Arthur Michael Ramsey, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury, (14 November 1904 – 23 April 1988) was an English Anglican bishop and

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

. He served as the 100th

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

. He was appointed on 31 May 1961 and held the office until 1974, having previously been appointed

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

in 1952 and the

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...

in 1956. He was known as a theologian, educator, and advocate of Christian unity."Michael Ramsey, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury". ''Encyclopædia Britannica. Britannica Academic'' (Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2016. Web).

Early life

Ramsey was born in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, England in 1904. His parents were

Arthur Stanley Ramsey Arthur Stanley Ramsey (9 September 1867 – 31 December 1954) was a British mathematician and author of mathematics and physics textbooks. He was Fellow of Magdalene College, Cambridge, and its President from 1915–52. Biography The son of Re ...

(1867–1954) and Mary Agnes Ramsey née Wilson (1875–1927); his father was a Congregationalist and mathematician and his mother was a socialist and

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

. He was educated at

Sandroyd School Sandroyd School is an independent co-educational preparatory school for day and boarding pupils aged 2 to 13 in the south of Wiltshire, England. The school's main building is Rushmore House, a 19th-century country house which is surrounded by the ...

, Wiltshire,

King's College School, Cambridge King's College School is a coeducational independent preparatory school for children aged 4 to 13 in Cambridge, England, situated on West Road off Grange Road, west of the city centre. It was founded to educate the choristers in the King's ...

Repton School Repton School is a 13–18 Mixed-sex education, co-educational, Independent school (United Kingdom), independent, Day school, day and boarding school in the English Public school (United Kingdom), public school tradition, in Repton, Derbyshire, ...

(where the headmaster was a future

Geoffrey Francis Fisher Geoffrey Francis Fisher, Baron Fisher of Lambeth, (5 May 1887 – 15 September 1972) was an English Anglican priest, and 99th Archbishop of Canterbury, serving from 1945 to 1961. From a long line of parish priests, Fisher was educated at Ma ...

) and

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

, where his father was president of the college. At university he was president of the

Cambridge Union Society The Cambridge Union Society, also known as the Cambridge Union, is a debating and free speech society in Cambridge, England, and the largest society in the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1815, it is the oldest continuously running debatin ...

and his support for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

won him praise from

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom f ...

. Ramsey's elder brother,

Frank P. Ramsey Frank Plumpton Ramsey (; 22 February 1903 – 19 January 1930) was a British philosopher, mathematician, and economist who made major contributions to all three fields before his death at the age of 26. He was a close friend of Ludwig Wittgenste ...

(1903–1930), was a

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

and

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

(of atheist convictions). He was something of a prodigy who, when only 19, translated

Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrians, Austrian-British people, British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy o ...

's '' Tractatus'' into English. During his time in Cambridge, Ramsey came under the influence of the

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...

dean of Corpus Christi College, Edwyn Clement Hoskyns. On the advice of

Eric Milner-White Eric Milner Milner-White, (23 April 1884 – 15 June 1963) was a British Anglican priest, academic, and decorated military chaplain. He was a founder of the Oratory of the Good Shepherd, an Anglican dispersed community, and served as its superi ...

he trained at

Cuddesdon Cuddesdon is a mainly rural village in South Oxfordshire centred ESE of Oxford. It has the largest Church of England clergy training centre, Ripon College Cuddesdon. Residents number approximately 430 in Cuddesdon's nucleated village centre a ...

, where he became friends with

Austin Farrer Austin Marsden Farrer (1 October 1904 – 29 December 1968) was an English Anglican philosopher, theologian, and biblical scholar. His activity in philosophy, theology, and spirituality led many to consider him one of the greatest figures of 20 ...

and was introduced to

Orthodox Christian Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churche ...

ideas by Derwas Chitty. He graduated in 1927 with a First-class degree in Theology.

Ordained ministry

Ramsey was ordained in 1928 and became a curate in

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 ...

, where he was influenced by Charles Raven. After this he became a lecturer to ordination candidates at the Bishop's Hostel in

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

. During this time he published a book, ''The Gospel and the Catholic Church'' (1936). He then ministered at St Botolph's Church, Boston and at

St Bene't's Church St Bene't's Church is a Church of England parish church in central Cambridge, England. Parts of the church, most notably the tower, are Anglo-Saxon, and it is the oldest church in Cambridgeshire as well as the oldest building in Cambridge. Th ...

