Ridley Hall is a

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 ...

located on the corner of

Sidgwick Avenue Sidgwick Avenue is a road located in western Cambridge, England. The avenue runs east-west and links Grange Road to the west with Queen's Road to the east. The line of the road continues northeast into central Cambridge as Silver Street. Sid ...

and Ridley Hall Road in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

(

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

), which trains men and women intending to take Holy Orders as deacon or priest of 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 ...

, and members of the laity working with children and young people as lay pioneers and within a pastoral capacity such as lay chaplaincy.

History

Ridley Hall was founded in 1881 and named in memory of Nicholas Ridley, a leading Anglican theologian and

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external ...

of the sixteenth century. The college's first principal was the theologian

Handley Moule Handley Carr Glyn Moule (23 December 18418 May 1920) was an evangelical Anglican theologian, writer, poet, and Bishop of Durham from 1901 to 1920. Biography Moule was schooled at home before entering Trinity College, Cambridge in 1860, wher ...

, later

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durha ...

. It was founded under the same Deed of Trust as its sister college

Wycliffe Hall, Oxford Wycliffe Hall is a Church of England theological college and a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is named after the Bible translator and reformer John Wycliffe, who was master of Balliol College, Oxfor ...

and to this day both colleges have the ability to nominate two members to the Hall Council of the other.

Present day

Ridley Hall offers several Common Award qualifications, validated by Durham University. Although not a constituent college of the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, the school has ties with the university's Faculty of Divinity. Some students who are also in a constituent college of the university can be awarded qualifications by Cambridge. Ridley Hall forms part of the

Cambridge Theological Federation The Cambridge Theological Federation (CTF) is an association of theological colleges, courses and houses based in Cambridge, England and founded in 1972. The federation offers several joint theological programmes of study open to students in memb ...

, along with Westcott House, Westminster College, the

Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies The Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies (IOCS) is a theological college in Cambridge, England. It works in collaboration with the University of Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin University and awards its degree programs through these universities. ...

, and others. Ridley Hall's teaching leans towards an

evangelical theology Evangelical theology is the teaching and doctrine that relates to spiritual matters in evangelical Christianity and a Christian theology. The main points concern the place of the Bible, the Trinity, worship, Salvation, sanctification, charity, evan ...

. It is one of three Church of England theological colleges that self-identify as "

Open Evangelical An open evangelical attempts to uphold evangelical doctrines, morality, and spirituality, while also being inclusive of others. It is a term which is commonly used in the United Kingdom in reference to both individuals and institutions. Uses Open ...

", the others being Trinity College in Bristol, and Cranmer Hall in Durham. The current principal of Ridley Hall is

Michael Volland Michael John Volland (born 1974) is a British Anglican priest and academic, specialising in mission and practical theology. Since 2017, he has been Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge, an Anglican theological college in the Open Evangelical trad ...

. Volland succeeded

Andrew Norman Andrew Norman (born October 31, 1979) is an American composer of contemporary classical music whose texturally complex music is influenced by architecture and the visual arts. His string trio ''The Companion Guide to Rome'' (2010), was a runner- ...

, who moved on to become Director of Ministry and Mission in the Diocese of Leeds. It publishes an academic journal, ''Anvil''.

Notable staff and alumni

Jonathan Bailey Jonathan Stuart Bailey (born 25 April 1988) is an English actor. Known for his comedic, dramatic, and musical roles on stage and screen, he is the recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award and a nomination for a Evening Standard Theatre Award. Ba ...

Richard Bauckham Richard John Bauckham (born 22 September 1946) is an English Anglican scholar in theology, historical theology and New Testament studies, specialising in New Testament Christology and the Gospel of John. He is a senior scholar at Ridley Hall, ...

Jeremy Begbie Jeremy Sutherland Begbie, BA, BD, PhD, LRAM, ARCM, (born 1957) is Thomas A. Langford Distinguished Research Professor of Theology at Duke Divinity School, Duke University, where he directs Duke Initiatives in Theology and the Arts. He is a systema ...

Edward Armstrong Bennett Edward Armstrong Bennet MC, (21 October 1888 – 7 March 1977) was an Anglo-Irish decorated army chaplain during World War I, a British and Indian Army psychiatrist in the rank of brigadier during World War II, hospital consultant and auth ...

Andrew Briggs (George) Andrew Davidson Briggs (born 1950) is a British scientist. He is Professor of Nanomaterials in the Department of Materials at the University of Oxford. He is best known for his early work in acoustic microscopy and his current work in ...

Arthur Buxton The Reverend Arthur Buxton (7 August 1882 – 6 January 1958) was a clergyman of the Church of England, Rector of All Souls Church, Langham Place, Marylebone, after serving as Chaplain to the Forces during the First World War. Early life Buxto ...

"Buxton, Arthur", in ''Crockford's Clerical Directory'' (1930), p. 190 *

Christopher John Cocksworth Christopher John Cocksworth (born 12 January 1959) is a Church of England bishop in the open evangelical tradition. He is the current Bishop of Coventry; prior to becoming bishop he was the Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge. Early life an ...

