John Dennis (19 June 1931 – 13 April 2020) was an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

bishop, who served as Bishop of Knaresborough, and then for ten years as

Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich The Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich is the Ordinary (officer), Ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich in the Province of Canterbury. The See is vacant following the 2025 retirement of Martin Seeley; Graeme ...

. In retirement, he was an honorary assistant bishop in the

Diocese of Winchester The Diocese of Winchester forms part of the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Founded in 660 AD, it is one of the older dioceses in England. It once covered the Kingdom of Wessex, many times its present size. Today it is most of th ...

Education

Dennis was born to (Hubert) Ronald Dennis (1899–1990) and Evelyn, daughter of Leonard Joseph Neville-Polley, a science tutor and author who wrote a

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

of the chemist and

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

John Dalton John Dalton (; 5 or 6 September 1766 – 27 July 1844) was an English chemist, physicist and meteorologist. He introduced the atomic theory into chemistry. He also researched Color blindness, colour blindness; as a result, the umbrella term ...

. His father, Ronald Dennis, was the son of a South Yorkshire coal hewer and served as a platoon commander on the Western Front in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Dennis was evacuated during the war, residing with his paternal grandparents in the mining village of

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, near Kiveton. After the war, he was educated at

Rutlish School Rutlish School is a state comprehensive school for boys, formerly a grammar school with the same name originally located on Rutlish Road, Merton Park, and relocated in 1957 on nearby Watery Lane, Merton Park, in southwest London. History The s ...

, Merton (a state grammar school, where his father taught

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

and

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

), and

St Catharine's College, Cambridge St Catharine's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. Founded in 1473 as Katharine Hall, it adopted its current name in 1860. The college is nicknamed "Catz". The colle ...

(BA 1954, MA 1959), before studying for ordination at Cuddesdon College, Oxford.Dod's Parliamentary Companion 1995, Dod's Parliamentary Companion Ltd, p. 297 At Cambridge, he rowed, which he said "

t was T, or t, is the twentieth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is d ...

my passion. I loved it, and I managed to prove myself quite tolerably good." Between school and university he spent a year of

National Service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

serving with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

Ministry

Following curacies in

Armley Armley is a district in the west of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It starts less than from Leeds city centre. Like much of Leeds, Armley grew in the Industrial Revolution and had several mills, one of which now houses the Leeds Industrial ...

and

Kettering Kettering is a market town, market and industrial town, industrial town in the North Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, west of Cambridge, England, Cambridge, southwest of Peterborough, southeast of Leicester and north- ...

, he was appointed

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 p ...

of the

Isle of Dogs The Isle of Dogs is a large peninsula bounded on three sides by a large meander in the River Thames in East London, England. It includes the Cubitt Town, Millwall and Canary Wharf districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, Haml ...

in 1962, transferring to

John Keble Church, Mill Hill The John Keble Church is a Church of England parish church in Mill Hill, London Borough of Barnet. The church was completed in 1936 and is of a modernist design. It is the only church dedicated to John Keble, one of the leaders of the Oxford Movem ...

, in 1971. He was appointed as a

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Catholic Church, Catholic or Anglicanism , Anglican clergy, a form of canon (priest) , canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in part ...

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...

, London, in 1977. He became the Bishop of Knaresborough in 1979, which was a suffragan see to the diocesan Bishop of Ripon; and for most of his time in that office he also served as Diocesan Director of Ordinands (DDO) for the

Diocese of Ripon The Diocese of Ripon (Diocese of Ripon and Leeds from 1999 until 2014) was a former Church of England diocese, part of the Province of York. Immediately prior to its dissolution, it covered an area in western and northern Yorkshire as well as ...

. In 1986, he was

translated Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

to become the diocesan

in Suffolk. He retired in 1996 and lived in Winchester from 1999. Dennis served as a

Lords Spiritual The Lords Spiritual are the bishops of the Church of England who sit in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom. Up to 26 of the 42 diocesan bishops and archbishops of the Church of England serve as Lords Spiritual (not including retired bish ...

in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

from 1992 till his retirement in 1996.

Knaresborough report

In 1969, the Ely Commission of the Church of England considered the initiation of children within the Church, and in 1971 published its report "Christian Initiation: Birth and Growth in the Christian Society" (Church Information Office, 1971). This led to widespread debate about whether children should start receiving

Holy Communion The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

after their

Confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...

, as had always been traditional for Anglicans, or whether they should be admitted to Holy Communion at a much younger age. In 1976, 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 ...

voted to retain the status quo, but debate continued in the dioceses. A working party was established to look at the question in greater depth, and Dennis was selected as the chairman of the working party. This resulted in the publication of "Children and Communion" (CIO 1983) and "Communion before Confirmation?" (Ed. D Isaac) (CIO 1985), both commonly referenced as "The Knaresborough Report", after Dennis's episcopal see.

Personal life

In 1956, Dennis married Dorothy Mary, daughter of Godfrey Parker Hinnels (who fought at the first Battle of Arras in World War I). They had two sons; the elder is John Dennis, a diplomat who was British Ambassador to Angola from 2014 to 2018, while the younger son is the actor and comedian

Hugh Dennis Peter Hugh Dennis (born 13 February 1962) is an English comedian, presenter, actor, Impressionist (entertainment), impressionist and writer. He was a panellist in every episode of the comedy show ''Mock the Week'' (2005–2022) and is one half ...

. Dennis was a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

and a member of Rutlish Lodge No. 4416 (the

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

associated with his school) under the

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic Grand Lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

. He was initiated on 18 April 1975, at the lodge's regular meeting place in the Tower Room at Great Tower Street, beside the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

. He was initiated by his father, who was a past master of the lodge. He was raised to the third degree in

Sutton, Surrey Sutton is a town in the London Borough of Sutton in South London, England. It is the administrative headquarters of the Outer London borough, on the lower slopes of the North Downs. It is south-southwest of Charing Cross, one of the fourteen ...

, two years later, as the lodge had by then permanently relocated. Dennis died on 13 April 2020 aged 88 from COVID-19, six weeks after his wife.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dennis, John 1931 births People educated at Rutlish School Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge Alumni of Ripon College Cuddesdon Bishops of Knaresborough Bishops of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich 2020 deaths 20th-century Church of England bishops Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in England