Richard Harries, Baron Harries of Pentregarth
Encyclopedia
Richard Douglas Harries, Baron Harries of Pentregarth (born 2 June 1936) is a retired bishop
of the Church of England
. He was the 41st Bishop of Oxford
from 1987 to 2006. Since 2008 he has been the Gresham Professor of Divinity
.
and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant
in the Royal Corps of Signals
on 16 December 1955 and was promoted to lieutenant
two years later. He left the active Regular Army on 12 September 1958 (transferring to the reserve of officers), and went up to Selwyn College, Cambridge
, where he read theology (BA 1961, MA 1965), before going on to Cuddesdon College
(1961–63) to study for ordination. He formally resigned his original army commission on 18 March 1965, but was immediately recommissioned as Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class in the Territorial Army, on 29 October 1969 he once more transferred to the reserve.
(now part of Queen Mary, University of London
) (1967–69). He became a Tutor at Wells Theological College
(1969–71) and was then Warden of the new Salisbury and Wells Theological College
(1971–72).
He returned to parish ministry as Vicar of All Saints', Fulham
(1972–81) and reverted to academia as Dean of King's College London
(1981–87). He was appointed Bishop of Oxford
in 1987, taking a seat as a Lord Spiritual
in the House of Lords
in 1993. In 1999 he was appointed to the Royal Commission
investigating a possible reorganisation of the House of Lords. He retired on 2 June 2006, his 70th birthday. In the previous week, on 26 May 2006, Downing Street
announced that he was to be made a life peer
, and he was gazetted
as Baron Harries of Pentregarth, of Ceinewydd
in the County of Dyfed
on 30 June 2006. He sits as a cross-bencher
. On 4 August 2006 he was appointed to the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved
for a period of five years.
he became a founder member of the Oxford Abrahamic Group, bringing together Christian, Muslim, and Jewish scholars. He chaired the Council of Christians and Jews from 1992 until 2001. In 1988 he was president of the Johnson Society, delivering a Presidential Address on Johnson – A Church of England Saint. He has been a member of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
(including serving as Chair of the HFEA
Ethics and Law Committee) and a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
, as well as chairing the House of Lords
Select Committee (Westminster System) on Stem Cell
Research. He was Chairman of the Church of England Board for Social Responsibility (1996–2001) and Chairman of the House of Bishops
' Working Party on Issues in Human Sexuality and has served on the Board of Christian Aid
. He was also a member of the Royal Commission
on the Reform of the House of Lords
(the Wakeham Commission). A regular contributor to the Today
programme on BBC Radio 4
, including many appearances on Thought for the Day
, he has published three books of radio talks. He is a patron of POWER International (www.powerinternational.org) a charity working with disabled people in poor countries.
Harries was appointed a Fellow of King's College London
(FKC) in 1983, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
in 1996, and an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
in 2004. In 1994 he became a Doctor of Divinity
honoris causa of the University of London
and in 2001 he was honoured with the degree of Doctor of the University (DUniv) by Oxford Brookes University
. He was a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
2002-2008. In 2002 he was Visiting Professor at Liverpool Hope University College
. In 2008 he replaced Keith Ward
as the Gresham Professor of Divinity
.
reformer noted for his opposition to Section 28
and for his appointment of the gay priest, Canon
Jeffrey John
as Bishop of Reading
in 2003, from which Canon John subsequently withdrew amid controversy over homosexual clergy. Some mistakenly believe that John was not appointed because of the threat to the financial stability of the Oxford diocese by traditionalist churches withdrawing their support if he were made bishop. Much more significant was the pressure by conservative provinces in Africa and South America on the Archbishop of Canterbury. They threatened an impaired communion with Canterbury if the consecration went ahead. Their justification for such an action was that a covenant had been broken, a church covenant made between the two sides of the argument which agreed that practising homosexual clergy would not be appointed. Another factor was the threat of legal action against both the archbishop and the Bishop of Oxford by senior conservative churchmen within the Oxford diocese. This threat of legal action caused senior advisors to the archbishop, including his provincial registrar, John Rees, to persuade the archbishop to ask Canon John to withdraw his nomination by the Crown.
