Jane Williams (theologian)
Encyclopedia
Biography
Williams was born in Trivandrum, India, one of five sisters. Her father, the Right ReverendRight Reverend
The Right Reverend is a style applied to certain religious figures.*In the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain it applies to bishops except that The Most Reverend is used for archbishops .*In some churches with a...
Geoffrey Paul
Geoffrey Paul
Geoffrey Paul was the eighth Bishop of Hull in the modern era from 1977 until 1981, who was then translated to Bradford where he served until his death two years later. Educated at Rutlish Grammar School, Queens' College, Cambridge and at King's College London, his first post after ordination was...
, former Bishop of Bradford
Bishop of Bradford
The Bishop of Bradford is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Bradford, in the Province of YorkThe diocese covers the extreme west of Yorkshire, and has its see in the city of Bradford where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter.The Bishop's residence is...
, was then serving as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
at Palayamkottai
Palayamkottai
Palayamkottai , known as the "Oxford of South India", is a town in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. It is part of the Tirunelveli city corporation. It is on the eastern bank of the Thamirabarani river, while its twin city Tirunelveli is on the western bank.-Etymology:The archaic word Palayam...
and later Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
. Her father was a member of the faculty and later became the principal of the Kerala United Theological Seminary
Kerala United Theological Seminary
Kerala United Theological Seminary is run by the Church of South India with an ecumenical outlook. It was founded in 1943, and is affiliated to the Senate of Serampore College , West Bengal. KUTS is located in Kannammoola in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.-Courses offered:KUTS offers the degrees of...
at Kannammoola, where she spent part of her childhood. She studied theology at Cambridge University and then worked in theological publishing and education. She writes a Sunday readings column for the Church Times
Church Times
The Church Times is an independent Anglican weekly newspaper. It is published in the United Kingdom on Fridays.The Church Times was founded in 1863 to campaign for Anglo-Catholic principles and has always been independent of the Church of England hierarchy. It was a family concern The Church Times...
and now works part-time for Redemptorist Publications, as a visiting lecturer at King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
and as a lecturer at the St Paul's Theological Centre
St Paul's Theological Centre
St Paul's Theological Centre is a British centre for theological learning, based at Holy Trinity Brompton in South Kensington, London...
.
Williams has been married since July 1981 to Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
, who was appointed as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
in 2002. They have a daughter named Rhiannon (born 1988) and a son named Pip (born 1996).