James Stuart Jones (born 18 August 1948) is a retired
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
bishop. He was the
Bishop of Liverpool
The Bishop of Liverpool is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Liverpool in the Province of York.''Crockford's Clerical Directory'', 100th edition, (2007), Church House Publishing. .
The diocese stretches from Southport in the no ...
between 1998 and 2013.
Early life
Jones is the son of Major Stuart Jones and Helen Jones. He was educated at the
Duke of York's Royal Military School
The Duke of York's Royal Military School, more commonly called the Duke of York's, is a co-educational academy (for students aged 11 to 18) with military traditions in Guston, Kent. Since becoming an academy in 2010, the school is now sponsor ...
,
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
and
Exeter University
, mottoeng = "We Follow the Light"
, established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter)
, type = Public
, ...
, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in theology in 1970. He was further educated at
Alsager College
Alsager ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located to the north-west of Stoke-on-Trent and east of Crewe. The town's population was 13,389 at the 2021 ...
,
Keele
Keele is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. It is approximately three miles (5 km) west of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and is close to the village of Silverdale. Keele lies on the A53 roa ...
(where he graduated with a
Postgraduate Certificate in Education
The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE/PGCertEd) is a one- or two-year higher education course in England, Wales and Northern Ireland which provides training in order to allow graduates to become teachers within maintained schools. In ...
(PGCE) in drama and
religious education
In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion (although in the United Kingdom the term ''religious instruction'' would refer to the teaching of a particular religion, with ''religious education'' referring to te ...
in 1971) and
Wycliffe Hall, Oxford
Wycliffe Hall is a Church of England Seminary, theological college and a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is named after the Bible translator and reformer John Wycliffe, who was Master (college), mast ...
(1981).
Religious career
From 1971-74, Jones was a teacher at
Sevenoaks School
Sevenoaks School is a highly selective coeducational independent school in Sevenoaks, Kent, England. It is the second oldest non-denominational school in the United Kingdom, dating back to 1432, only behind Oswestry (1407). Over 1,000 day pupils ...
and led one of the first community service programmes in schools. He was also co-founder of the first Volunteer Bureau in England. Between 1975-81, he was producer at
Scripture Union
Scripture Union (SU) is an international, interdenominational, evangelical Christian organization. It was founded in 1867, and works in partnership with individuals and churches across the world. The organization's stated aim is to use the Bible t ...
. He was then a curate, then associate vicar of
Christ Church in the
Diocese of Bristol
The Diocese of Bristol is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Church of England in the Province of Canterbury, England. It is based in the city of Bristol and covers South Gloucestershire and parts of north Wiltshire, as far east ...
. Jones was visiting lecturer in media studies at
Trinity College, Bristol
Trinity College, Bristol is an evangelical Anglican theological college located in Stoke Bishop, Bristol, England. It offers a range of full-time and part-time taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses which are validated by the University o ...
and, from 1990 to 1994, the vicar of Emmanuel Church,
South Croydon
South Croydon in south London is the area surrounding the valley south of central Croydon and running as far south as the former Red Deer public house on the Brighton Road. It is bounded by Waddon to the West and Selsdon and Sanderstead to the ...
in the
Diocese of Southwark
The Diocese of Southwark is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient Dio ...
and the
Bishop of Southwark's examining chaplain. In 1994, he became
Suffragan Bishop of Hull
The Bishop of Hull is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of York, England. The suffragan bishop, along with the Bishop of Selby and the Bishop of Whitby, assists the Archbishop of York in overseeing ...
in the
Diocese of York
The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire.
The diocese is headed by the A ...
, a post he held until 1998 when he was appointed the 7th Bishop of Liverpool.
Jones is an Evangelical and was one of the group of bishops who signed a letter opposing
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth, (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet. He was the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, a position he held from December 2002 to December 2012. Previously the Bish ...
' decision not to block the appointment of
Jeffrey John
Jeffrey Philip Hywel John (born 10 February 1953) is a Church of England priest, who served as the Dean of St Albans from 2004 until 2021. He made headlines in 2003 when he was the first person to have openly been in a same-sex relationshi ...
as
Bishop of Reading
The Bishop of Reading is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford, which is within the Province of Canterbury, England. The current bishop of Reading is Olivia Graham (formerly Arc ...
. The other diocesan bishop signatories were:
Michael Scott-Joynt
Michael Charles Scott-Joynt (15 March 1943 – 27 September 2014) was an English bishop and a Prelate of the Order of the Garter. He was appointed Bishop of Winchester, one of the five senior bishoprics in the Church of England, in 1995. He ha ...