His passion for social justice informed his liberal views. At the start of his episcopacy, he brought legal proceedings challenging the Church Commissioners' policy on investment. He and his co-plaintiffs argued that the Church Commissioners placed too much emphasis on purely financial considerations and insufficient emphasis upon the promotion of the Christian faith. Although this challenge failed - the Commissioners already had an ethical investment policy, albeit one which excluded a smaller part of the UK share market than the plaintiffs had wanted to exclude - the Court recognised that it was proper for charities to consider whether their investment strategies would alienate the charity's financial supporters. In 2002 Harries joined the biologist Richard Dawkins
in denouncing the Emmanuel Schools Foundation
for teaching creationism
.
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
. He was the 41st Bishop of Oxford
Bishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
from 1987 to 2006. Since 2008 he has been the Gresham Professor of Divinity
Gresham Professor of Divinity
The Professor of Divinity at Gresham College, London, gives free educational lectures to the general public. The college was founded for this purpose in 1596/7, when it appointed seven professors; this has since increased to eight and in addition the college now has visiting professors.The...
.
Education and army career
Harries was educated at the private Wellington CollegeWellington College, Berkshire
-Former pupils:Notable former pupils include historian P. J. Marshall, architect Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, impressionist Rory Bremner, Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge, author Sebastian Faulks, language school pioneer John Haycraft, political journalist Robin Oakley, actor Sir Christopher...
and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is a British Army officer initial training centre located in Sandhurst, Berkshire, England...
. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in the Royal Corps of Signals
Royal Corps of Signals
The Royal Corps of Signals is one of the combat support arms of the British Army...
on 16 December 1955 and was promoted to lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
two years later. He left the active Regular Army on 12 September 1958 (transferring to the reserve of officers), and went up to Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College is a constituent college in the University of Cambridge in England, United Kingdom.The college was founded by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of the Rt Reverend George Selwyn , who rowed on the Cambridge crew in the first Varsity Boat Race in 1829, and went on to become the...
, where he read theology (BA 1961, MA 1965), before going on to Cuddesdon College
Ripon College Cuddesdon
Ripon College Cuddesdon is a Church of England theological college in Cuddesdon, a village outside Oxford, England.-History:Ripon College Cuddesdon was formed from an amalgamation in 1975 of Cuddesdon College and Ripon Hall...
(1961–63) to study for ordination. He formally resigned his original army commission on 18 March 1965, but was immediately recommissioned as Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class in the Territorial Army, on 29 October 1969 he once more transferred to the reserve.
Church ministry
Harries was made deacon in 1963, becoming assistant curate of Hampstead St John in the Diocese of London (1963–69). He was ordained priest the following year and later combined his ministry at St John's with the chaplaincy of the former Westfield CollegeWestfield College
Westfield College was a small college situated in Kidderpore Avenue, Hampstead, London, and was a constituent college of the University of London from 1882 to 1989. The college originally admitted only women as students and became coeducational in 1964. In 1989, Westfield College merged with Queen...
(now part of Queen Mary, University of London
Queen Mary, University of London
Queen Mary, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
) (1967–69). He became a Tutor at Wells Theological College
Sarum College
Sarum College is an ecumenical Christian institution in Salisbury, England. The College was established in 1995, and occupies the buildings formerly home to the Salisbury and Wells Theological College...
(1969–71) and was then Warden of the new Salisbury and Wells Theological College
Sarum College
Sarum College is an ecumenical Christian institution in Salisbury, England. The College was established in 1995, and occupies the buildings formerly home to the Salisbury and Wells Theological College...
(1971–72).
He returned to parish ministry as Vicar of All Saints', Fulham
All Saints Church, Fulham
All Saints Church, Fulham is an Anglican Church in Fulham, London sited close to the river Thames, beside the northern approach to Putney Bridge.-History:...
(1972–81) and reverted to academia as Dean of 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...
