Bevan Stanley Meredith (14 August 1927 – 17 December 2019) was an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

clergyman in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

who was Bishop of the New Guinea Islands (1977–1995) and

Archbishop of Papua New Guinea The Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea is a province of the Anglican Communion. It was created in 1977 when the Province of Papua New Guinea became independent from the Province of Queensland in the Church of England in Australia (officially ren ...

(1990–1995).

Early life

Meredith was born in 1927, the son of Stanley Meredith, who was a teacher, and his wife Edith (née Witchard). He was educated at Towalbyn Public School in

Uralba Uralba is a rural locality located on the Far North Coast of New South Wales (in Australia). Its name means "place of plenteous quartz stones". Administratively it is part of the Ballina Shire. It is located about west from Ballina. Sydn ...

and

Ballina High School Ballina Coast High School is a government-funded co-educational comprehensive secondary day school, located on Cherry Street, in , in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1956 as Ballina High School, the sc ...

. In 1945 the family moved to

Mango Hill Mango Hill is a Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Mango Hill had a population of 14,921 people. History Although locally known by this name since the 1950s, it wasn't until 1 ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. Initially working on the family farm, he then became a clerk at the City Electric Light Company. Meredith then became a teacher, initially at a small Anglican school called St Christopher's in Brookfield, which had been established by Fr Robert Bates, Rector of All Saints, Wickham Terrace,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. From 1948 he taught at the Slade School in

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

, before moving to Papua & New Guinea in 1954 to teach at the Martyrs School in

Popondetta Popondetta (sometimes spelled Popondota) is the capital of Oro (Northern) Province in Papua New Guinea. Popondetta is a city. In 1951 the city became the focus of relief efforts after nearby Mount Lamington erupted and killed 4,000 people. P ...

. This was only three years after the Mount Lamington volcanic eruption which destroyed the school, and at the time it was still being rebuilt.

Career

Meredith trained for ordination at St Francis' Theological College, Brisbane and was ordained deacon in 1961 and priest in 1962. He served a short curacy at St Thomas', Toowong in the Diocese of Brisbane from 1961 to 1962 and then returned to Papua & New Guinea as a missionary in the

Papuan Peninsula The Papuan Peninsula, also known as the Bird's Tail Peninsula, is a large peninsula in Papua New Guinea, southeast of the city of Lae, that makes up the southeastern portion of the island of New Guinea. The peninsula is the easternmost extent of t ...

from 1962 to 1966. He was then Archdeacon of New Guinea from 1966 to 1967. He was consecrated a bishop in 1967 and became an assistant bishop of New Guinea, as well as being Archdeacon of the New Guinea Islands. In 1968 he was appointed an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

chaplain (Papua & New Guinea then being an Australian territory). As late as 1970, Meredith was still finding communities of Papuans in the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

for whom Christianity was novel, and he was the first to baptise any of them. In 1977 he became Bishop of the New Guinea Islands, and in 1990 additionally Archbishop of Papua New Guinea. He survived the volcanic eruption in

Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...

in 1994, and retired in 1995. Meredith was a

Franciscan tertiary The Third Order of Saint Francis is a third order in the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi. The preaching of Francis and his disciples caused many married men and women to w ...

Personal life

In retirement Meredith lived in Brisbane. He died in 2019, aged 92, and his funeral was at

St John's Cathedral :''This list is for St. John the Evangelist Cathedrals. For St. John the Baptist Cathedrals, see St. John the Baptist Cathedral (disambiguation)'' St. John's Cathedral, St. John Cathedral, or Cathedral of St. John, or other variations on the name ...

in Brisbane. He was unmarried. His sister Marion married the Rt Rev George Tung Yep.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meredith, Bevan 1927 births 20th-century Anglican bishops in Oceania 2019 deaths Australian Anglican bishops People from the Northern Rivers Anglican archbishops of Papua New Guinea Anglican bishops of the New Guinea Islands Australian Army chaplains