Jeffrey John

Jeffrey Philip Hywel John (born 10 February 1953) is a Church of England priest and the current Dean of St Albans. He made headlines in 2003 when he was the first person to have openly been in a same-sex relationship to be nominated as a Church of England bishop.^[1] Owing to the consequent controversy it was claimed he had withdrawn his acceptance of the nomination.

Early life

John was born in Tonyrefail in South Wales in 1953. He studied at Hertford College, Oxford,^[2] where he gained a first in classics and modern languages in 1975. He subsequently studied theology at St Stephen's House, Oxford, and obtained second-class honours.

Ordained ministry

After a curacy in Penarth^[3] he returned to Oxford in 1980 to study for a doctorate in Pauline theology. He became chaplain at Brasenose College. In 1984 he was appointed Dean of Divinity at Magdalen College, Oxford. In 1991 he was one of the founder members of Affirming Catholicism, a group promoting Catholicism within the Anglican tradition. He is also a trustee of the organisation. He also supported the campaign for the ordination of women. From 1991 he was the vicar of Holy Trinity, Eltham, (in the Diocese of Southwark) in south London. In 1997 he became Canon Chancellor and Theologian of Southwark Cathedral.

On 20 May 2003 John's appointment as Bishop of Reading, an area bishop in the Diocese of Oxford, was announced. The nomination led to controversy both in the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion owing to John's long-term relationship (beginning in 1976) with Grant Holmes, also a Church of England priest, despite publicly stating that their relationship was celibate. John received criticism on his nomination both for his stance on gay issues and because he had not publicly repented his past sexual activities in such a way as to indicate that they were wrong. A number of conservative Anglican leaders in various countries stated their intention to split from the communion if the consecration went ahead. Concerns over the potential for division led Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, to pressure John to step down and, on 6 July 2003, he was announced as having withdrawn his acceptance of the nomination to the bishopric^[4] though it later emerged that he had not in fact agreed to do so.^[5] These events inspired the creation of Inclusive Church. In spite of the withdrawal of John the differences in views of homosexuality within the Anglican church continued to cause controversy in 2003 following the election of Gene Robinson as Bishop of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States.

On 19 April 2004, 10 Downing Street announced John's appointment as Dean of St Albans. He was inducted on 2 July 2004.

At the end of August 2008, speculation began that John was one of the nominees for the post of Bishop of Bangor in Wales. A series of media reports in August and September 2008^[6] added weight to the story, which drew strong negative reactions from conservative commentators from within the Church of England and in other conservative quarters.^[7]

July 2010 saw widespread media reports that John was the Crown Nomination Commission's preferred candidate for appointment as Bishop of Southwark^[8] in succession to Tom Butler. These reports again attracted wide comment, both in support^[9] and in opposition.^[10] Subsequent reports suggested that his name had been removed from the list of potential appointees following leaking of the proposal.^[11][12]

Views

Following a talk broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in Holy Week 2007, John was criticised by some Evangelical bishops, the Bishop of Durham, the Bishop of Willesden and the Bishop of Lewes, for denying the doctrine of penal atonement. Referring to this particular explanation of the Christ's crucifixion, John said, "It was worse than illogical, it was insane. It made God sound like a psychopath."^[13] In explaining his own view, he said, "On the cross Jesus dies for our sins; the price of our sin is paid; but it is not paid to God but by God". He cited Julian of Norwich, a widely admired 14th-century English mystic who asserted that "there is no wrath in God".

John has spoken publicly in favour of the introduction of same-sex marriage.^[14]

Personal life

In August 2006, after being in a relationship for 30 years, John and Grant Holmes entered into a civil partnership.^[15][16]

Writings

• The Meaning in the Miracles (Canterbury Press, November 2001); ISBN 1-85311-434-0
• The Ministry of Deliverance (Affirming Catholicism) (Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, February 1997); ISBN 0-232-52222-7
• Marriage, Divorce and the Church (Affirming Catholicism) (Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, February 1997); ISBN 0-232-52224-3
• Living the Mystery: Affirming Catholicism and the Future of the Church (as editor; Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, April 1994); ISBN 0-232-52071-2
• Permanent, Faithful, Stable: Christian Same-Sex Partnerships (Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, January 1994); ISBN 0-232-52075-5
• Living Tradition: Affirming Catholicism in the Anglican Church (Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, January 1992); ISBN 0-232-51981-1

References and notes