The Rt Rev Percival William Stephenson was the 6th Anglican bishop of Nelson whose

episcopate A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

spanned a 14-year period in the mid-20th century.

Family

The son of Arthur Henry Stephenson (1867-1955), and Annie Amelia Vevers Stephenson (1865-1903), née Brailey, Percival William Stephenson was born at

Malmsbury, Victoria Malmsbury is a town in central Victoria, Australia on the Old Calder Highway (C794), 95 km north-west of the state capital, Melbourne and 11 km north-west of Kyneton. Situated close by the Coliban River, Malmsbury has a population ...

on 5 May 1888. He married Grace Ermyntrude Lavender (1885-1974) on 9 October 1913. They three children, Millicent Lavender Stephenson (1914-), Arthur Lavender Stephenson (1917-2001), and Noel Lavender Stephenson (1920-). Percival Stephenson died in 1962.

Education

He was educated at Caulfield Grammar School, Melbourne, where he was an outstanding footballer in the school's First XVIII, the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

, the

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, and the

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. * 1912: Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) — University of Melbourne. * 1913: Licentiate of Theology (L.Th.) — Australian College of Theology. * 1915: Bachelor of Arts (M.A.) — University of Melbourne. * 1917: Bachelor of Divinity (B.D.) — University of London.

Cleric

He was ordained in 1914.

Academic

He moved to India to teach at

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Edwards College in

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, where he was initially a teacher and then principal (1921–1924). From 1924 to 1928 he was

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

exegetical theology Exegesis ( ; from the Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Biblical works. In modern usage, exegesis can involve critical interpretations ...

at St John's College, Winnipeg. On his return to Australia he became federal secretary of the

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of Australia and Tasmania and

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of Trinity Grammar School, Sydney (1935–37) and then commonwealth secretary of the British and Foreign Bible Society until his elevation to the

in 1940.

Death

He died on 29 May 1962.News of death
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Notes

References

* Cole, Keith, ''Sincerity My Guide: A Biography of the Right Reverend P.W. Stephenson (1888-1962)'', Church Missionary Historical Publications Trust, (Melbourne), 1970. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, Percival William 1888 births People educated at Caulfield Grammar School University of Melbourne alumni Academic staff of the University of Manitoba Anglican bishops of Nelson 20th-century Anglican bishops in New Zealand 1960 deaths Alumni of the University of London Australian headmasters