David F. Wright (1937–2008) was an English-born historian, who taught for almost a half-century at

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

's New College.

Biography

He was born on 2 October 1937 in

Hayes, Kent Hayes is a suburban area of southeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Bromley. It is located south-east of Charing Cross, to the north of Keston and Coney Hall, west of Bromley Common, south of Bromley town centre, and eas ...

. Wright received a first in Theology and History from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and, when finished, did further postgraduate studies at

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Flemin ...

, from 1961 to 1964. He then took a post as lecturer in Ecclesiastical History at

New College, Edinburgh New College is a historic building at the The University of Edinburgh, University of Edinburgh which houses the university's School of Divinity. It is one of the largest and most renowned centres for studies in Theology and Religious studies, R ...

in 1964. Although he held views that were theologically conservative, he related well throughout his career with those on the faculty whose positions differed from his own. He was Dean of the Faculty of Divinity from 1988 to 1992, and curator of New College Library from 1994 to 2003. Wright's broad-ranging scholarship won him acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic, being "internationally distinguished for his contributions in three main fields," namely, Early Church studies, the Reformation, and the question of reception. The significance of his scholarly reputation is further attested by the publication of a

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

in honour of his contribution to academic scholarship, which was published in 1997. Edinburgh University awarded him an honorary doctorate (DD) in the same year. Wright's first research interests were in early Christianity, principally the life and writings of Augustine. He also had a lifelong interest in Christian baptism. He later became fascinated with the Reformation, writing on

Martin Bucer Martin Bucer (; Early German: ; 11 November 1491– 28 February 1551) was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Anglican doctrines and practices as well as Reformed Theology. Bucer was originally a memb ...

John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...

, and

Peter Martyr Vermigli Peter Martyr Vermigli (; 8 September 149912 November 1562) was an Italian-born Reformed theologian. His early work as a reformer in Catholic Italy and his decision to flee for Protestant northern Europe influenced some other Italians to convert ...

among others. He lectured in numerous countries, wrote articles, book chapters, dictionaries, and encyclopaedias. He was also a meticulous PhD supervisor of students from Europe, the United States, and Asia. He died of cancer at the Marie Curie Hospice in Edinburgh on 19 February 2008. He is buried in

Grange Cemetery The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hi ...

in south

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

Family

He was married to Anne-Marie MacDonald (1944-2016). They had two children, Andrew and Jenny.

Publications

*''In Understanding be Men'' with T. C. Hammond (revisor and editor) (1968) *''Common Places of Martin Bucer'' (translated and annotated) (1972) *''Essays in Evangelical Social Ethics'' (editor) (1978) *''The Bible in Scottish Life and Literature'' (editor) (1988) *''New Dictionary of Theology'' (editor) (1988) *''Chosen by God'' (editor) (1989) *''Dictionary of Scottish Church History and Theology'' (editor) (1993) *''What has Infant Baptism done to Baptism'' (2005) *''Infant Baptism in Historical Perspective'' (2007) *''Baptism: Three Views'' (editor) (2009)

References

External links

* elected Bibliography of Wright's writings: https://theologicalstudies.org.uk/theo_wright.php* ntervarsity author page: https://web.archive.org/web/20160405113741/http://www.ivpress.com/cgi-ivpress/author.pl/author_id=1460* bituary in the Scotsman: http://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/professor-david-wright-1-1156178* bituary in Reformation21: http://www.reformation21.org/blog/2008/02/david-f-wrights-obituary-in-th.php {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, David Church of Scotland British theologians Alumni of the University of Cambridge 1937 births 2008 deaths 20th-century British historians