John Tudno Williams (born 31 December 1938) was the Moderator of the

Presbyterian Church of Wales The Presbyterian Church of Wales ( cy, Eglwys Bresbyteraidd Cymru), also known as Calvinistic Methodist Church (), is a denomination of Protestant Christianity in Wales. History The church was born out of the Welsh Methodist revival and the ...

from 2006 to 2007 and the Principal of the

United Theological College, Aberystwyth The United Theological College located in Aberystwyth, in the county of Ceredigion in mid Wales, is a Grade II listed building which was the ministerial training college of the Presbyterian Church of Wales from 1906 to 2003 and an associate colleg ...

, from 1998 to 2003.

Early career

John Tudno Williams was born in 1938 in

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...

, the son of Arthur Tudno Williams, a minister in the

and an alumnus of

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

, and Primrose (née Hughes Parry).''The Bible in Church, Academy, and Culture: Essays in Honour of the Reverend Dr. John Tudno Williams'

Alan P. F. Sell Alan Philip Frederick Sell FSA, FRhistS (15 November 1935 – 7 February 2016) was a minister of the United Reformed Church and was formerly Professor of Christian Doctrine and Philosophy of Religion at the United Theological College, Aberystwyt ...

(ed.) – Pickwick Publications, Eugene, Oregon –

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

pg 1 He was educated at the

Liverpool Institute High School for Boys The Liverpool Institute High School for Boys was an all-boys grammar school in the English port city of Liverpool. The school had its origins in 1825 but occupied different premises while the money was found to build a dedicated building on ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

and

Colfe's Grammar School Colfe's School, previously Colfe's Grammar School is a co-educational independent day school in Lee in the London Borough of Lewisham, in southeast London, England, and one of the oldest schools in London. The school is a member of the Headmast ...

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 ...

. Williams studied

theology 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 ...

like his father before him, graduating in 1960. On leaving Oxford, he registered as a research student in the Classics Department of

University College of Wales , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

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 ...

, whilst studying at the same time at the United Theological College, Aberystwyth, in preparation for ministry in the

. He was ordained in 1963 and served at

Borth Borth ( cy, Y Borth) is a village and seaside resort in Ceredigion, Mid Wales, 7 miles (11 km) north of Aberystwyth on the Ceredigion Coast Path. The community includes the settlement of Ynyslas. The population was 1,399 in 2011. From bein ...

, in north

Cardiganshire Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cere ...

, for ten years. In 1976 he gained a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

from the

University of Wales The University of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Prifysgol Cymru'') is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff � ...

for a research thesis on the Jewish background to

St John's Gospel The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...

Aberystwyth

In 1966 Williams joined the teaching staff at the

, under its principal, the Revd Samuel Ifor Enoch, lecturing in

Biblical studies Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament).''Introduction to Biblical Studies, Second Edition'' by Steve Moyise (Oct 27, 2004) pages 11–12 Fo ...

. Williams took leading baritone roles in the University College's

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

Society, then under the conductor

David Russell Hulme David Russell Hulme (born 19 June 1951) is a Welsh conductor and musicologist. He is an Emeritus Reader and the former Director of Music at Aberystwyth University and is known for his research and publications on the music of Arthur Sullivan, t ...

. On his retirement in 2003 Williams had completed a period of 37 years as a lecturer within the Faculty of Theology of the University of Wales. He served as Principal of the United Theological College in

between 1998 and 2003.

Achievements

Williams served two terms as Dean at the Aberystwyth and Lampeter School of Theology (1985–1987 and 1994–1997), and was visiting professor at Acadia Divinity College,

Acadia University Acadia University is a public, predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level. The enabling legislation consists of the Acadia ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

in 1997. He sat on the translating panel for the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

section of Y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd (The Revised New Welsh Bible) from 1975 onwards and was secretary of the Theological Branch of the

's Guild of Graduates for 36 years. He also served as chief A level examiner in Religious Studies for the WJEC for twelve years. Currently, he is an honorary research fellow at the

University of Wales, Lampeter University of Wales, Lampeter ( cy, Prifysgol Cymru, Llanbedr Pont Steffan) was a university in Lampeter, Wales. Founded in 1822, and incorporated by royal charter in 1828, it was the oldest Academic degree, degree awarding institution in Wale ...

's Department of

Theology 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 Religious Studies and Research Fellow at the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales ( cy, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru), Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million boo ...

. In 2002/03, he was Moderator of the

's Association in the South and was the General Assembly's Moderator in 2006/07. In 1990 he was elected Moderator of the Free Church Federal Council in Wales and England: only the second of his denomination to fill the post in half a century. In 2006, Williams received the honorary degree of

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

from the

in recognition of his contribution to biblical scholarship and to religion and education in Wales. In 2011 the volume ''The Bible in Church, Academy, and Culture: Essays in Honour of the Reverend Dr. John Tudno Williams'' edited by

was published in honour of his contributions to the Church and to scholarship. In 2012 he was elected a Fellow of the

Learned Society of Wales The Learned Society of Wales (Welsh: Cymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru) is a learned society and charity that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh nation ...

. Williams married Ina Evans in 1964; the couple have two children, Haf and Tomos Tudno Williams.Sell, pg 6

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, John Tudno Living people Welsh scholars and academics Welsh theologians Welsh Presbyterians 1938 births People educated at Colfe's School Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Principals of the United Theological College, Aberystwyth Alumni of the University of Wales Alumni of Aberystwyth University Translators of the Bible into Welsh People from Aberystwyth Welsh-speaking clergy Welsh-speaking academics Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales 20th-century Presbyterians 21st-century Presbyterians