in Pauline Theology with Particular Reference to the Argument of the Epistle to the Romans).
From the early 1980s Wright embarked on a career that combined teaching, church ministry, and scholarship. He served as Assistant Professor of New Testament at McGill University in Montreal (1981-1986) and then returned to the UK to fellowships and chaplaincy posts (for example at Worcester College, Oxford) and a lectureship in New Testament studies at Oxford (1986-1993). In 1994 he moved into a cathedral post as Dean of Lichfield, then in 2000 was appointed Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey, and in 2003 became Bishop of Durham (a role he held until 2010). After stepping down as Bishop of Durham, Wright accepted a research-professor role at the University of St Andrews (Scotland) in New Testament and Early Christianity, enabling him to focus more on writing and global lecturing. He later became Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford.
Wright’s scholarly profile is distinguished by his commitment to combining rigorous historical-critical engagement with New Testament materials (especially Jesus and Paul) with constructive theological reflection on Christian faith and the life of the church. Topics that have been central to his work include the historical Jesus, the resurrection, the apostle Paul (especially justification and covenant), New Creation theology, and how Christian hope should shape ecclesial mission and ethics. Over the decades he has written well over seventy books (some sources give over eighty) spanning academic monographs, commentaries, popular theology and devotional works.
Wright is known for bridging two worlds: the scholarly (with detailed argumentation and engagement with the research literature) and the popular (with accessible books aimed at pastors, church-goers and general readers). He has also contributed to the public conversation on theology, ethics and Christian discipleship, speaking widely in lectures, media appearances and conferences.
Major Books by N. T. Wright
Below is a selection of major books (by no means exhaustive) that are widely regarded as central in Wright’s corpus. Clearly there are many more!
Foundational series / large-scale scholarship
Accessible theology for church and general readers
Commentary / for church use
Other influential works
Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today (2005) – theological reflection on the nature of the Bible and its authority in the contemporary church.