Timothy Dudley-Smith
Timothy Dudley-Smith | |
---|---|
Bishop of Thetford | |
Diocese | Norwich |
In office | 1981–1992 |
Predecessor | Hugh Blackburne |
Successor | Hugo de Waal |
Other post(s) | Honorary assistant bishop in Salisbury (1992–2024) Archdeacon of Norwich (1973–1981) |
Orders | |
Ordination | 1950 (deacon); 1951 (priest) |
Consecration | 1981 |
Personal details | |
Born | Manchester, England | 26 December 1926
Died | 12 August 2024 Cambridge, England | (aged 97)
Nationality | British |
Denomination | Anglican |
Parents | Arthur and Phyllis Dudley-Smith |
Spouse |
Arlette MacDonald
(m. 1959; died 2007) |
Children | 3 |
Profession | Bishop, hymnist |
Alma mater | Pembroke College, Cambridge |
Timothy Dudley-Smith OBE (26 December 1926 – 12 August 2024) was a bishop of the Church of England and a noted hymnwriter. He wrote around 400 hymns, including "Tell Out, my Soul".
Life, education and ministry
Dudley-Smith was born on 26 December 1926 in Manchester, England, to Phyllis and Arthur Smith. His father was a schoolteacher in Derbyshire who instilled in Dudley-Smith a love for poetry.[1][2][3] Arthur fell ill and died when Dudley-Smith was eleven years old and shortly thereafter desired to be a minister.[4] He was educated at Tonbridge School before studying maths and then theology at Pembroke College, Cambridge.[1] After graduating in 1947, he began his ordination training at Ridley Hall, Cambridge.[5] He was ordained deacon in 1950 and priest in 1951 by Christopher Chavasse, the Bishop of Rochester.[1]
After ordination, Dudley-Smith served as an honorary chaplain to Chavasse, as well as head of the Cambridge University Mission in Bermondsey, South London.[1] In 1955, he was appointed editorial secretary of the Evangelical Alliance and editor of the new Crusade magazine, created after Billy Graham's 1954 London mission.[5][1] Dudley-Smith also began serving with the Church Pastoral Aid Society, serving as assistant secretary from 1959, then as secretary until 1973.[1] He served as Archdeacon of Norwich from 1973 to 1981 and as Bishop of Thetford from 1981 to 1991.[1] He also served as president of the Evangelical Alliance from 1987 to 1992.[6] He was chairman of the governors of Monkton Combe School from 1992 to 1997.[7]
In 1959, he married Arlette MacDonald. They were together for 48 years until her death in 2007; they had one son and two daughters.[1] His son, James, is also ordained in the Church of England, and currently serves as rector of St John's Church, Yeovil.[8]
Dudley-Smith was part of what has been described as a British "hymn explosion" after World War II.[9]
Dudley-Smith died in Cambridge on 12 August 2024, at the age of 97.[10]
Honours
Dudley-Smith was a member and honorary vice-president of the Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland; he was also awarded fellowships from the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada and the Royal School of Church Music.[11] In 2003, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire "for services to hymnody".[11] In July 2009 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree by Durham University.[12]
Selected works
- Dudley-Smith, Timothy (1987). A Flame of Love: a personal choice of Charles Wesley's verse. London: SPCK.
- —————— (1989). Praying with the English Hymn Writers. London: SPCK.
- —————— (1999). John Stott: The Making of a Leader. London: IVP.
- —————— (2001). John Stott: A Global Ministry. London: IVP.
- ——————; Dakers, Lionel (2001). Beneath a Travelling Star. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- —————— (2003). A House of Praise: Collected Hymns 1961–2001. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- —————— (2006). A Door for the Word: 36 new hymns 2002–2005. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ——————; Llewellyn, William (2006). A Calendar of Praise. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- ——————; Llewellyn, William (2007). High Days and Holy Days. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- ——————; Llewellyn, William (2008). The Voice of Faith. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- ——————; Llewellyn, William (2009). Above Every Name. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- —————— (2009). Snakes and Ladders: a Hymn Writer's Reflections. London: The Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
- —————— (2009). Praise to the Name: 36 new hymns 2005–2008. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ——————; Llewellyn, William (2010). Draw Near to God. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
- —————— (2011). Seasons and Reasons: New Hymns for various times and occasions. Bromsgrove: Christian Music Ministries.
- —————— (2012). Beyond Our Dreaming: 36 new hymns 2008–2011. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- —————— (2015). A House of Praise 2: Collected Hymns 2002–2013. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- —————— (2017). A Functional Art: Reflections of a Hymn Writer. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- —————— (2019). A House of Praise 3: Collected Hymns 2013–2018. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Saward, Michael (2006). "Timothy Dudley-Smith: An Acknowledged Master Craftsman" (PDF). Anvil. 23 (4): 290. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
- ^ "The Rt Rev Timothy Dudley-Smith, leading writer of singable hymns like Tell out, my soul – obituary". The Telegraph. 13 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
- ^ Shirt, Esme (1 December 1997). "Lord, for the years..." Evangelicals Now. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
- ^ Silliman, Daniel (15 August 2024). "Died: Timothy Dudley-Smith, Who Turned Metrical Poetry into Hundreds of Hymns". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on 15 August 2024.
- ^ a b "A Song Was Heard at Christmas". Carols.net. 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
- ^ Dudley-Smith, Timothy (1997). "Lord, for the Years..." Evangelicals Now. Interviewed by Shirt, Esme. Archived from the original on 27 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
- ^ A Delightful Inheritance by P. LeRoy, Monkton Print, 2018.
- ^ "James Dudley-Smith". St John's Church. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
- ^ Giles, Gordon (28 October 2016). "Singing through the tide of change". Church Times. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
- ^ "Timothy Dudley-Smith, hymn-writer and bishop, has died". Church Times. 12 August 2024.
- ^ a b "Dudley-Smith, Timothy". Hope Publishing. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
- ^ Watson, J. R. (2009). "Timothy Dudley Smith: Doctor of Divinity" (PDF). Durham, England: Durham University. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
External links
- 1926 births
- 2024 deaths
- Clergy from Manchester
- Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge
- Alumni of Ridley Hall, Cambridge
- People educated at Tonbridge School
- Anglican suffragan bishops in the Diocese of Norwich
- Christian hymnwriters
- English hymnwriters
- Evangelical Anglican bishops
- Bishops of Thetford
- Archdeacons of Norwich
- Officers of the Order of the British Empire
- 20th-century Church of England bishops
- Governors of Monkton Combe School