(
Bishop of Winchester
The Bishop of Winchester is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Winchester in the Church of England. The bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire. The Bishop of Winchester has always held ''ex officio'' (except dur ...
),
Michael Langrish
Michael Laurence Langrish (born 1 July 1946) is a retired English Anglican bishop. He was Bishop of Exeter from 2000 to 2013.
Early life and education
Langrish was born in Southampton, Hampshire, the son of Douglas Frank Langrish and Brenda Flor ...
(
Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
),
Michael Nazir-Ali
Michael James Nazir-Ali ( ur, ; born 19 August 1949) is a Pakistani-born British Roman Catholic priest and former Anglican bishop who served as the 106th Bishop of Rochester from 1994 to 2009 and, before that, as Bishop of Raiwind in Pakistan ...
(
Rochester
Rochester may refer to:
Places Australia
* Rochester, Victoria
Canada
* Rochester, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Rochester, Kent
** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area
** History of Rochester, Kent
** HM Prison ...
),
Peter Forster (
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
),
George Cassidy (
Southwell & Nottingham),
Graham Dow
Geoffrey Graham Dow (born 4 July 1942) is a retired British Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Carlisle from 2000 to 2009, the 66th holder of the office. He is a well-known Evangelical.
Early life
Born in 1942, in Edmonton, London, Dow was ed ...
(
Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...
),
John Hind (
Chichester
Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...
) and
David James Dewi, Dai, Dafydd or David James may refer to:
Performers
*David James (actor, born 1839) (1839–1893), English stage comic and a founder of London's Vaudeville Theatre
*David James (actor, born 1967) (born 1967), Australian presenter of ABC's ''P ...
(
Bradford
Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...
). In 2008, Jones apologised for opposing the gay cleric.
Jones was also Chair of Council at
Wycliffe Hall
Wycliffe Hall is a Church of England theological college and a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is named after the Bible translator and reformer John Wycliffe, who was master of Balliol College, Oxfo ...
, Oxford, when the college suffered much publicity because of allegations of bullying against its principal,
Richard Turnbull. The majority of the academic staff left the college and wrote to the ''
Church Times
The ''Church Times'' is an independent Anglican weekly newspaper based in London and published in the United Kingdom on Fridays.
History
The ''Church Times'' was founded on 7 February 1863 by George Josiah Palmer, a printer. It fought for the ...
'' expressing grave dissatisfaction at the failure of the Council (under Jones as Chair) to allow mediation and address substantive issues. Former principals wrote to the press to object at the way the Council and Chair had handled the issue. A member of the council also resigned in protest, having "no confidence in the Chair, the Principal or the Council".
In 2008, the College was taken to an employment tribunal for unfair dismissal. They admitted breaking the law and had to pay damages. In 2009, Bishop Jones resigned and was replaced as Council Chair by the Bishop of Chester. On 28 January 2013, it was announced that Jones would retire as Bishop of Liverpool on his 65th birthday on 18 August. He was subsequently licensed as an
honorary assistant bishop
An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop.
Church of England
In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...
in the
diocese of York
The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire.
The diocese is headed by the A ...
.
Independent panel chair
In December 2009 it was announced that Jones woul
chair the panelrelating to the
Hillsborough Disaster
The Hillsborough disaster was a fatal human crush during a football match at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989. It occurred during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest in the ...
in which 96 Liverpool football fans died.
In 2012, Jones and
Sir Henry Studholme, as Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively, conducted the Independent Forestry Panel report on the future of the UK’s state-owned forests after the government announced plans to sell off the British state forests.
Jones chaired the Gosport Independent Panel, an independent panel which wrote a report published on 20 June 2018, which found that
456 deaths at the Gosport War Memorial Hospital in Hampshire, England, in the 1990s had "followed inappropriate administration of
opioid
Opioids are substances that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects. Medically they are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Other medical uses include suppression of diarrhea, replacement therapy for opioid us ...
drugs".
In his introduction, the bishop says:
Personal life
Jones married Sarah Marrow in 1980 and they have three daughters.
[
Jones was appointed ]Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
(KBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours
The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...
for services to bereaved families and justice.
Styles
* James Jones Esq (1948–1982)
* The Revd James Jones (1982–1994)
* The Rt Revd James Jones (1994–2017)
* The Rt Revd James Jones KBE (2017 to date)
References
External links
James Jones Official Website
*
Diocese of Liverpool website biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, James
1948 births
Living people
Anglican bishops of Liverpool
Bishops of Hull
Bishops to HM Prisons
People educated at the Duke of York's Royal Military School
Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Evangelical Anglican bishops
20th-century Church of England bishops
21st-century Church of England bishops