(1981–87). He was appointed Bishop of Oxford
Bishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
in 1987, taking a seat as a Lord Spiritual
Lords Spiritual
The Lords Spiritual of the United Kingdom, also called Spiritual Peers, are the 26 bishops of the established Church of England who serve in the House of Lords along with the Lords Temporal. The Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian, is not represented by spiritual peers...
in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
in 1993. In 1999 he was appointed to the Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
investigating a possible reorganisation of the House of Lords. He retired on 2 June 2006, his 70th birthday. In the previous week, on 26 May 2006, Downing Street
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....
announced that he was to be made a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
, and he was gazetted
London Gazette
The London Gazette is one of the official journals of record of the British government, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are required to be published...
as Baron Harries of Pentregarth, of Ceinewydd
New Quay
New Quay is a seaside town in Ceredigion, West Wales with a resident population of around 1,200 people. Located on Cardigan Bay with a harbour and large sandy beaches, it remains a popular seaside resort and traditional fishing town.-History:...
in the County of Dyfed
Dyfed
Dyfed is a preserved county of Wales. It was created on 1 April 1974 under the terms of the Local Government Act 1972, and covered approximately the same geographic extent as the ancient Principality of Deheubarth, although excluding the Gower Peninsula and the area west of the River Tawe...
on 30 June 2006. He sits as a cross-bencher
Cross-bencher
A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and Australian Senate. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and opposition benches, where crossbenchers sit in the chamber; compare...
. On 4 August 2006 he was appointed to the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved
Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved
The Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved is an appellate court within the hierarchy of ecclesiastical courts of the Church of England. Hearing cases involving church doctrine, ceremony, or ritual, the Court has jurisdiction over both the Province of Canterbury and the Province of York...
for a period of five years.
Other activities
In 1986 Harries took up a subsidiary appointment as Consultant to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York on Inter-Faith Relations. As Bishop of OxfordBishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
he became a founder member of the Oxford Abrahamic Group, bringing together Christian, Muslim, and Jewish scholars. He chaired the Council of Christians and Jews from 1992 until 2001. In 1988 he was president of the Johnson Society, delivering a Presidential Address on Johnson – A Church of England Saint. He has been a member of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority is a statutory body in the United Kingdom that regulates and inspects all UK clinics providing in vitro fertilisation, artificial insemination and the storage of human eggs, sperm or embryos. It also regulates Human Embryo research...
(including serving as Chair of the HFEA
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority is a statutory body in the United Kingdom that regulates and inspects all UK clinics providing in vitro fertilisation, artificial insemination and the storage of human eggs, sperm or embryos. It also regulates Human Embryo research...
Ethics and Law Committee) and a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
Nuffield Council on Bioethics
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is a UK-based independent charitable body, which examines and reports on ethical issues raised by new advances in biological and medical research...
, as well as chairing the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
Select Committee (Westminster System) on Stem Cell
Stem cell
This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...
Research. He was Chairman of the Church of England Board for Social Responsibility (1996–2001) and Chairman of the House of Bishops
House of Bishops
The House of Bishops is the third House in a General Synod of some Anglican churches and the second house in the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America.-Composition of Houses of Bishops:...
' Working Party on Issues in Human Sexuality and has served on the Board of Christian Aid
Christian Aid
Christian Aid is the official relief and development agency of 40 British and Irish churches and works to support sustainable development, alleviate poverty, support civil society and provide disaster relief in South America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Africa and Asia...
. He was also a member of the Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
on the Reform of the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
(the Wakeham Commission). A regular contributor to the Today
Today programme
Today is BBC Radio 4's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks...
programme on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
, including many appearances on Thought for the Day
Thought for the Day
Thought for the Day is a daily scripted slot on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 offering "reflections from a faith perspective on issues and people in the news", broadcast at around 7.45 each Monday to Saturday morning...
, he has published three books of radio talks. He is a patron of POWER International (www.powerinternational.org) a charity working with disabled people in poor countries.
Harries was appointed a Fellow of 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...
(FKC) in 1983, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
in 1996, and an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
Academy of Medical Sciences
The Academy of Medical Sciences is the United Kingdom's national academy of medical sciences. It was established in 1998 on the recommendation of a group that was chaired by Michael Atiyah. Its president is John Irving Bell....
in 2004. In 1994 he became a Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
honoris causa of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
and in 2001 he was honoured with the degree of Doctor of the University (DUniv) by Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University is a new university in Oxford, England. It was named to honour the school's founding principal, John Brookes. It has been ranked as the best new university by the Sunday Times University Guide 10 years in a row...