, Cambridge, before being offered a canonry at

Durham Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of t ...

and the Van Mildert Chair of Divinity in the Department of Theology at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

. After this, in 1950, he became the Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge, but left to become a bishop after only a short time in office. Ramsey married Joan A. C. Hamilton (1910–1995) at Durham in the early summer of 1942.

Episcopal ministry

In 1952, he was appointed

. He was consecrated a bishop by

Cyril Garbett Cyril Forster Garbett (6 February 1875 – 31 December 1955) was an Anglican bishop and author. He was successively the Bishop of Southwark, the Bishop of Winchester and the Archbishop of York from 1942 to 1955. Early life Garbett was born in ...

, at

York Minster The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Archbis ...

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, a ...

(29 September) that year (by which his

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

to the See of Durham must have already been

confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

). In 1956 he became

and, in 1961,

.Douglas Dales, editor, ''Glory Descending: Michael Ramsey and His Writings'', (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2005), xxii. During his time as archbishop he travelled widely and saw the creation of the

General Synod The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly (Church of England), Church Assembly, is t ...

. Retirement ages for clergy were cut from 75 to 70.

Theology and churchmanship

In a lecture on Ramsey, John Macquarrie asked, “what kind of theologian was he?” and answered that “he was thoroughly Anglican.” Macquarrie explained that Ramsey's theology is (1) “based on the scriptures”, (2) the church's “tradition”, and (3) “reason and conscience”. Ramsey held to the

tradition, but he appreciated other points of view. This was especially true after he became a bishop who ministered to diverse Anglicans. As an Anglo-Catholic with a

nonconformist Nonconformity or nonconformism may refer to: Culture and society * Insubordination, the act of willfully disobeying an order of one's superior *Dissent, a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or entity ** ...

background, Ramsey had a broad religious outlook. He had a particular regard for the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

concept of "glory", and his favourite book he had written was his 1949 work ''The Transfiguration''. Ramsey's first reaction to J. A. T. Robinson's ''

Honest to God ''Honest to God'' is a book written by the Anglican Bishop of Woolwich John A.T. Robinson, criticising traditional Christian theology. It aroused a storm of controversy on its original publication by SCM Press in 1963. Robinson's own evaluati ...

'' (1963) was hostile. However, he soon published a short response entitled ''Image Old and New'', in which he engaged seriously with Robinson's ideas. Conscious always of the atheism which his short-lived brother Frank had espoused, he maintained a lifelong respect for honest unbelief, and considered that such unbelief would not automatically be a barrier to salvation. Acting on his respect for beliefs other than his, Ramsey made a barefoot visit to the grave of Mahatma Gandhi.Peter John Moses, ''History Guide Book: Archbishops of Canterbury'' (Evangelical Bible College of Western Australia, 2009), 47–48. Although he disagreed with a lot of

Karl Barth Karl Barth (; ; – ) was a Swiss Calvinist theologian. Barth is best known for his commentary '' The Epistle to the Romans'', his involvement in the Confessing Church, including his authorship (except for a single phrase) of the Barmen Declara ...

's thinking, his relations with him were warm. Following observations of a religious mission at Cambridge, he had an early dislike of evangelists and mass rallies, which he feared relied too much on emotion. This led him to be critical of

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. He was a prominent evangelical Christi ...

, although the two later became friends and Ramsey even took to the stage at a Graham rally in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

. One of his later books, ''The Charismatic Christ'' (1973), engaged with the

charismatic movement The charismatic movement in Christianity is a movement within established or mainstream Christian denominations to adopt beliefs and practices of Charismatic Christianity with an emphasis on baptism with the Holy Spirit, and the use of spirit ...

. Ramsey believed there was no decisive theological argument against women priests, although he was not entirely comfortable with this development. The first women priests in the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

were ordained during his time as Archbishop of Canterbury. In retirement he received communion from a woman priest in the United States.

Ecumenical activities

Ramsey was active in the

ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...

movement, and while Archbishop of Canterbury in 1966 he met

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

in Rome, where the Pope presented him with the episcopal (bishop's) ring he had worn as

Archbishop of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has l ...

