Colin Peter Thompson

Colin Peter Thompson (b. 1945) is an English United Reformed Church minister, scholar of Spanish literature, and hymn writer. Born in Exeter, Devon, he studied at the University of Oxford, where he earned the M.A. and D.Phil. He was ordained in the United Reformed Church in 1971 and served as chaplain to the University of Sussex before pursuing a long academic career at Oxford.

At Oxford, Thompson became a Faculty Lecturer in Spanish and a Fellow of St Catherine's College. His scholarship concentrates on Spanish Golden Age literature, including the poetry and spirituality of St Teresa of Ávila and St John of the Cross, as well as writers such as Cervantes, Calderón, Góngora, and Fray Luis de León. His books include studies of Spanish mysticism and literature, among them St John of the Cross: Songs in the Night. He also served the wider University, including a term as Senior Proctor, and later became an Emeritus Fellow of St Catherine's College.

Hymn writing has formed a smaller but significant part of Thompson's work. His first published hymn was “Christian People, Raise Your Song,” included in New Church Praise in 1975. He later contributed seven items, including paraphrases, to Rejoice and Sing (1991), on whose editorial committee he served, and three items to Common Praise (2000). His hymn texts reflect his ministry and scholarship while remaining shaped for congregational worship.