William Mungo Jacob (known as Bill) (born 15 November 1944) is a retired Anglican priest, who was

Archdeacon of Charing Cross The Archdeacon of London is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England. They are responsible for the eastern Archdeaconry (the Archdeaconry of London) of the Two Cities ( London and Westminster) in the Diocese of London, an area w ...

from 1996 to 2014.

Early life

Jacob was born in 1944. He was educated at the

University of Hull , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 millio ...

(LLB, 1996),

Linacre College, Oxford Linacre College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the UK whose members comprise approximately 50 fellows and 550 postgraduate students. Linacre is a diverse college in terms of both the international composition of its me ...

(BA, 1969; MA, 1973) and the

University of Exeter , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public , ...

(PhD).

Clerical career

Jacob trained for ordination at

St Stephen's House, Oxford St Stephen's House is an Anglican theological college and one of five permanent private halls of the University of Oxford, England. It will cease to be a permanent private hall in 2023. The college has a very small proportion of undergraduate ...

, and was ordained deacon in 1970 and priest in 1971. He served his title at

Wymondham Abbey Wymondham Abbey (pronounced ''Windum'') is the Anglican parish church for the town of Wymondham in Norfolk, England. History The monastery was founded in 1107 by William d'Aubigny, Butler (Pincerna) to King Henry I. William was a prominent No ...

(1970-1973), after which he was Assistant Chaplain to the

Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell.

(1973-1975), on the staff of

Wells Theological College Wells Theological College began operation in 1840 within the Cathedral Close of Wells Cathedral. It was one of several new colleges created in the nineteenth century to cater not just for non-graduates, but for graduates from the old universit ...

(1975-1980), and Selection Secretary for the

Advisory Council for the Church's Ministry The Archbishops' Council is a part of the governance structures of the Church of England. Its headquarters are at Church House, Great Smith Street, London. The council was created in 1999 to provide a central executive body to co-ordinate and lead ...

(1980-1986). He was then Warden of

Lincoln Theological College Lincoln Theological College was a theological college in Lincoln, United Kingdom. History Founded by Edward White Benson, when he was Chancellor of Lincoln Cathedral, the college opened on 25 January 1874. It was also known as ''Scholae Cancel ...

(1985-1996) and a Canon of

Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln Minster, or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln and sometimes St Mary's Cathedral, in Lincoln, England, is a Grade I listed cathedral and is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. Constructio ...

(1986-1996). After the closure of Lincoln Theological College in 1995, he was collated as

in 1996, serving in that role until 2014. That period overlapped with being the

Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

’s Senior Chaplain (1996-2000) and Rector of

St Giles in the Fields St Giles in the Fields is the Anglican parish church of the St Giles district of London. It stands within the London Borough of Camden and belongs to the Diocese of London. The church, named for St Giles the Hermit, began as a monastery an ...

(2000-2015) and Priest-in-Charge of

St Anne's Church, Soho Saint Anne's Church serves in the Church of England the Soho section of London. It was consecrated on 21 March 1686 by Bishop Henry Compton as the parish church of the new civil and ecclesiastical parish of St Anne, created from part of the pa ...

(2011-2013). He retired in 2015, and has held a

Permission to officiate A permission to officiate (PTO), also known as a licence to officiate, is a concessionary ministry licence granted by an Anglican bishop. It is most commonly issued to a retired deacon, priest, or lay reader over the age of 70 years. It allows the ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

Published works

Jacob is the author of ''Lay People and Religion in the Early Eighteenth Century'' (Cambridge University Press: 1996), ''The Clerical Profession in the Long Eighteenth Century, 1680-1840'' (OUP: 2007) and ''Religious Vitality in Victorian London'' (OUP: 2021).

Charitable activities

Jacob is a director of the

Historic Chapels Trust The Historic Chapels Trust is a British Registered Charity set up to care for redundant non-Anglican churches, chapels, and places of worship in England. To date, its holdings encompass various nonconformist Christian denominations and Roman ...

, the Society of the Faith and the Paddington Development Trust. He is president (2021-2022) of the Chapels Society, an amenity society for Non-Conformist chapels.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacob, Bill 1944 births Living people Alumni of Linacre College, Oxford Alumni of St Stephen's House, Oxford Archdeacons of Charing Cross 20th-century Church of England clergy 21st-century Church of England clergy