Ivan Yin Lee ( – 4 March 2020) was an Australian Anglican bishop. He was an assistant bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, serving from 2003 to 2019 as the Bishop of the Western Region. and then until early 2020, as bishop undertaking a role working on strengthening church growth within the Diocese. Lee was appointed in 2002 to replace Bishop Brian King. He was the first Anglican bishop in Australia to have a Chinese ethnic background.

Early life and education

Lee's parents immigrated to Australia from Guangzhou province, China, in the 1950s. Lee describes his family as having been culturally Buddhist; he was excused from mandatory Christian religious instruction at James Cook Boys high school along with other non-Christian students. Lee converted to Christianity at a church-run summer camp and later "horrified" his immigrant parents by taking a year off from medical school at the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

to study at

Moore Theological College Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The Anglican Archbishop of Sydney holds ''ex officio'' the presidency of t ...

. He completed a theology degree instead of returning to medical school.

Parish ministry

Lee served as a presbyter in Manly,

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

and

Merrylands Merrylands is a suburb in Western Sydney, Australia. Merrylands is located west of the Sydney central business district and is in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the Cumberland Council, New South Wales, Cumberland Ci ...

. He worked for eight years as an assistant minister at St Jude's, Carlton, in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, then became rector of St Aidan's Church in Hurstville Grove.

Episcopal ministry

Lee was elected as bishop of the Western Region in December 2002 by the Diocese of Sydney's standing committee, and was consecrated as bishop on 20 December 2002. As bishop, Lee took a traditionalist position on the question of women preaching, and on same-sex marriages, stating that, "We don't hold this position as a matter of mere tradition but as the scriptures dictate." Lee was part of the leadership of

GAFCON The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (branded as GAFCON or Gafcon) is a communion of conservative Anglicanism, Anglican churches, aligned with the Confessing Movement, that formed in 2008 in response to ongoing theological disputes in th ...

. Lee also took public positions opposing racism and, in particular, criticising the anti-immigration positions taken by Drew Fraser, citing the Bible as his authority that "there is equality between all people". Lee died on 4 March 2020 after having

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

for the previous four years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Ivan Yin 1950s births 2020 deaths 21st-century Anglican bishops in Australia Australian people of Chinese descent Assistant bishops in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney Deaths from pancreatic cancer Moore Theological College alumni Converts to Anglicanism from Buddhism Converts to Protestantism from Buddhism Evangelical Anglican bishops