Timothy Dudley-Smith Timothy Dudley-Smith (born 26 December 1926) is a retired bishop of the Church of England and a noted English hymnwriter. He has written around 400 hymns, including " Tell Out, my Soul". Life, education and ministry Dudley-Smith was born on 26 ...

* Dick Lucas *

Michael Nazir-Ali Michael James Nazir-Ali ( ur, ; born 19 August 1949) is a Pakistani-born British Roman Catholic priest and former Anglican bishop who served as the 106th Bishop of Rochester from 1994 to 2009 and, before that, as Bishop of Raiwind in Pakistan. ...

Mike Ovey Michael John Ovey (9 December 1958 – 7 January 2017), known as Mike Ovey, was a British Anglican clergyman, academic, and former lawyer. From 2007 until his death, he was Principal of Oak Hill College, a conservative evangelical theological col ...

Gavin Peacock Gavin Keith Peacock (born 18 November 1967) is an English former professional footballer and sports television pundit. As a player he was midfielder and striker from 1984 until 2002, notably playing in the Premier League for Newcastle United ...

John Sentamu John Tucker Mugabi Sentamu, Baron Sentamu, (; ; born 10 June 1949) is a retired Anglican bishop and life peer. He was Archbishop of York and Canterbury–York dispute, Primate of England from 2005 to 2020. Born near Kampala in Protectorate of ...

David Sheppard David Stuart Sheppard, Baron Sheppard of Liverpool (6 March 1929 – 5 March 2005) was a Church of England Bishop of Liverpool who played cricket for Sussex and England in his youth. Sheppard remains the only ordained minister to have played ...

John Stott John Robert Walmsley Stott (27 April 1921 – 27 July 2011) was an English Anglican cleric and theologian who was noted as a leader of the worldwide evangelical movement. He was one of the principal authors of the Lausanne Covenant in 1974. I ...

John Waine John Waine (20 June 193029 December 2020) was Bishop of Chelmsford from 1986 to 1996; and previously Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich from 1978 to 1986, Bishop of Stafford, 1975–1978. He also served as Clerk of the Closet from 1989 to 19 ...

* David Watson *

David Wenham David Wenham (born 21 September 1965) is an Australian actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his roles as Faramir in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Friar Carl in '' Van Helsing'', Dilios in ''300'' a ...

* Andrew White

List of principals

Thus far, all the principals have been ordained Anglican clergy. *1881–1899 (res.):

*1889–1907 (res.): Thomas Drury *1907–1927 (res.):

Arthur Tait Arthur James Tait (8 November 1872 – 3 April 1944) was an eminent Anglican priest and author. Tait was educated at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate; Merchant Taylors' School, London; St John's College, Cambridge and Ridley Hall, Cambridge. Afte ...

*1927–1945 (res.): Paul Gibson *1945–1950 (res.):

Falkner Allison Sherard Falkner Allison (19 January 1907 – 31 May 1993) was a British Anglican bishop and successively the Bishop of Chelmsford and the Bishop of Winchester. Early life, family and education Allison was born in Stafford on 19 January 1907 wh ...

*1951–1963 (res.):

Cyril Bowles Cyril William Johnston Bowles (9 May 191614 September 1999) was the fourth Bishop of Derby, from 1969 to 1988. He was educated at Brentwood School and Cambridge University, he was made deacon at Advent 1939 (18 December) and ordained pri ...

*1963–1971 (res.):

Michael Hennell Professor Michael A. Hennell (born 9 September 1940) is a British computer scientist who has made leading contributions in the field of software testing. Michael Hennell was a Professor of Mathematical Sciences, University of Liverpool in Engla ...

*1971–1972 (res.): Francis Palmer *1973–1978 (res.):

Keith Sutton Keith George Sutton (29 May 1924 – 26 July 1991) was a British artist and critic. Life and work Keith Sutton was born in Dulwich on 29 May 1924, the younger son of George William Sutton and Audrey Pearl Dewar. He was educated at Rutlish S ...

*1978–1991 (res.):

Hugo de Waal Hugo Ferdinand de Waal (16 March 1935 – 6 January 2007) was Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge from 1978 to 1991 and the suffragan Bishop of Thetford from 1992 until 2000. He was born at Jember on East Java and educated at Tonbridge School an ...

*1992–2001 (res.):

Graham Cray Graham Alan Cray (born 21 April 1947) is a retired British Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Maidstone in the Diocese of Canterbury from 2001 to 2009, and was the Archbishops' Missioner and Team Leader of Fresh Expressions from 2009 to 2014. ...

*2001–2008 (res.):

Christopher Cocksworth Christopher John Cocksworth (born 12 January 1959) is a Church of England bishop in the open evangelical tradition. He is the current Bishop of Coventry; prior to becoming bishop he was the Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge. Early life an ...

*2009–2016 (res.):

*2016–present:

References

External links

*
Ridley Hall websiteCambridge Theological Federation website
{{Coord, 52.200219, N, 0.110993, E, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Anglican seminaries and theological colleges Evangelicalism in the Church of England Institutions of the Cambridge Theological Federation Anglican buildings and structures in Europe