Brian Newton Davis (28 October 1934 – 22 June 1998) was the Anglican

Bishop of Waikato The Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki is one of the thirteen dioceses and ''hui amorangi'' (Maori bishoprics) of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The diocese covers the area from the Waikato to the area surrounding M ...

from 1980 to 1986 and Archbishop and Primate of New Zealand and Bishop of Wellington from 1986 to 1997.

Biography

Childhood and education

Davis was born in Stratford,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

and underwent secondary education at Stratford High School,

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dis ...

. He studied to be a teacher at Ardmore Training College, Papakura and then went on to study a M.A.(Hons) in

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, a ...

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Z ...

. He also studied at College House,

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, before finally completing his studies at St John's College, Auckland in order to become an Anglican priest.

Ministry

After ordination, Davis served as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at Karori,

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...

. He was then appointed the

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pr ...

Dannevirke Dannevirke ( " work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; mi, Taniwaka, lit= or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is), is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New Zealand. It is the ma ...

and later became Dean and

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of Waiapu. In 1980 he was appointed the Bishop of Waikato and in 1986 was elected the Archbishop of New Zealand and Bishop of Wellington. He resigned both posts effective 1 July 1997. In 1990, Davis was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal. In the

1997 Queen's Birthday Honours The 1997 Birthday Honours were announced on 14 June 1997 for the United Kingdom and on 2 June 1997 for New Zealand.New Zealand list: Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingd ...

, he was appointed a

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to the Anglican Church and the community.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Brian (bishop) 1934 births 1998 deaths Primates of New Zealand Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Anglican bishops of Waikato Anglican bishops of Wellington People from Stratford, New Zealand 20th-century Anglican bishops in New Zealand 20th-century Anglican archbishops in New Zealand People educated at Stratford High School, New Zealand