William John Sparrow Simpson (20 June 1859 – 13 February 1952) was an English Anglican priest and writer. He wrote the libretto for

John Stainer Sir John Stainer (6 June 1840 – 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though seldom performed today (with the exception of ''The Crucifixion'', still heard at Passiontide in some churches of the Anglican Communi ...

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is ...

The Crucifixion The crucifixion and death of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and considere ...

'' (1887), several hymns, and more than fifty books. He was chaplain of

Ilford Hospital Chapel The Hospital Chapel of St Mary the Virgin and St Thomas of Canterbury, Ilford, also known as Ilford Hospital Chapel is on Ilford Hill in Ilford. It is an ancient charitable foundation dating from about 1140, and is the oldest building in the Lo ...

from 1904 until his death.

Life

Sparrow Simpson was born in London, the son of the Rev William Sparrow Simpson, a minor canon of St Paul's and rector of St Vedast, Foster Lane."Canon W. J. Sparrow Simpson", ''The Times'', 18 March 1952, p. 8 He was educated at

St Paul's School, London (''By Faith and By Learning'') , established = , closed = , type = Independent school Public school , religion = Church of England , president = , h ...

and, from 1878,

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. As an undergraduate he was awarded the

Chancellor's Gold Medal The Chancellor's Gold Medal is a prestigious annual award at Cambridge University for poetry, paralleling Oxford University's Newdigate Prize. It was first presented by Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh during his time as ...

for English verse in a competition judged by Robert Browning; he graduated with a first class degree in theology in 1882. In the same year he was ordained deacon, and went to Christ Church, Albany Street in Marylebone, London as curate. In the following year, in which he was ordained priest, he wrote the first of two libretti for choral works by

. These were the cantata ''St Mary Magdalen'' (1883) and the

'' (1887). Sparrow Simpson was vicar of St Mark's, Regent’s Park, 1888–1904, and moved to Ilford in 1904 as chaplain to the ancient almshouse foundation, the

. He retained the post until his death at the age of 92."Simpson, Rev. W. J. Sparrow’"
Who Was Who, Oxford University Press, 2014, retrieved 16 November 2014 He became a Doctor of Divinity in 1911 and an honorary canon of

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It ...

in 1919. At Ilford, he housed and trained

ordinands Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

, known to the congregation as "the Doctor's boys". To finance the training he sold the Chancellor's Medal he had won at Cambridge.Hopewell, Janet
"Stainer's Librettist, W. J. Sparrow Simpson"
''The Musical Times'', April 1983, pp. 255–256 The Ilford post was not onerous, and gave him ample time for research and writing. He became an authority on the life and doctrines of St Augustine of Hippo. In the view of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' the most important of his more than fifty books was ''The Resurrection and Modern Thought'' (1911). He published several hymns, originally part of his libretto for Stainer, " All For Jesus, All For Jesus", "Jesus, the Crucified, prays for me", "Cross of Jesus, cross of sorrow", "Holy Jesu, by thy passion" and "I adore thee, I adore thee""W J Sparrow Simpson"
Hymnary, retrieved 16 November 2014 He was a strong proponent of

Anglo-Catholicism Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...

and was editor of the high-church ''English Church Review'' in the years before the First World War. Sparrow Simpson died in Ilford at the age of 92.

Books

The books Sparrow Simpson chose to mention in his '' Who's Who'' article were: *''The Catholic Conception of the Church'', 1914 *''Reconciliation and Atonement'', 1916 *''Reconciliation between God and Man'', 1917 *''The Prayer of Consecration'', 1917 *''French Catholics in the Nineteenth Century'', 1918 *''Broad Church Theology'', 1919 *''South Indian Schemes'', 1930 *''The History of the Anglo-Catholic Revival from 1845 to 1932 *''Dispensations'', 1936. *:Source: ''Who's Who''

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, W J Sparrow 1859 births 1952 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge English Anglican theologians Anglicanism English Christian theologians Anglican clergy from London