Michael Charles Evans (10 August 1951 – 11 July 2011) was the third Roman Catholic

Bishop of East Anglia The Bishop of East Anglia is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), Ordinary of the modern Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia in the Province of Westminster, England. The incumbent is Bishop Peter Collins (bishop), Peter Collins, who was installed o ...

, in the

Ecclesiastical Province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United State ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

Biography

Ordained as a priest at

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

on 22 June 1975, Michael Evans spent some time as an assistant priest, then studied for a

Master of Theology Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...

degree at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

for four years (1975–1979) subsequently returning to St. John's Seminary,

Wonersh Wonersh is a village and civil parish in the Waverley district of Surrey, England and Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Wonersh contains three Conservation Areas and spans an area three to six miles SSE of Guildford. In the o ...

, near

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

for eight years as lecturer in Doctrine. During his time within the Roman Catholic Church, he held many posts, ranging from the chaplain of a convent school to chairman of the

Archdiocese of Southwark The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Southvarcensis'') is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in England. It is headed by the Archbishop of Southwark. The archdiocese is part of the Ecclesiastical ...

's Justice and Peace Coordinating Committee. From 1995 until 2003, he served as Parish Priest at St. Augustine's church in

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...

. On 14 February 2003

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

appointed Evans as the third Bishop of East Anglia. succeeding Peter Smith, now

Archbishop of Southwark The Archbishop of Southwark (''Br'' �sʌðɨk is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark in England. As such he is the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of Southwark. The archdiocese has ...

; he was consecrated at the Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist, Norwich, on 19 March 2003. On his appointment as the new bishop, Evans said: "I was astonished to be appointed as Bishop of East Anglia, and have a real sense of my unworthiness for this responsibility, but I accepted this new ministry with a joyful though nervous 'yes'. I look forward to getting to know the diocesan family of East Anglia, and to working with my brother priests and deacons as a team dedicated to the ministry of Christ. As I prepare for my ordination, I ask everyone to keep me in their prayers."

Illness

In November 2006, Bishops Evans announced through the East Anglia Diocesan office in

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

that he was suffering from

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

and undergoing

radiotherapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...

to treat the condition. He said he had been helped through his illness by the radiotherapy team at the

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) is a large National Health Service academic teaching hospital in the Norwich Research Park on the western outskirts of Norwich, England. The university hospital replaced the former, Norfolk and ...

, support from the community and his faith in God.

"I am in the recovery period at the moment", the bishop said. "I have finished the radiotherapy sessions but I have no idea what the long term effects are. I will not find that out until at least next month when I have more tests ... I am much more tired than I was when I was having treatment and have had to rest a great deal. This is meant to be the worst time for side-effects and I am really feeling it ... It has been a real battle but I have had a lot of support from everyone and at no time did I even consider giving up. It is one of those things that you have to just keep fighting."

Progression of cancer

On Sunday, 2 January 2011, Bishop Michael issued a statement through all the Catholic churches in the East Anglia Diocese. The following is an excerpt from this statement:

"In the last few weeks, the cancer has rather quickly taken control. My oncology and palliative care consultants informed me openly and honestly just before Christmas that I now probably have only weeks to live, and I am prepared for that as I can be, accepting it with faith as a gift of God's grace ... Rather than resign, I would like to continue among you as your bishop and the father of our diocesan family until this stage of my life ends. I do not know how long that will be. I am most grateful for the ways you have cared for and so prayerfully supported me in recent years. You remain very much in my thoughts and care. As I am sure you understand, I am able to do very little, and will need to rely on others. Please can I ask you to limit any expressions of care to prayer for now, rather than anything else to which I cannot respond."

The statement was issued to all Catholics in the East Anglia Diocese and received by all those who attended masses across the whole of the Eastern Region of England. Bishop Michael concluded the statement as follows:

"As I live now under the shadow of death, my prayer is very much that of St. Paul that I may know something of the power of Christ's resurrection and a share in his sufferings, trusting that the Lord is with me. I pray that even now, I can joyfully witness something of the good news we are all called to proclaim."

Death

Evans died in the

at 7:10 pm on 11 July 2011, aged 59, of prostate cancer. He was cremated following a traditional funeral Mass and his ashes were interred in the

St John the Baptist Cathedral, Norwich The Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist is the Roman Catholic cathedral of the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. History The cathedral, located on Unthank Road, was constructed between 1882 and 1910 to designs by George Gilbert Scott, Jr. ...

References

External links

East Anglia Diocese website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Michael Charles 1951 births 2011 deaths People from Southwark 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in England Alumni of the University of London Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in England Alumni of Heythrop College People educated at Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys Roman Catholic bishops of East Anglia