Peter Frederick Jensen (born 11 July 1943) is a retired Australian
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 ...
bishop
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 ...
,
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
and academic. From 1985 to 2001, he was
principal of
Moore Theological College
Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The president of the Moore Theological College Council is ''ex officio'' t ...
. From 2001 to 2013, he was the
Archbishop of Sydney and
Metropolitan of the
Province of New South Wales
The Province of New South Wales is an ecclesiastical province of the Anglican Church of Australia, the boundaries of which are nearly all of state New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. The province consists of seven dioceses: Ar ...
in the
Anglican Church of Australia
The Anglican Church of Australia, formerly known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion. It is the second largest church in Australia after the R ...
.
He retired on his 70th birthday, 11 July 2013. In late 2007, Jensen was one of the founding members of the
Global Anglican Future Conference
The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) is a series of conferences of conservative Anglican bishops and leaders, the first of which was held in Jerusalem from 22 to 29 June 2008 to address the growing controversy of the divisions in the An ...
(GAFCON). which he served as General Secretary, stepping down in early 2019, to be succeeded by Archbishop
Benjamin Kwashi, former archbishop of
Jos in Nigeria.
Early life and education
Jensen was born in Sydney and educated at
Bellevue Hill Public School and
The Scots College
, motto_translation = O that we may be worthy of our forefathers
, location = Bellevue Hill, Eastern Suburbs, Sydney
, country = Australia
, type = Independent single-sex primary ...
.
After completing his Leaving Certificate, Jensen studied law for two years and worked as an
articled clerk
Articled clerk is a title used in Commonwealth countries for one who is studying to be an accountant or a lawyer. In doing so, they are put under the supervision of someone already in the profession, now usually for two years, but previously thre ...
before he moved into primary school teaching.
Jensen entered
Moore Theological College
Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The president of the Moore Theological College Council is ''ex officio'' t ...
in the late 1960s
[ and won the Hey Sharp prize for coming first in the ]Licentiate of Theology
The Licentiate in Theology or (in Britain) Licence in Theology (LTh or, in Australia, ThL) is a non-degree qualification in theology awarded in Canada and previously awarded in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
A qualification simila ...
, the standard course of study at that time. He also has a Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
degree from Sydney University
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's six ...
, a Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD or BDiv; la, Baccalaureus Divinitatis) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology ...
degree from 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 ...
and a Doctor of Philosophy
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...
(DPhil) degree from the University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
. His 1976 master's dissertation was entitled "Calvinism and the Persecution of the Witches in England (1563–1604)" and his 1979 doctoral dissertation was entitled "The Life of Faith in the Teaching of Elizabethan Protestantism".
Ordained ministry
Jensen was ordained in the Anglican Church of Australia
The Anglican Church of Australia, formerly known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion. It is the second largest church in Australia after the R ...
as a deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...
in 1969 and as a 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 ...
in 1970. He was a curate
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. Barnabas, Broadway
St Barnabas Anglican Church, Broadway, is an Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican church in the Sydney Anglicans, Diocese of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The church property is located on Broadway, New South Wales, Broadway, near the Uni ...
, between 1969 and 1976. From 1976 to 1979, while studying for his doctorate
A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...
at the University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
, he was granted permission to officiate
A permission to officiate (PTO), also known as a licence to officiate, is a concessionary ministry licence granted by an Anglican bishop. It is most commonly issued to a retired deacon, priest, or lay reader over the age of 70 years. It allows th ...
in the Diocese of Oxford
The Diocese of Oxford is a Church of England diocese that forms part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Oxford (currently Steven Croft), and the bishop's seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. It contain ...
, England.
From 1973 to 1976 and 1980 to 1984, he lectured in systematic and biblical theology at Moore Theological College
Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The president of the Moore Theological College Council is ''ex officio'' t ...
. He was appointed Principal in 1985 and held the post until becoming a bishop in 2001. He gained a reputation as a gifted preacher
A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as a ...
and was often seen at the annual Katoomba Christian Convention
Katoomba Christian Convention (KCC) is an interdenominational ministry providing evangelical Bible preaching to Christians.
Conventions are held in KCC's 2300 seat auditorium at Katoomba, in the Blue Mountains approximately west of the Central ...
s.
On 5 June 2001, Jensen became the 11th Archbishop of Sydney. He was consecrated on St Peter
) (Simeon, Simon)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire
, death_date = Between AD 64–68
, death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire
, parents = John (or Jonah; Jona)
, occupation ...
's Day, 29 June 2001. He called upon all churches in the Sydney diocese to aim to reach 10% of their communities by 2012. He also encouraged an unprecedented increase in church planting
Church planting is a term referring to the process (mostly in Protestant frameworks) that results in a new local Christian congregation being established. It should be distinguished from church development, where a new service, worship center or ...
. Over the course of 2002–2008, 136 new congregations were started within the diocese, particularly within the Northern, Western and Wollongong regions. The number of candidates for ordination within the diocese increased from 20 to 30 per year to 40-50 by 2008.
Shortly after his appointment as Archbishop of Sydney, Jensen was accused of nepotism
Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...
after nominating his brother, Phillip Jensen
Phillip David Jensen (born 1945) is an Australian cleric of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney and the former Dean of St Andrew's Cathedral. He is the brother of Peter Jensen, the former Anglican Archbishop of Sydney.
Early life and conversion
J ...
, as Dean of Sydney and appointing his own wife, Christine Jensen, to a lay position in a new women's ministry team. However, according to a spokesperson for Jensen, his wife was the only unpaid member of this team, and the new role was "just an extension of what she's been doing for many years, as the wife of the Moore College principal and now as the wife of the archbishop".
