Godfrey Noel Vose (23 December 1921 – 2 May 2016) was a

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

minister, the founding principal of

Vose Seminary Morling College - Perth Vose Campus is a Baptist college located in Bentley, Western Australia. The college is associated with the Baptist Union of Western Australia (Australian Baptist Ministries) History In 1957, the Baptist Churches in Wester ...

(formerly the Baptist Theological College of Western Australia) and the only Australian appointed as President of the

Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated 51 million people in 2022 with 246 member bodies in 128 countries and territories. A voluntary association of Baptist churches, the BWA account ...

Biography

In 1963, Noel Vose became the Principal and sole staff member of the Baptist Theological College of Western Australia, a position that he held until 1991. He was appointed President-General of the

Baptist Union of Australia Australian Baptist Ministries (formerly Baptist Union of Australia) is the oldest and largest national cooperative body of Baptists in Australia. The Baptist Union of Australia was inaugurated on 24 August 1926 at the Burton Street Church in ...

in 1975 and served until 1978. In 1985, he became the first and only Australian appointed as President of the

, a role that he served in until 1990. Between 1989-1992, Vose led the

in theological dialogue with the

Mennonite World Conference The Mennonite World Conference (MWC) is a Mennonite Anabaptist Christian denomination. Its headquarters are in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. History The first ''Mennonite World Conference'' was held in Basel in 1925. Its main purpose was to celebra ...

, marking a renewal of conversations between Baptists and Anabaptists that had ended amicably in approximately 1630. In 1989, his achievements were recognised when he was made a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

. On 5 June 1990, his wife Heather Vose died unexpectedly during a visit to the United States. Upon his retirement as principal in 1991 at 70 years old, Vose founded the Parkerville Baptist Church. In 2008, the Baptist Theological College of Western Australia was re-named

to honour the significant contributions of both Noel Vose, its founding principal, and his wife Heather Vose. In 2013, Vose published
Mena: Daughter of Obedience
', a biography about Filumena Weld, based upon the extensive research of his wife, Heather Vose, who died before it could be written. Heather Vose did however provide the title of the biography. Noel Vose died on 2 May 2016 in Western Australia. He was 94 years old.

Publications

Details of books written by Noel Vose:

Awards and achievements

* 1989 – Member of the

(AM)

References

{{Reflist 1921 births 2016 deaths 20th-century Australian Baptist ministers Members of the Order of Australia University and college founders Seminary presidents