Kenneth Graham Bevan (27 September 1898 – 3 December 1993) was an Anglican missionary bishop in China.

Early life

Bevan was born in 1898, in Hampstead, where his father was a curate. He was the son of the Rev. James Alfred Bevan, who had captained

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

in their first international

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...

match, and his wife Annie. He was educated at

Great Yarmouth Grammar School Great Yarmouth Charter Academy is a coeducational comprehensive school on Salisbury Road in the town of Great Yarmouth in the English county of Norfolk. It educates about 700 11 to 16-year-old pupils, the age of entry having decreased from tw ...

and the London College of Divinity.

Career

He was ordained deacon in 1923, and priest in 1924, and was then 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 Holy Trinity,

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Rocks. ...

(now Trinity Theatre) before

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

service with the Anglican-Episcopal Province of China from 1925. Consecrated a bishop in 1940 in

Holy Trinity Cathedral, Shanghai Holy Trinity Church, Shanghai ( zh, t=上海聖三一堂, s=上海圣三一堂, p=Shànghǎi shèng sānyī táng), is a Protestant (and formerly Anglican) church in Huangpu District of Shanghai. The church, consecrated in 1869 was designed in ...

, for 10 years he was Bishop of East Szechwan. The obituary in the ''

Church Times The ''Church Times'' is an independent Anglican weekly newspaper based in London and published in the United Kingdom on Fridays. History The ''Church Times'' was founded on 7 February 1863 by George Josiah Palmer, a printer. It fought for the ...

'' stated that: "His diocese was wild and mountainous, and in travelling round it he was reduced, he said, to carrying only a Bible and a toothbrush." Following the end of the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...

and the Communist takeover of China, Bevan returned to England and became 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 ...

Woolhope Woolhope is a village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire. The population of the civil parish was 486 at the 2011 census. The civil parish includes the hamlet of Broadmoor Common to the west of the village (and a nature rese ...

(1951–1966), during which time he was also

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a populatio ...

(1955–1966) and Prebendary de Moreton et Whaddon at

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

(1956–1966). On retirement in 1966 he became Master of

Archbishop Holgate's Hospital In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

Hemsworth Hemsworth is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire and had a population of 13,311 at the 2001 census, with it increasing to 13,533 at the 2011 Census. Histor ...

and then 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 ...

in the Diocese of Wakefield for a further 11 years. During that time, he founded the Retired Clergy Association.

Personal life

Bevan married Jocelyn Duncan (known as Joyce) Barber in 1927 in

. They had three daughters. He died in 1993, aged 95.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bevan, Kenneth Graham 1898 births 1993 deaths People educated at Great Yarmouth Grammar School Anglican missionaries in Sichuan Anglican missionary bishops in China 20th-century Anglican bishops in China Alumni of St John's College, Nottingham Diocese of Szechwan Anglican bishops of East Szechwan

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

References