. He was a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
Nuffield Council on Bioethics
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is a UK-based independent charitable body, which examines and reports on ethical issues raised by new advances in biological and medical research...
2002-2008. In 2002 he was Visiting Professor at Liverpool Hope University College
Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. Two of its three founding colleges were established in 1844 and 1856, the third opening in the 1960s. It is the only ecumenical university in Europe. Based on two campuses, the main campus is located in Childwall and the second...
. In 2008 he replaced Keith Ward
Keith Ward
Keith Ward is a British cleric, philosopher, theologian and scholar. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and an ordained priest of the Church of England. He was a canon of Christ Church, Oxford until 2003...
as the Gresham Professor of Divinity
Gresham Professor of Divinity
The Professor of Divinity at Gresham College, London, gives free educational lectures to the general public. The college was founded for this purpose in 1596/7, when it appointed seven professors; this has since increased to eight and in addition the college now has visiting professors.The...
.
Legacy and reputation
As Bishop of Oxford and now as Lord Harries of Pentregarth, Harries has been known as a liberalLiberal Christianity
Liberal Christianity, sometimes called liberal theology, is an umbrella term covering diverse, philosophically and biblically informed religious movements and ideas within Christianity from the late 18th century and onward...
reformer noted for his opposition to Section 28
Section 28
Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 caused the controversial addition of Section 2A to the Local Government Act 1986 , enacted on 24 May 1988 and repealed on 21 June 2000 in Scotland, and on 18 November 2003 in the rest of Great Britain by section 122 of the Local Government Act 2003...
and for his appointment of the gay priest, Canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
Jeffrey John
Jeffrey John
Jeffrey Philip Hywel John SCP 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...
as Bishop of Reading
Bishop of Reading
The Bishop of Reading is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford, which is within the Province of Canterbury, England. The current Bishop is the Rt Revd Andrew Proud....
in 2003, from which Canon John subsequently withdrew amid controversy over homosexual clergy. Some mistakenly believe that John was not appointed because of the threat to the financial stability of the Oxford diocese by traditionalist churches withdrawing their support if he were made bishop. Much more significant was the pressure by conservative provinces in Africa and South America on the Archbishop of Canterbury. They threatened an impaired communion with Canterbury if the consecration went ahead. Their justification for such an action was that a covenant had been broken, a church covenant made between the two sides of the argument which agreed that practising homosexual clergy would not be appointed. Another factor was the threat of legal action against both the archbishop and the Bishop of Oxford by senior conservative churchmen within the Oxford diocese. This threat of legal action caused senior advisors to the archbishop, including his provincial registrar, John Rees, to persuade the archbishop to ask Canon John to withdraw his nomination by the Crown.
His passion for social justice informed his liberal views. At the start of his episcopacy, he brought legal proceedings challenging the Church Commissioners' policy on investment. He and his co-plaintiffs argued that the Church Commissioners placed too much emphasis on purely financial considerations and insufficient emphasis upon the promotion of the Christian faith. Although this challenge failed - the Commissioners already had an ethical investment policy, albeit one which excluded a smaller part of the UK share market than the plaintiffs had wanted to exclude - the Court recognised that it was proper for charities to consider whether their investment strategies would alienate the charity's financial supporters. In 2002 Harries joined the biologist Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
in denouncing the Emmanuel Schools Foundation
Emmanuel Schools Foundation
The Emmanuel Schools Foundation is a charitable trust which has been involved in education since 1989.ESF sponsored four schools: Emmanuel City Technology College in Gateshead , The King's Academy in Middlesbrough , Trinity Academy in Thorne, Doncaster and Bede Academy in Blyth, Northumberland...
for teaching creationism
Creationism
Creationism is the religious beliefthat humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe are the creation of a supernatural being, most often referring to the Abrahamic god. As science developed from the 18th century onwards, various views developed which aimed to reconcile science with the Genesis...
.