. The two prelates issued “The Common Declaration by Pope Paul VI and the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Michael Ramsey”. In it they said that their meeting “marks a new stage in the development of fraternal relations, based upon Christian charity, and of sincere efforts to remove the causes of conflict and to re-establish unity.” Ramsey preached at the Roman Catholic St Patrick's Cathedral in New York City in 1972. It was the first time that a leader of the Anglican Communion had done so. However, while fostering ties with the Roman Catholic Church, Ramsey criticised the Pope's 1968 encyclical ''

Humanae Vitae ''Humanae vitae'' (Latin: ''Of Human Life'') is an encyclical written by Pope Paul VI and dated 25 July 1968. The text was issued at a Vatican press conference on 29 July. Subtitled ''On the Regulation of Birth'', it re-affirmed the teaching of ...

'' against birth control. These warm relations with Rome caused Ramsey to be dogged by protests by fundamentalist Protestants, particularly

Ian Paisley Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, (6 April 1926 – 12 September 2014) was a Northern Irish loyalist politician and Protestant religious leader who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 1971 to 2008 and First ...

. Ramsey encouraged efforts to promote closer

relations between Anglicans and Orthodox Anglican interest in ecumenical dialogue can be traced back to the time of the Reformation and dialogues with both Orthodox and Lutheran churches in the sixteenth century. In the nineteenth century, with the rise of the Oxford Movement, there ...

. He enjoyed friendship with the Orthodox

Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

, Athenagoras, and

Alexius Alexius is the Latinized form of the given name Alexios ( el, Αλέξιος, polytonic , "defender", cf. Alexander), especially common in the later Byzantine Empire. The female form is Alexia ( el, Αλεξία) and its variants such as Alessia ...

Patriarch of Moscow The Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' (russian: Патриарх Московский и всея Руси, translit=Patriarkh Moskovskij i vseja Rusi), also known as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, is the official title of the Bishop of Mo ...

. As Archbishop of Canterbury, Ramsey served as president of the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most juri ...

(1961–68). However, he opposed the granting of aid money by the World Council of Churches to guerrilla groups. Ramsey's willingness to talk to officially sanctioned churches in the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

led to criticisms from

Richard Wurmbrand Richard Wurmbrand, also known as Nicolai Ionescu (24 March 1909 – 17 February 2001) was a Romanian Evangelical Lutheran priest, and professor of Jewish descent. In 1948, having become a Christian ten years before, he publicly said Communism a ...

. He also supported efforts to unite the Church of England with the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

and was disappointed when the plans fell through.

Politics

Before entering the clergy, Michael Ramsey had participated in the Liberal Party. In 1925, Ramsey travelled with the debate club and spoke at multiple venues in the United States. Upon his return, he heard a Liberal Party leader, Lord Hugh Cecil remark that the Church was the place to go for those who wanted to help people, and Ramsey heard that as his vocation from God. He had sympathies with liberal politics for the rest of his life and admired

. He became close friends with party leader

Jeremy Thorpe John Jeremy Thorpe (29 April 1929 – 4 December 2014) was a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament for North Devon from 1959 to 1979, and as leader of the Liberal Party from 1967 to 1976. In May 1979 he was tried at th ...

. Ramsey and his wife Joan were godparents of Thorpe's son Rupert, whom Ramsey baptized in 1969, and Ramsey officiated at Thorpe's second marriage to

Marion Stein Maria Donata Nanetta Paulina Gustava Erwina Wilhelmine Stein, CBE (18 October 19266 March 2014), known as Marion Stein, and subsequently by marriage as Marion Lascelles, Countess of Harewood, and later Marion Thorpe, was an Austrian-born British ...

. Both Ramsey and Thorpe had lost family members to car collisions: Ramsey's mother in 1927 and Thorpe's first wife Caroline in 1970. Ramsey disliked the power of the government over the church. "Establishment has never been one of my enthusiasms," he said, and "he was not at ease with the royal family." He supported the

decriminalisation of homosexuality Rights affecting lesbian, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishment for homosexualit ...

in the 1960s, which brought him enemies in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. In 1965, "he outraged right-wingers when he declared that under certain circumstances, there would be Christian justice in using British troops to overthrow the white-minority regime f_Ian_Smith.html"_;"title="Ian_Smith.html"_;"title="f_Ian_Smith">f_Ian_Smith">Ian_Smith.html"_;"title="f_Ian_Smith">f_

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, shoot your kith and kin.'". He also called the Vietnam War a "futility". Regarding Africa, Ramsey opposed curbs on immigration to the UK of Indians in Kenya, Kenyan Asians, which he saw as a betrayal by Britain of a promise. He was against

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

, and he left an account of a very frosty encounter with

John Vorster Balthazar Johannes "B. J." Vorster (; also known as John Vorster; 13 December 1915 – 10 September 1983) was a South African apartheid politician who served as the prime minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978 and the fourth state presid ...

