A leading Aberdeen divinity professor has received the prestigious honour of being appointed head of a global research institute that applies theological thinking to global challenges.
A scholar of international standing and an institutional leader of exceptional accomplishment, Professor Tom Greggs will take up the post of director of the Center of Theological Inquiry (CTI) at Princeton, New Jersey, in July 2025.
The Center is a non-profit organisation focused on cultivating a theological renaissance through interdisciplinary inquiry on global issues.
Professor Greggs’ appointment is a reflection of the calibre of the University’s Divinity department, which was ranked in the global top 25 in the 2024 QS World University Rankings by Subject and is first in the UK for overall quality of research.
Commenting on the appointment, Professor Greggs said: “While this is a wonderful opportunity to lead the world’s foremost advanced research institute in theology, it is nevertheless with great sadness that I leave behind colleagues and students at Aberdeen. For almost 15 years Aberdeen has been my academic home and, even at great geographic distance, Divinity will remain my intellectual home as a theologian.”
University of Aberdeen Pro-Chancellor, Professor Sir Iain Torrance KCVO, said: “I know the Center well and was a trustee for nine years. It’s the most agile, exciting and innovative place for theological research in the world.
“It’s a terrific coup for them to recruit Professor Greggs. He does absolutely outstanding research, but is also a strategic thinker, a visionary, a truly great colleague and an entrepreneur, demonstrated by the fact that he and his colleagues came 1st in the UK in the REF 2021.”
Professor Greggs will replace current director Dr Will Storrar who retires after 20 years of service. Dr Storrar was a member of the Aberdeen Divinity department in the 1990s and it is under his leadership the CTI has gained its current eminence.
Dr Roy Lennox, Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Center, said: “I wish to thank Will Storrar for his outstanding leadership at CTI, culminating in a cutting edge new building that puts us in an ideal position to fulfill our mission in the 21st century.
“Tom Greggs, a world renowned theologian, is the ideal person to lead CTI in the next phase of its history. He has the vision and leadership qualities to achieve remarkable things.”