James Bovell (1817–1880) was a prominent Canadian

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

microscopist Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view objects and areas of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye (objects that are not within the resolution range of the normal eye). There are three well-known branches of micr ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and minister. In his youth, he traveled to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to study

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

. There, he was related to

Sir Astley Cooper Sir Astley Paston Cooper, 1st Baronet (23 August 176812 February 1841) was a British surgeon and anatomist, who made contributions to otology, vascular surgery, the anatomy and pathology of the mammary glands and testicles, and the patholog ...

and had Richard Bright and

Thomas Addison Thomas J Addison (April 179329 June 1860) was an English physician, chef, and scientist. He is traditionally regarded as one of the "great men" of Guy's Hospital in London. Among other pathologies, he discovered Addison's disease (a degenerati ...

among his professors, and

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celtic ...

and William Stokes among his colleagues. He studied at schools in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

and later was elected a member of the

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

. When he returned to Canada he worked on the fields of pathology and clinical microscopy, and he founded the ''Upper Canada Journal of Medical, Surgical, and Physical Science'' which he edited. He became an important member of the

Canadian Institute The Royal Canadian Institute for Science (RCIScience), known also as the Royal Canadian Institute, is a Canadian nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting the public with Canadian science. History The organization was formed in Toronto as t ...

and later became a vice president of it. He became an early mentor of the famous physician

William Osler Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet, (; July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a Canadian physician and one of the "Big Four" founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital. Osler created the first Residency (medicine), residency program for spec ...

, whom he strongly influenced in his early years.Bliss, Michael (1999). ''William Osler: a life in medicine.'' Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. p. 45 . OCLC 41439631. Bovell later became a clergyman of the Church of England and wrote on the topic of

natural theology Natural theology, once also termed physico-theology, is a type of theology that seeks to provide arguments for theological topics (such as the existence of a deity) based on reason and the discoveries of science. This distinguishes it from ...

. He is known for his rejection of the Darwinian theory of evolution and Lyell's geology, believing instead in the

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning") ...

on the side of the early

Louis Agassiz Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history. Spending his early life in Switzerland, he rec ...

and John Hunter. Yet, he wrote on the relation of religion and science. In a book published in 1860 he wrote to the

Diocese of Huron The Diocese of Huron is a diocese of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario of the Anglican Church of Canada. The diocese comprises just over 31,000 square kilometres in southwestern Ontario, sandwiched between Lake Huron and Lake Erie. Its See ...

"with the hope that the explanations given may remove erroneous impressions" at the Church in Canada.

Works

*
A lecture on the future of Canada
' (1846) *
An outline of the history of the British church from the earliest times to the period of Reformation
' (1852) *
Outlines of natural theology for the use of the Canadian student
' (1859) * ''Defence of doctrinal statement'' (1860) *
Passing thoughts on man's relation to God and on God's relation to man
' (1862) *
A plea for inebriate asylums: commended of the consideration of the legislators of the province of Canada
' (1862) *
Letters: addressed to the Rev. Mr. Fletcher and others: framers of a series of resolutions on "ritual"
' (1867) *
The world at the advent of the Lord Jesus
'. Toronto : W.C. Chewett. (1868)

References

* Bovell, James (1859).
Outlines of natural theology : for the use of the Canadian student
'. Toronto. Rowsell & Ellis

External links

Dictionary of Canadian Biography
James Bovell (1817-1880): The Toronto Years
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bovell, James 1817 births 1880 deaths Canadian Anglican priests Canadian Anglican theologians 19th-century Canadian physicians Church of England priests Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Microscopists