. In 1970, Ramsey attacked apartheid, saying that it was "being increased by more ruthless actions” and describing it as an "abuse of power at the expense of others". He was also a critic of the Chilean dictator

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...

Later life

After retiring as Archbishop of Canterbury on 15 November 1974 he was created a

, as Baron Ramsey of Canterbury, of

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

in Kent, enabling him to remain in the

where he had previously sat as one of the

Lords Spiritual The Lords Spiritual are the bishops of the Church of England who serve in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom. 26 out of the 42 diocesan bishops and archbishops of the Church of England serve as Lords Spiritual (not counting retired archbi ...

. Although retired, Ramsey remained active, "a fact reflected in his writing of four books and numerous additional undertakings". He went to live first at Cuddesdon, where he did not settle particularly well, then for a number of years in Durham, where he was regularly seen in the cathedral and talking to students. But the hills were rather steep for him and he and Lady Ramsey accepted the offer of a flat at

Bishopthorpe Bishopthorpe is a village and civil parish three miles south of York in the City of York unitary authority area and ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Bishopthorpe is close to the River Ouse, and has a population of 3,174, in ...

in York by his successor John Habgood. They stayed there just over a year, moving finally to St John's Home, attached to the All Saints' Sisters in

Cowley, Oxford Cowley () is a residential and industrial area in Oxford, England. Cowley's neighbours are Rose Hill and Blackbird Leys to the south, Headington to the north and the villages of Horspath and Garsington across fields to the east. Internationally ...

, where he died in April 1988. During his retirement, he also spent several terms at

Nashotah House Nashotah House is an Anglicanism, Anglican seminary in Nashotah, Wisconsin. The seminary opened in 1842 and received its official charter in 1847. The institution is independent and generally regarded as one of the more theologically Conservatism, ...

, an Anglo-Catholic seminary of the Episcopal Church in Wisconsin where he was much beloved by students. A first-floor flat was designated "Lambeth West" for his personal use. A stained-glass window in the Chapel, bears his image and the same inscription as is on the memorial near his grave. The window (placed in the chapel by the class of 1976 who were among his first students at Nashotah) also includes a miniature image of the Bishop and his wife Joan. Ramsey Hall at Nashotah House was named in his honor, and is a residence for students and families. The Board of Directors of Nashotah House also presents, from time to time, the Michael Ramsey award for distinguished mission or ecumenical service in the Anglican Communion. Ramsey's funeral was held in

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the ...

on 3 May. He was cremated and his ashes buried in the cloister garden at the cathedral, not far from the grave of William Temple. His wife's ashes were also buried there. On the memorial stone are inscribed words from

St Irenaeus Irenaeus (; grc-gre, Εἰρηναῖος ''Eirēnaios''; c. 130 – c. 202 AD) was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the dev ...

: "The Glory of God is the living man; And the life of man is the vision of God." A side chapel at Canterbury Cathedral was subsequently dedicated to Ramsey's memory, situated next to a similar memorial chapel to Archbishop Geoffrey Fisher. Ramsey had no children. Lady Ramsey died on 17 February 1995 and was buried alongside her husband.

Legacy

During his life, “Ramsey was a

Life Peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

and received innumerable honors. He was an honorary fellow of Magdalene College and Selwyn College, Cambridge, and of Merton College, Keble College, and St Cross College, Oxford. He was honorary master of the bench, Inner Temple (1962); trustee of the British Museum (1963–1969); and honorary Fellow of the British Academy (1983). He held honorary degrees from Durham, Leeds, Edinburgh, Cambridge, Hull, Manchester, London, Oxford, Kent, and Keele and from a number of overseas universities.” Regarding Ramsey's long-term legacy, Dr Sam Brewitt-Taylor, a historian at Lincoln College, University of Oxford, holds that “there is much more historical and theoretical work to be done before Ramsey’s legacy can be properly ascertained.” Ramsey's name has been given to Ramsey House, a residence of

St Chad's College , motto_English = Not what you have, but who you are , scarf = , established = 1904 , principal = Margaret Masson , senior_tutor = Eleanor Spencer-Regan , undergraduates = 409 , postgraduates = 150 , website = , coordinates = , location_map ...

