Evan Lewis (16 November 1818 – 24 November 1901) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

clergyman who was Dean of

Bangor Cathedral Bangor Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Bangor) is a cathedral in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It is dedicated to its founder, Saint Deiniol. The site of the present building of Bangor Cathedral has been in use as a place of Christian worship since ...

from 1884 until his death.

Life

Lewis was born in Llanilar, Ceredigion, and named after his father who had died before Lewis was born. He was raised by his mother Mary, daughter of John Richards. Lewis was educated at the grammar schools in Ystrad Meurig and

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

, as well as at a school in Twickenham run by his father's brother. He then followed his brother ( David Lewis) to Jesus College, Oxford, matriculating on 7 April 1838. He obtained his

B.A Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1841 and his M.A. in 1863. Whilst at college, he rowed at

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

in the college boat when it was Head of the River. He was ordained deacon and priest in 1842 by the Bishop of Bangor,

Christopher Bethell Christopher Bethell (21 April 1773 – 19 April 1859) was Bishop of Bangor. Bethell was the second son of the Reverend Richard Bethell, the rector of St Peter's Wallingford, Berkshire, who died 12 January 1806 having married his wife Ann in 177 ...

. He held a succession of church positions. He was

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''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 w ...

of various churches on Anglesey – Llanddeusant (1842–43), Llanfaes with

Penmon Penmon is a promontory, village and ecclesiastical parish on the eastern tip of the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, about east of the town of Beaumaris. It is in the community of Llangoed. The name comes from cy, pen (which can mean "head", "end" ...

(1843–45), Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog (1845–46) – before becoming curate of Llanllechid in Caernarfonshire in 1847. He left this position in 1859 to become vicar of

Aberdare Aberdare ( ; cy, Aberdâr) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tyd ...

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, returning to North Wales in 1866 as rector of

Dolgellau Dolgellau () is a town and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the historic county of Merionethshire ( cy, Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd) un ...

, Merionethshire, remaining until 1884. During this time, he was also rural dean of Ystumanner (1866–84), chancellor of

(1872–76) and canon residentiary (1877–84). In 1884, he was appointed as Dean of the cathedral, and held this position until his death, in the Deanery, on 24 November 1901. He was buried in the churchyard at Llandegai, Caernarfonshire, near to the grave of Bishop Bethell.

Religious views

Lewis and his brother David were both influenced by the Tractarian movement whilst studying at Oxford. David was John Henry Newman's curate and converted with him to Roman Catholicism. Evan Lewis did not convert, but preached Tractarian views and practices in Wales. When this led to controversy, he defended his position in letters (in

) in ''Y Cymro'', which were later published in book format. A Welsh-language treatise on the

apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bish ...

, ''Yr olyniaeth apostolaidd gan offeiriad Cymreig'' (1851), was his main work, although he also wrote on other issues, translated hymns into Welsh and helped with the creation of a hymn book for the Bangor diocese.

Family

Lewis was twice married. He married first, in 1859, Anne Cotton, younger daughter of Very Rev. James Cotton, who was at the time Dean of Bangor. After her early death the following year, he remarried in 1865 Adelaide Owen Morrall, daughter of Rev. Cyrus Morrall, of Plasyolyn, Shropshire. They had three sons and three daughters.LEWIS, Very Rev. Evan’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2007

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Evan 1818 births 1901 deaths Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford 19th-century Welsh Anglican priests Deans of Bangor Welsh non-fiction writers Welsh Anglo-Catholics Anglo-Catholic clergy Anglo-Catholic writers People from Ceredigion People from Dolgellau