John Alexander Ellison (24 December 1940 – 4 August 2019) was a British

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 ...

bishop. He was the Bishop of Paraguay from 1988 to 2007.

Early life and education

Ellison was born on 24 December 1940 to Alexander and Catherine Ellison. He was educated at the London College of Divinity, an

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

, and at the

Borough Road College Borough Road is in Southwark, London SE1. It runs east–west between St George's Circus and Borough High Street. History and location The route was created as part of the planning and road improvements associated with the completion of We ...

, a

teacher training college A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

Ordained ministry

Ellison was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

in the

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 ...

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in 1967 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1968.Crockford's Clerical Directory 2008/2009 (100th edition), Church House Publishing () From 1967 to 1970, he served his curacy at St Paul's Church,

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

in the Diocese of Guildford. In 1971, he joined the South American Mission Society (SAMS). From 1971 to 1979, he worked as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

church planter Church planting is a term referring to the process (mostly in Protestant frameworks) that results in a new local Christian congregation being established. It should be distinguished from church development, where a new service, worship center or ...

evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...

and Bible school instructor in South America. From 1980 to 1983, he was a curate of St Saviours' Church,

Belgrano, Buenos Aires Belgrano is a northern and leafy '' barrio'' or neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Location The barrio of Palermo is to the southeast; Núñez is to the northwest; Coghlan, Villa Urquiza, Villa Ortúzar and Colegiales are to the sout ...

, Argentina, and an assistant to the

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

. From 1983 to 1988, having returned to England, he was Rector of the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Aldridge (also known as Aldridge Parish Church) in the Diocese of Lichfield. Ellison was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

a bishop in 1988. From 1988 to 2007, he served as the Bishop of Paraguay in the

Province of the Southern Cone of America The Anglican Church of South America ( es, Iglesia Anglicana de Sudamérica) is the ecclesiastical province of the Anglican Communion that covers six dioceses in the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Formed in 1981 ...

. Having retired, he was an honorary assistant bishop in the Diocese of Winchester.

Controversy

Ellison was Chair of Panel of Bishops of the

Anglican Mission in England The Anglican Mission in England (AMiE) is an Anglican convocation affiliated to the Anglican Network in Europe that seeks to establish Anglican churches in England outside the Church of England. It seeks to support Anglican churches and individual ...

(AMiE). Members of the executive of AMiE are required to hold

complementarian Complementarianism is a theological view in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, that men and women have different but ''complementary'' roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership. The word "complementary" and it ...

views. AMiE has links with

GAFCON The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (branded as GAFCON or Gafcon) is a global network of conservative Anglicanism, Anglican churches that formed in 2008 in response to an ongoing theological crisis in the worldwide Anglican Communion. ...

and is missionary organisation that supports

conservative evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...

Anglican churches within and outside of the Church of England. In February 2015, it was announced that Ellison was being investigated by the Bishop of Salisbury for his involvement in an AMiE

church plant Church planting is a term referring to the process (mostly in Protestant frameworks) that results in a new local Christian congregation being established. It should be distinguished from church development, where a new service, worship center or ...

in the

Diocese of Salisbury The Diocese of Salisbury is a Church of England diocese in the south of England, within the ecclesiastical Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of Dorset (excepting the deaneries of Bournemouth and Christchurch, which fall within t ...

. The diocese stated: "No one involved in planting the church has contacted the Bishop, nor is the Diocese aware of any consultation with Churches Together in Salisbury about the need for a church plan. ... The Bishop of Salisbury is seeking clarification about the involvement of Bishop John Ellison in the December service."

Personal life

In 1964, Ellison married Judith Mary Cox. Together they had three children: one son and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellison, John 1940 births Living people 20th-century Anglican bishops in South America 21st-century Anglican bishops in South America Place of birth missing (living people) Alumni of the London College of Divinity Anglican bishops of Paraguay British expatriates in Paraguay Anglican realignment people