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charte ...

. He was a Fellow and Governor of the college (resident for a period) and he regularly worshipped and presided at the college's daily Eucharist. A building is also named after him at Canterbury Christ Church University. A

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

at Tenison's School is named in his honour. He also gave his name to the former Archbishop Michael Ramsey Technology College (from September 2007 St Michael and All Angels Church of England Academy) in Farmers' Road,

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

, South East London.Welcome from the Executive Principal, St. Michael and All Angels Academy newsletter, August 2007
An annual Michael Ramsey Lecture on an appropriate theological topic is delivered at

Little St Mary's, Cambridge Little St Mary's or St Mary the Less is a Church of England parish church in Cambridge, England, on Trumpington Street between Pembroke College's Mill Lane Project development site and Peterhouse. The church Is in the Diocese of Ely and follo ...

in early November.

Items found in River Wear

In October 2009 it was reported by

Maev Kennedy Maev Kennedy (born 1954) is an Irish journalist. She has worked as a staff news writer for ''The Guardian'' and writes regularly for the ''Museums Journal''. At ''The Guardian'', she edited the diary column and been the arts and heritage corresp ...

that two divers had found a number of gold and silver items in the

River Wear The River Wear (, ) in North East England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers, wends in a steep valley through th ...

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

which were subsequently discovered to have come from Ramsey's personal collection, including items presented to him from dignitaries around the world while he was Archbishop of Canterbury. It is unclear how they came to be in the river. The divers were licensed by the dean and chapter of the cathedral as the owners of the land around the stretch of the river where the items were found. The current legal ownership of the items is yet to be determined. The cathedral was planning an exhibition relating to Ramsey's life in 2010 and a new stained glass window dedicated to him by artist Tom Denny. The two amateur divers, brothers Gary and Trevor Bankhead, found a total of 32 religious artefacts in the

in Durham during a full underwater survey of the area around

Prebends Bridge Prebends Bridge, along with Framwellgate and Elvet bridges, is one of three stone-arch bridges in the centre of Durham, England, that cross the River Wear. History Prebends Bridge was designed by George Nicholson and built from 1772 to 1778. ...

. The underwater survey commenced in April 2007 and took two and half years to complete. The finds were individually handed over to the resident archaeologist from

to formally record where and when they were found.

Styles

* Mr Michael Ramsey (1904–1928) * The Revd Michael Ramsey (1928–1940) * The Revd Professor Michael Ramsey (1940–1952) * The Rt Revd Michael Ramsey (1952–1956) * The Most Revd and Rt Hon Michael Ramsey (1956–1974) * The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Lord Ramsey of Canterbury PC (1974–1988)

Works

Books
* ''The Gospel and the Catholic Church'' (1936) * ''The Resurrection of Christ'' (1945) * ''The Glory of God and the Transfiguration of Christ'' (1949) * ''F. D. Maurice and the Conflicts of Modern Theology'' (1951) * ''Durham Essays and Addresses'' (1956) * ''From Gore to Temple'' (1960) * ''Introducing the Christian Faith'' (1961) * ''Image Old and New'' (1963) * ''Canterbury Essays and Addresses'' (1964) * ''Sacred and Secular'' (1965) (

Scott Holland Memorial Lectures The Scott Holland Memorial Lectures are held in memory of Henry Scott Holland. They are given by a prominent Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church ...

, 1964) * ''God, Christ and the World'' (1969) * ''The Future of the Christian Church'' with Cardinal Suenens (1971) * ''The Christian Priest Today'' (1972) * ''Canterbury Pilgrim'' (1974) * ''Holy Spirit'' (1977) * ''Jesus and the Living Past'' (1980) * ''Be Still and Know'' (1982) * ''The Anglican Spirit'', ed. Dale D. Coleman (1991/2004) Works online
“Faith and Society: an Address to the Church Union School of Sociology, 1955"

* ttp://anglicanhistory.org/amramsey/new_york1962.html “Sermons Preached by the Most Reverend and Right Honorable Arthur Michael Ramsey, Lord Archbishop of Canterbury in New York City, 1962.”
“Sermon Preached at Canterbury Cathedral” 1968.

* ttp://anglicanhistory.org/amramsey/grafton.pdf “Charles C. Grafton, Bishop and Theologian,” Lecture at Nashotah House Theological Seminary, 1967.