Michael Geoffrey Ipgrave (born 18 April 1958) is a British

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. Since 2016, he has been the 99th

Bishop of Lichfield The Bishop of Lichfield is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers 4,516 km2 (1,744 sq. mi.) of the counties of Powys, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire and West M ...

, the diocesan bishop of the

Diocese of Lichfield The Diocese of Lichfield is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury, England. The bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Chad in the city of Lichfield. The diocese covers of seve ...

. He was the Bishop of Woolwich, an

area bishop A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the Metropolitan ...

in the Diocese of Southwark, from 2012 to 2016. He served as Archdeacon of Southwark between 2004 and 2012.

Early life and education

Ipgrave was born on 18 April 1958 in

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom. He was educated at Magdalen College School, Brackley, a state school in South Northamptonshire. In January 1975, aged 16, he captained his school team of '' Top of The Form'', on the radio, reaching the final, but lost to

Cheltenham Grammar School Pate's Grammar School is a grammar school with Academy (English school), academy status in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. It caters for pupils aged 11 to 18. The school was founded with a fund bestowed to Corpus Christi College, Oxford, ...

. Also in the team was Marni Burfitt, aged 15, Alison de Verteuil, aged 13, and David Seaman, aged 12, being coached by teachers Clive Waind and Rosemary Davies. From 1975 to 1978, he studied mathematics at

Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is Colleges of the University of Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title for ...

, and graduated from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

with a first class Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. From 1979 to 1980, he attended the Spring Hill Ordination Scheme in Birmingham. From 1979 to 1982, he trained for ordination at

Ripon College Cuddesdon Ripon College Cuddesdon (RCC) is a Church of England seminary, theological college in Cuddesdon, a village outside Oxford, England. The College trains men and women for ministry in the Church of England: stipendiary, non-stipendiary, local orda ...

, an

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and Christian theology, theology, generally to prepare them for ordinatio ...

near

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. During that period he also studied theology at the University of Oxford, and graduated with an additional first class BA. In 1999 Ipgrave completed a doctorate at

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

with a thesis entitled ''Trinity and inter-faith dialogue: plenitude and plurality''.

Ordained ministry

Ipgrave was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

: made 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 denominations, such as the Cathol ...

at Petertide 1982 (27 June) and ordained 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 deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

in the Petertide following (26 June 1983) both times by Douglas Feaver, Bishop of Peterborough, at

Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew, and formerly known as Peterborough Abbey or St Peter's Abbey, is a cathedral in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, in the United Kingdom. The seat of the Church ...

. After a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () 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 who are ass ...

Oakham Oakham is a market town and civil parish in Rutland (of which it is the county town) in the East Midlands of England. The town is located east of Leicester, southeast of Nottingham and northwest of Peterborough. It had a population of 12,14 ...

followed by time in Japan, he was a team vicar in two separate

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

parishes. In Leicester, in 1991, he was appointed diocesan chaplain for relations with people of other faiths, and bishops' domestic chaplain in 1992. He was appointed Archdeacon of Southwark in 2004. In 2010 he also became Canon Missioner of

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ), formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, is a Church of England cathedral in Southwark, London, near the south bank of the River Thames and close to London Bridge. It is the mother c ...

. He was co-chair of Southwark and London Housing Association (now Amicus Horizon) He was formerly Inter Faith Relations Advisor to the Archbishops' Council and secretary of the Churches' Commission on Inter-Faith Relations.

Episcopal ministry

On 3 February 2012, Ipgrave was announced as the next Bishop of Woolwich, an

in the Diocese of Southwark. On 21 March 2012, he was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

a bishop, by

Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet, who served as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury from 2002 to 2012. Previously the Bishop of Monmouth and Archbishop of W ...

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, during a service in

. He also served as Warden of Readers for the diocese. In May 2013, he read bidding prayers at a Mass for Lee Rigby who was murdered by Islamists in the 2013 Woolwich attack. Since February 2015 Ipgrave has been chair of the Council of Christians and Jews (CCJ). On 2 March 2016, it was announced that he was to become the next

diocesan In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

. His

canonical election A canonical election, in the canon law of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church, is the designation of a suitable candidate to a vacant ecclesiastical office by a vote of a collegial body.Fernando della Rocca, "Manual of Canon Law", pg. 170 (§7 ...

to that See was confirmed on 10 June 2016;OurCofE twitter
(Accessed 11 June 2016) his installation at

Lichfield Cathedral Lichfield Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary and Saint Chad in Lichfield, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Lichfield, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Lichfield and the principal church of the diocese ...

took place on 24 September 2016. He became a member of 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 ...

(as a

Lord 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 ...

) on 25 October 2022; he was introduced on 20 February 2023. On 25 April 2023, he made his

maiden speech A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament. Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country. In many Westminster system governments, there is a convention th ...

in the Lords during a debate on parliamentary democracy in the United Kingdom; , this has been his only speech.

Views

In November 2023, he was one of 44 Church of England bishops who signed an open letter supporting the use of the ''Prayers of Love and Faith'' (i.e. blessings for same-sex couples) and called for "Guidance being issued without delay that includes the removal of all restrictions on clergy entering same-sex civil marriages, and on bishops ordaining and licensing such clergy".

Personal life

In 1981, Ipgrave married Julia Bailey. Together they have raised three children.

Honours

In the

2011 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2011 were announced on 31 December 2010 in the United Kingdom,United Kingdom: New Zealand,New Zealand"New Year Honours 2011"(14 January 2011) 2 '' New Zealand Gazette'' 55. The Cook IslandsThe Cook Islands: Grenada,Grenada: ...

, Ipgrave was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) "for services to inter-faith relations in London".

Selected works

He has edited six volumes on Christian and Muslim relations. He is author of ''Trinity and Inter Faith Dialogue'', and has contributed to journal articles and book chapters on inter-faith matters. * *

References

External links

Interviewed on ANN TV 2015
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ipgrave, Michael Archdeacons of Southwark Bishops of Woolwich Officers of the Order of the British Empire Anglo-Catholic bishops Lords Spiritual 1958 births Living people People educated at Magdalen College School, Brackley Alumni of St Chad's College, Durham Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Bishops of Lichfield 21st-century Church of England bishops