Views
Jensen has a reputation with the Australian media for being an outspoken advocate for evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
Christianity.[ He has spoken out on issues as diverse as ]abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
, euthanasia
Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering.
Different countries have different eut ...
and embryonic stem cell research
Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, an early-stage pre- implantation embryo. Human embryos reach the blastocyst stage 4–5 days post fertilization, at which time they consist ...
as well as on industrial relations. He has expressed his opposition to the ordination of women
The ordination of women to ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain Christian traditions and most denominations in which "ordina ...
as priests, saying "the church is more like a family and, within the family, men are the spiritual guides", but believes women can be appointed to the diaconate, and has ordained women as such within the Sydney diocese. He is opposed to the ordination of women as bishops.["Anglican Archbishop of Sydney: Peter Jensen"]
, ''Sunday Profile'', ABC, 14 October 2014. He has also opposed the ordination of non-celibate gay people as clergy.
In late 2007, Jensen was one of the founding members of the Global Anglican Future Conference
The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) is a series of conferences of conservative Anglican bishops and leaders, the first of which was held in Jerusalem from 22 to 29 June 2008 to address the growing controversy of the divisions in the An ...
which was held in June 2008, one month prior to the Lambeth Conference
The Lambeth Conference is a decennial assembly of bishops of the Anglican Communion convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The first such conference took place at Lambeth in 1867.
As the Anglican Communion is an international association ...
.
In a June 2012 opinion piece, Jensen argued that the acceptance of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
is not "for the moral good". He also criticised the notion of "marriage equality", noting that society does not allow marriage between siblings or between adults and children. He also wrote a letter to parishioners of Sydney's Anglican churches in which he quoted Bible extracts from Genesis on the nature of marriage and said that "The education of children must not be distorted by the state-imposed idea that a family can be founded on the sexual union of two men or two women as a valid alternative to that of a man and a woman."
In September 2012, Jensen was a panellist on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
's '' Q&A'' program and was questioned about his views on several key issues involving the church and society.[ On the question of whether women should be submissive to their husbands, Jensen focused on the vows made by the husband at the time of marriage to act towards his wife in a Christ-like manner.][
On the ''Q&A'' program, when questioned as to whether he supported the attitudes of the ]Australian Christian Lobby
The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) is a conservative right-wing Christian Advocacy group, advocacy organisation based in Canberra. It is similar to the other international Christian lobby groups, and seeks to represent Christian citizens and v ...
towards homosexuality, including a statement that it was "like smoking", Jensen said, "As far as I can see by trying to get to the facts, the lifespan of practising gays is significantly shorter than the ordinary, so-called, heterosexual man. I think that seems to be the case. Now what we need to do is to look at why this may be the case and we need to do it in a compassionate and objective way." Jensen was questioned by a young homosexual Christian man who had contemplated suicide about what he would say to young people in that position. It was stated by a panel member, journalist Anna Crean, that Jensen's position was one of influence and that people, by the process of being made to feel ostracised, were subject to "self-destruction". Jensen was then offered by a youth worker in the audience the opportunity to discuss the suffering of young homosexual people resulting from comments made by Jensen and the ACL. Jensen responded that the matter was complex and that he would like to hear the facts. He said, "It's all very well to say that what I say causes this. That to my mind is ...already facile."[ When questioned as to whether God might be responsible for a "gay gene", Jensen responded that God created and loves all people. He stated that same-sex attraction was not the important issue and that what he was talking about was the acting out of same-sex attraction.][ Jensen was asked whether he thought that his attitudes towards gay marriage and the submission of women were contributing factors in the rise of ]atheism
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...
. He responded that he did not believe that there had been a rise in atheism.[ He concluded by saying that God had revealed himself through Jesus and that through him, all people have equality.][
Jensen has advocated "lay administration" in which lay people could be licensed to preside at ]Holy Communion
The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instituted ...
services. This reflects his view that the ministry of word and sacrament belong together and, as lay people have long been permitted to preach in the Sydney diocese, it is thought they ought to be permitted to lead communion services.
Publications
Jensen has written a number of books on Christian doctrine
Doctrine (from la, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief system ...
, including ''At the Heart of the Universe'' (1991) and ''The Revelation of God'' (2002). In November and December 2005 he also delivered the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
's Boyer Lectures
The Boyer Lectures are a series of talks by prominent Australians, presenting ideas on major social, scientific or cultural issues, and broadcast on ABC Radio National.
The Boyer Lectures began in 1959 as the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Commis ...
on the topic "The Future of Jesus".[ These lectures have subsequently been published as a book.
Jensen, as of 2014, is a co-editor of the '']Reformed Theological Review
The ''Reformed Theological Review'' is Australia's longest-running Protestant theological Academic journal, journal. It was founded in 1942, with Arthur Allen, a minister of the Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia, as its first editor. It st ...
''. He also authored the Lenten study ''Power and Promise'' released by Anglican Press Australia in late 2014.
References
External links
Profile on the Sydney Anglicans website
Biographical information in ''Who's Who 2013''
A & C Black, 2013; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Peter
Australian people of Scandinavian descent
Australian people of Danish descent
Australian Christian theologians
Evangelical Anglican theologians
Anglican archbishops of Sydney
Alumni of the University of London
Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford
Moore Theological College alumni
Moore Theological College faculty
Living people
1943 births
21st-century Anglican archbishops
Australian activists
Academic journal editors
Seminary presidents
Editors of Christian publications
People educated at Scots College (Sydney)
Evangelical Anglican bishops
Anglican realignment people
20th-century Anglican theologians
21st-century Anglican theologians