Colin Ogilvie Buchanan (born 8 August 1934) is a British retired Anglican bishop and academic who specialised in liturgy. He served as the Principal of

St John's College, Nottingham St John's College, Nottingham, founded as the London College of Divinity, was an Anglican and interdenominational theological college situated in Bramcote, Nottingham, England. The college stood in the open evangelical tradition and stated that ...

(1979–1985), the

Bishop of Aston The Bishop of Aston is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Birmingham, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Aston, an area of the City of Birmingham; the See was ...

(1985–1989), and the

Bishop of Woolwich The Bishop of Woolwich is an episcopal title used by an area bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Southwark, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Woolwich, a suburb of the Royal Borough of Greenwich. Tw ...

(1996–2004).

Early life and education

Buchanan was born on 8 August 1934 to Prof. Robert Ogilvie Buchanan and Kathleen Mary Buchanan (''née'' Parnell). He was educated at

Whitgift School ("He who perseveres, conquers") , established = , closed = , type = Independent school , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head Master , head = Christopher Ramsey , c ...

, then an all-boys

direct grant grammar school A direct grant grammar school was a type of selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976. One quarter of the places in these schools were directly funded by central government, while the remainder attracted ...

. He studied '' Literae Humaniores'' at

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, situated on Turl Street in central Oxford. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Fleming, t ...

, graduating with a second class Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree; as per tradition, his BA was later promoted to a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

(MA Oxon) degree. In 1959, he entered Tyndale Hall, Bristol, an Evangelical Anglican

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clerg ...

, to train for ordained ministry. In 1993, Buchanan was awarded a

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area ex ...

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

(DD) degree.

Ordained ministry

Buchanan was

ordained 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 ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1961 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1962. From 1961 to 1964, he served his

curacy 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 ...

in the

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of Cheadle (St Cuthbert and

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

) in the

Diocese of Chester The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York covering the pre-1974 county of Cheshire and therefore including the Wirral and parts of Stockport, Trafford and Tameside. History Ancient diocese Before the s ...

. In 1964, Buchanan joined the London College of Divinity (later known as St John's College, Nottingham), where he would spend the next 21 years working. He was the librarian from 1964 to 1969, the registrar from 1969 to 1974, director of studies from 1974 to 1975, vice-principal from 1975 to 1978, and finally principal from 1979 to 1985. During this time, he was also a tutor in liturgy at the college, and he was a member of the Church of England's Liturgical Commission from 1964 to 1986. From 1981 to 1985, he was an honorary canon of

Southwell Minster Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...

. In 1985, Buchanan was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

as a bishop. From 1985 to 1989, he served as the

, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Birmingham. He was an

assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case th ...

of the

Diocese of Rochester The Diocese of Rochester is a Church of England diocese in the English county of Kent and the Province of Canterbury. The cathedral church of the diocese is Rochester Cathedral in the former city of Rochester. The bishop's Latin episcopal sig ...

from 1989 to 1996, and of the

Diocese of Southwark The Diocese of Southwark is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient Dio ...

from 1990 to 1991. He served as a member of the

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.

of the

General Synod The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly, is the legislative body of the Church of ...

from 1990 to 2004. He was also Vicar of St Mark's Church, Gillingham between 1991 and 1996. He then returned to the episcopate on a full-time basis and served as the

, an

area bishop A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdict ...

of the Diocese of Southwark, from 1996 to 2004. In July 2004, Buchanan retired from full-time ministry. He was an

honorary assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...

in the

Diocese of Bradford The Diocese of Bradford is a former Church of England diocese within the Province of York. The diocese covered the area of the City of Bradford, Craven district and the former Sedbergh Rural District now in Cumbria. The seat of the episcop ...

from 2004 to 2014, and of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds from 2005 to 2014. Since 2015, he has been an honorary assistant bishop in the Diocese of Leeds, and he is based in the Bradford Episcopal Area.

Personal life

In 1963, Buchanan married. Together they have two children.''Debrett's People of Today'' London, 2008

Debrett's Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder, John De ...

Selected works

* * * * * * * * * Buchanan Colin O. (2013) ''St John's Nottingham - from Northwood to Nottingham - a History of 50 Years 1963-2013'' by Colin Buchanan, Published by St John's College, Nottingham, 2013 ISBN 978-1-900920-22-3

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buchanan, Colin 1934 births People educated at Whitgift School Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Bishops of Aston Bishops of Woolwich 20th-century Church of England bishops 21st-century Church of England bishops Holders of a Lambeth degree Living people Anglican liturgists Staff of St John's College, Nottingham