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David Charlesworth

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The Right Reverend

David Charlesworth

OSB
ChurchCatholic Church
Elected9 April 2021
PredecessorRichard Yeo (Abbot Administrator)
Orders
Ordination24 June 1984
Personal details
Born (1951-10-06) October 6, 1951 (age 73)
NationalityBritish
Alma materNewman College of Higher Education

David Charlesworth, OSB (born 6 October 1951) is the Abbot of Buckfast Abbey in Devon, England. He is a member of the Order of Saint Benedict.[1][2]

Biography

In September 1970, Charlesworth joined Buckfast Abbey and the Order of Saint Benedict as a novice.[3] From 1974 to 1977, he studied at Newman College of Higher Education, a Catholic teacher training college.[3][4] From 1977, he taught maths and science at Buckfast Abbey Preparatory School.[3] He was ordained to the priesthood in 1984[3] and became abbot of Buckfast in 1992.[5]

Charlesworth commissioned Torbay-based theater-company Unleashed Productions to adapt the stories in Philip Yancey's book What's So Amazing About Grace? into a play, which they did and then performed at the abbey in 2010.[6]

Charlesworth commissioned a 79-year-old nun, Mother Joanna, to paint an 18 x 26 ft acrylic mural on twenty wooden panels for the abbey's restaurant, the Grange.[7] When the mural was unveiled in April 2014, Charlesworth called it "a monumental effort by Mother Joanna depicting the extraordinary work of a handful of monks who built the present church on the 12th century foundations in only 32 years".[8]

In 2013, Alex Neil, Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Sport, contacted Buckfast Abbey and said that they should stop making Buckfast Tonic Wine. Charlesworth later said to the media, "If you ban Buckfast, ban Scottish whisky. It's alcohol, much stronger. But oh no they wouldn't do that. So they are picking on a particular thing as a conscience salver."[9] In response, Member of the Scottish Parliament Elaine Smith said that Buckfast Tonic Wine is more problematic than Scotch whisky because of Buckfast's caffeine content.[10] Charlesworth said that blaming Buckfast Tonic Wine for alcohol-related crime, violence, and anti-social behaviour within the "Buckfast Triangle" of Scotland[11] is "not fair", as the tonic wine is legal and "not made to be abused".[12]

Charlesworth is one of the founders of the School of the Annunciation.[13] In 2014, Charlesworth invited Robert Atwell, the new Bishop of Exeter, to spend some time in reflection with Buckfast Abbey's monks, and Atwell accepted.[14] On 9 April 2021 Charlesworth was re-elected Abbot of Buckfast.[15][16]

References

  1. ^ "Buckfast Abbey to Unveil Giant Mural". Independent Catholic News. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  2. ^ Macaskill, Mark (9 February 2014). "Buckfast's Abbot Won't See Scotland". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d "Honorary Doctorate - short speech" (PDF). Alumni. Newman University, Birmingham. 21 November 2013. Archived from the original (pdf) on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  4. ^ "The Right Reverend David Charlesworth O.S.B". Alumni. Newman University, Birmingham. 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  5. ^ "Brother Adam, 98, Bee Breeder Who Developed New Varieties". The New York Times. Associated Press. 4 September 1996. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2022. His bee research ended in 1992 because the monastery's new abbot, the Right Rev. David Charlesworth, insisted the main function of the abbey apiaries was honey production, not research.
  6. ^ "Monastery Hosts Bold and Moving New Production". Western Morning News. Devon. 20 August 2010. p. 18. Retrieved 22 June 2015. (subscription required)
  7. ^ "Stunning 26ft Artwork Created by 79-Year-Old Nun in Devon". Express & Echo. 23 March 2014. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  8. ^ Goodwin, Phil (7 April 2014). "Buckfast Abbey Mural the Size of Double-Decker Pushed Nun to the Limit". Western Daily Press. Retrieved 1 September 2015.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ Cramb, Auslan (27 December 2013). "Benedictine Monks Urged to Stop Selling Buckfast to Young People". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  10. ^ McLeod, Keith (30 December 2013). "MSP Elaine Smith Says Buckfast Abbot Should Visit Her Constituency to See Real Problems Caused by the Drink". Daily Record. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  11. ^ Barr, Damian (3 February 2014). "Life in the Buckfast Triangle: drunk by noon, handcuffed by midnight". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 August 2022. The monks get a royalty for every bottle and last year made more than £6m. Their Abbot, David Charlesworth, claims to be upset by the Buckfast Triangle. "I don't want Buckfast Abbey to be associated with broken bottles and drunks," he says. "But is the product bad? No."
  12. ^ Morris, Jonathan (25 December 2013). "Buckfast monks reject blame for 'tonic wine crime'". BBC News. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  13. ^ Caldwell, Simon (28 February 2014). "New School of Evangelisation at Buckfast Abbey". Independent Catholic News. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  14. ^ "New Bishop of Exeter on Devon Pilgrimage". Express & Echo. 18 June 2014. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  15. ^ @Buckfast_Abbey (9 April 2021). "We are pleased to announce that the Rt Rev. Dom David Charlesworth was elected as Abbot of Buckfast. We warmly invite all our friends to join their prayers to ours in thanksgiving for Abbot David's election, and for the monastic community at this time" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ "Very Rev. David Charlesworth OSB re-elected Abbot of Buckfast Abbey". The Catholic Network. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
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