Frederick Samuel Willoughby Contents Church of England Old Catholic Church Further reading References Navigation menu"St Chad's Other Founder""Durham Diocesan Records: Deeds of relinquishment of Holy Orders"War Bischof Arnold Harris Mathew ein Vaganten-Bischof?"Modern Western Magic and Theosophy"
1862 births1928 deathsAlumni of St Catharine's College, CambridgeChurch of England priests19th-century British clergy20th-century British clergyOld Catholic bishopsAlumni of Lichfield Theological CollegeSt Chad's College, Durham
St Catherine's College, CambridgeLichfield Theological CollegeWorfieldWorcesterParkgateAnglo-CatholicHooton PagnellSt Chad's HostelJulia Warde-AldamSt Chad's HallUniversity of DurhamStephen MoulsdaleSt Wilfrid's Church, HickletonHandley MouleBishop of DurhamArnold MathewOld Catholic ChurchOld Roman Catholic Church in Great BritainJames Ingall WedgwoodJohn BulltheosophistsJ. I. WedgwoodLiberal Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church
Frederick Samuel Willoughby (1862-1928) was a Church of England priest, academic administrator and later Old Catholic bishop.
Contents
1 Church of England
2 Old Catholic Church
3 Further reading
4 References
Church of England
He entered St Catherine's College, Cambridge in 1880, graduating BA in 1883, then trained for the ministry at Lichfield Theological College.[1] He was ordained deacon in 1887 and priest in 1888, serving curacies in Worfield, Worcester and Parkgate.[1] His churchmanship was strongly Anglo-Catholic.[2]
St Chad's Hostel, Hooton Pagnell
In 1899, he became vicar of Hooton Pagnell near Doncaster, where in 1902 he founded St Chad's Hostel to prepare men of limited means for entry to theological college.[2] Initially he housed the students in his own vicarage, then in nearby houses and farms; then in 1903 the Lady of the Manor, Julia Warde-Aldam, funded a new building for the hostel, capable of accommodating 20 men.[2]
However, in 1904, he fell out with the hostel, at about the time it expanded its operations with the opening of St Chad's Hall at the University of Durham. Willoughby's vice-principal, Stephen Moulsdale, became principal of both the Durham hall and the Hooton Pagnell hostel, and relations between Willoughby and the hostel were poor - the Hooton Pagnell vice-principal, Sydney Richards, was forbidden to celebrate mass in the church, and the hostel used St Wilfrid's Church, Hickleton for its major services while Willoughby remained vicar.[2]
In 1906, Willoughby was appointed vicar of St John's, Stockton-on-Tees, where his Anglo-Catholic practices brought opposition from some parishioners. In 1914, accusations were brought by parishioners to Handley Moule, Bishop of Durham, that Willoughby had been involved in homosexual activity; he was asked to resign or face a full enquiry.[1] He opted to resign, and on 3 July 1914 submitted a writ of relinquishment of holy orders, with the writ recorded as being related to 'allegations of immorality (sexual assault of children) and embezzlement'.[3]
Old Catholic Church
Willoughby approached Arnold Mathew,[1] who had been consecrated in 1908 by the Old Catholic Church as a missionary bishop to Britain, though had by that point fallen out with the church for consecrating further bishops without their authorisation and had established himself as head of the Old Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain.[1] Willoughby was conditionally re-ordained into Mathew's church. Shortly afterwards an election for a new bishop was held among the clergy of the church, with Willoughby coming first and James Ingall Wedgwood second,[1] and on 28 October 1914 Willoughby was consecrated by Mathew, Bernard Mary Williams and John Briggs Seaton at the Royal Bell Hotel, Bromley, and given the title Auxiliary Bishop of St Pancras.[4]
Following his consecration, Willoughby published pamphlets entitled "The Conversion of Great Britain: What can the Ancient Catholic Church of England do?" with Mathew, and "The Ancient Catholic Church of England: Her Authority, Her Mission, Her Work, Her Appeal" alone.
However, in May 1915, John Bull magazine printed an article repeating allegations it had printed the previous June regarding Willoughby and the scandal which had led to his departure from Church of England ministry. When this was brought to Mathew's attention, he summoned a synod (which Willoughby declined to attend), resulting Mathew expelling Willoughby from the ORCCGB.[5][1]
In July 1914, Willoughby consecrated Bernard Gauntlett and Robert King, both theosophists who were at the time part of the ORCCGB; then in 1916, Willoughby, Gauntlett and King consecrated J. I. Wedgwood, who shortly afterwards founded the Liberal Catholic Church. Willoughby did not join the LCC, but in a 1927 letter to the "Occult Review" defending their orders called himself 'the "Father' of their episcopate'.[1]
In November 1916 Willoughby consecrated Frederick James at the Theosophical Temple, Maida Vale.[1]
Later in his life Willoughby reconciled with the Roman Catholic Church;[1] though in July 1922 he consecrated James Bartholomew Banks who went on to found the Independent Catholic Church, later renamed The Old Catholic Orthodox Church (Apostolic Service Church).[1]
Further reading
Frederick Samuel Willoughby: (1862-1928) Anglo-Catholic Champion, Old Catholic Bishop - Paul Kitchenham, 1999
References
^ abcdefghijk Kersey, John (2017). Arnold Harris Mathew and the Old Catholic Movement in England 1908-52. European-American University Press..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output .citation qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-maintdisplay:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
^ abcd "St Chad's Other Founder". The Chadsian (2018): 22–26.
^ "Durham Diocesan Records: Deeds of relinquishment of Holy Orders". Durham University Library Special Collections Catalogue. Durham University. 3 July 1914. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
^ Bruk, Kurt J. (2005). War Bischof Arnold Harris Mathew ein Vaganten-Bischof?. Arcturus Verlag.
^ Tillett, Gregory (1 Jan 2012). "Modern Western Magic and Theosophy". Aries. 12 (1). Brill. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
