John Edwin Watts-Ditchfield (17 September 1861 – 14 July 1923) was an eminent 20th century

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 ...

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 ...

and distinguished author. Educated at the

Victoria University of Manchester The Victoria University of Manchester, usually referred to as simply the University of Manchester, was a university in Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 as Owens College. In 1880, the college joined the federal Victoria University. Afte ...

and

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 1891, he began his career with a

curacy 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 ...

at St Peter

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisati ...

after which he was

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

St James-the-Less, Bethnal Green St James-the-Less is a church in Bethnal Green, London, England. It is an Anglican church in the Diocese of London. Built as a commissioners' church in 1840–2, its architect was Lewis Vulliamy. Notable clergy * From 1906 to 1908, Frank Buttle ...

. Here, he made a name for himself, particularly with the development of the Church of England's Men's Society. He believed that the contemporary view of the Church of England was that it was for women and children, and he succeeded in attracting vast numbers of men to his church whose families followed. A gifted fund-raiser, he provided a medical service and a parish centre among other facilities for his poor parishioners. These activities brought him to the attention of not only the hierarchy but also of leading politicians. He was first considered for a bishopric when Lichfield became vacant in 1913, but he was not recommended by the Archbishop of Canterbury who wrote ‘Watts-Ditchfield with all his gifts is on a distinctly low plane. Not a graduate or a man of any mental calibre ... though a real power with working man and a very nice fellow’. Nevertheless, when the diocese of Chelmsford was created the following year, Watts-Ditchfield was appointed as its first bishop. He was a vocal supporter of British involvement in the Great War but provoked controversy by permitting a woman to preach in a church, which at that time was frowned upon, and by emphasising ‘our own sins’ such as intemperance, class divisions, housing deficiencies. At a time when the unity of the nation was essential in the middle of a war, whatever the merits of Watts-Ditchfield's convictions, they seemed inappropriate, and were denounced as a ‘Flood of nonsense’. Watts-Ditchfield, although not a graduate, had been a lecturer in Pastoral Theology at Cambridge just before the War and, during the later stages of the War, was a leading figure in the National Mission.Chelmsford Diocesan Chronicle, March, 1916 He died in post in 1923. There is a statue to him within Chelmsford Cathedral.

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Bibliographic directory
from

Project Canterbury Project Canterbury (sometimes abbreviated as PC) is an online archive of material related to the history of Anglicanism. It was founded by Richard Mammana, Jr. in 1999 with a grant from Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold, and is ho ...

1861 births 1923 deaths Alumni of the University of Manchester Academics of the University of Cambridge Holders of a Lambeth degree Bishops of Chelmsford 20th-century Church of England bishops {{churchofEngland-bishop-stub