John Dennis (bishop)

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The Right Reverend

John Dennis
Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich
ChurchChurch of England
DioceseDiocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich
In office1986–1996
PredecessorJohn Waine
SuccessorRichard Lewis
Other post(s)Honorary assistant bishop in Winchester (1996–2020)
Bishop of Knaresborough
1979–1986
Orders
Ordination1956 (deacon)
1957 (priest)
Consecration1979
Personal details
Born(1931-06-19)19 June 1931
Died13 April 2020(2020-04-13) (aged 88)
DenominationAnglican
ChildrenJohn Dennis
Hugh Dennis
Alma materSt Catharine's College, Cambridge

John Dennis (19 June 1931 – 13 April 2020)[1] was an Anglican bishop, who served as Bishop of Knaresborough, and then for ten years as Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. In retirement, he was an honorary assistant bishop in the Diocese of Winchester.[2]

Education[edit]

Dennis was born to (Hubert) Ronald Dennis (1899–1990) and Evelyn, daughter of Leonard Joseph Neville-Polley, a science tutor and author who wrote a biography of the chemist and physicist John Dalton. His father, Ronald Dennis, was the son of a South Yorkshire coal hewer and served as a platoon commander on the Western Front in World War I.[3][4]

Dennis was evacuated during the war, residing with his paternal grandparents in the mining village of Wales, near Kiveton.

After the war, he was educated at Rutlish School, Merton (a state grammar school, where his father taught biology and physics), and St Catharine's College, Cambridge (BA 1954, MA 1959),[5] before studying for ordination at Cuddesdon College, Oxford.[6] At Cambridge, he rowed, which he said "[it was] my passion. I loved it, and I managed to prove myself quite tolerably good."[7]

Between school and university he spent a year of National Service serving with the Royal Air Force.

Ministry[edit]

Following curacies in Armley and Kettering,[8] he was appointed vicar of the Isle of Dogs in 1962, transferring to John Keble Church, Mill Hill, in 1971. He was appointed as a prebendary of St Paul's Cathedral, London, in 1977.

He became the Bishop of Knaresborough in 1979,[9] which was a suffragan see to the diocesan Bishop of Ripon; and for most of his time in that office he also served as Diocesan Director of Ordinands (DDO) for the Diocese of Ripon. In 1986, he was translated to become the diocesan Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich in Suffolk. He retired in 1996 and lived in Winchester from 1999.[10]

Dennis served as a Lords Spiritual in the House of Lords from 1992 till his retirement in 1996.[11]

Knaresborough report[edit]

In 1969, the Ely Commission of the Church of England considered the initiation of children within the Church, and in 1971 published its report "Christian Initiation: Birth and Growth in the Christian Society" (Church Information Office, 1971).[12] This led to widespread debate about whether children should start receiving Holy Communion after their Confirmation, as had always been traditional for Anglicans, or whether they should be admitted to Holy Communion at a much younger age. In 1976, the General Synod voted to retain the status quo, but debate continued in the dioceses. A working party was established to look at the question in greater depth, and Dennis was selected as the chairman of the working party. This resulted in the publication of "Children and Communion" (CIO 1983)[12] and "Communion before Confirmation?" (Ed. D Isaac) (CIO 1985),[13] both commonly referenced as "The Knaresborough Report", after Dennis's episcopal see.[12][13]

Personal life[edit]

In 1956, Dennis married Dorothy Mary,[6] daughter of Godfrey Parker Hinnels (who fought at the first Battle of Arras in World War I).[14][3][15] They had two sons; the elder is John Dennis, a diplomat who was British Ambassador to Angola from 2014 to 2018,[16] while the younger son is the actor and comedian Hugh Dennis.[17]

Dennis was a Freemason and a member of Rutlish Lodge No. 4416 (the Masonic Lodge associated with his school) under the United Grand Lodge of England.[18] He was initiated on 18 April 1975, at the lodge's regular meeting place in the Tower Room at Great Tower Street, beside the Tower of London.[19] He was initiated by his father, who was a past master of the lodge. He was raised to the third degree in Sutton, Surrey, two years later, as the lodge had by then permanently relocated.[20]

Dennis died on 13 April 2020 from COVID-19,[21] six weeks after his wife.[22]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Daily Telegraph p29 Obituaries Issue no. 51,335 dated Thursday 4 June 2020 'popular bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich known for his humour and unscripted sermons'
  2. ^ "The Parish of St. Matthew with St. Paul: Staff". Archived from the original on 11 August 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Hugh Dennis on Who Do You Think You Are?: Everything you need to know". Who Do You Think You Are Magazine.
  4. ^ "Featured Articles: TheGenealogist". www.thegenealogist.co.uk.
  5. ^ Who's Who 1992 London, A & C Black, 1991 ISBN 0-7136-3514-2
  6. ^ a b Dod's Parliamentary Companion 1995, Dod's Parliamentary Companion Ltd, p. 297
  7. ^ Dennis, John (2008). Here am I, Send me. London: Lulu.
  8. ^ "Debrett's People of Today": ed. Ellis, P. (1992, London, Debtrett's), ISBN 1-870520-09-2
  9. ^ The Times, 11 November 1983; p. 3; Issue 61687; col A, "Synod hears amendment from Bishop of Knaresborough"
  10. ^ Entry at Crockford Clerical Directory.
  11. ^ https://members.parliament.uk/member/2944/career
  12. ^ a b c "Historical development in the Church of England" (PDF). Diocese of Portsmouth. 2014. p. 3. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  13. ^ a b "Children and Holy Communion – Guides and resources for Parishes" (PDF). Church in Wales. 2002. p. 9. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  14. ^ "Hugh Dennis - Who Do You Think You Are - Hugh's grandfathers both fought in the First World War with nearly disastrous consequences..." www.thegenealogist.co.uk.
  15. ^ "Hugh Dennis – Who Do You Think You Are?". The Genealogist. 20 September 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  16. ^ "British Ambassador to Angola – John Dennis". Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
  17. ^ McGrath, Nick (16 January 2015). "Hugh Dennis: My family values". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  18. ^ "Past Masters of the Lodge". London: Lodge of Assistance. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  19. ^ Written at Library of Freemasonry (Archive), Great Queen Street, London. "The Rutlish Lodge". Rutlish Lodge Summons & Agenda. London: Rutlish Lodge (published 1975): 2. 18 April 1975.
  20. ^ Fisher, Cliff (2020). The Rutlish Lodge Centenary History (First ed.). Rutlish Lodge.
  21. ^ "Bishop John Dennis - Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich".
  22. ^ "Death Notices & Obituaries - Dorothy Mary Dennis". Newsquest (Hampshire Chronicle). 12 March 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
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