Philip Welsford Richmond Russell, (21 October 1919 – 25 July 2013) was a South African

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.

Personal life

Russell was born 21 October 1919 in Cowies Hill, South Africa and died 25 July 2013 in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, Australia. He was educated in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

at Clifton Preparatory School and

Durban High School Durban High School is an all-boys public school in Durban, South Africa. DHS opened its doors in 1866 in two rooms and with seven pupils in Smith Street. From there it moved to a disused granary in Cato Square in 1880, just after the Zulu Wa ...

. Having trained as a quantity surveyor, he served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as part of a bomb disposal unit in the South African Engineering Corps. He was awarded the

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

in 1943 for his service. It was during this time he felt called to the priesthood. He studied at

Rhodes University Rhodes University is a public university, public research university located in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, Makhanda (Grahamstown) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is one of four universities in the province. Established in 1904, ...

and St Paul's Theological College in

Grahamstown Makhanda, also known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 140,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Port Elizabeth and southwest of East London, Eastern Cape, East London. Makhanda is the lar ...

. He was ordained 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 1940 and as a priest in 1941. He met fellow-South African Eirene Hogarth in Rome in 1944, whom he married in 1945 at the Garrison Church, Foggia, Italy. Together they had four children, Susan, June, Pauline and Christopher. After the death of his wife in 2001, Russell moved to Adelaide, Australia, where three of his four children had settled.

Church career

After World War II he served in various parishes in the

Diocese of Natal The Diocese of Natal is in the region of Natal, South Africa, the diocese has its northern boundary at the Tugela River. The episcopal leader of the diocese is the bishop of Natal. History The history of the Diocese in the Colony of Nata ...

including

Greytown, KwaZulu-Natal Greytown is a town situated on the banks of a tributary of the Umvoti River in a richly fertile timber-producing area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. History Greytown was established in the 1850s and named after the governor of the Cape Colony ...

Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal Ladysmith is a city in the Uthukela District of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It lies north-west of Durban and south-east of Johannesburg. Important industries in the area include food processing, textiles, and tyre production. Ladysmith is the ...

Kloof Kloof is a leafy upper-class town, that includes a smaller area called Everton, located approximately 26 km north-west of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Once an independent municipality, it now forms part of greater Durban area ...

and

Pinetown Pinetown is a large area that is part of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, inland from Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Pinetown is situated 16 km west of Durban at an elevation of 1,000 to 1,300 feet (305 to 395 m). History Pin ...

. He was consecrated bishop, and served as

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

bishop of

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

from 1966 to 1970. From 1970 to 1974 he was the bishop of the new Anglican Diocese of Port Elizabeth and, from 1974 to 1981, he was

Bishop of Natal The Diocese of Natal is in the region of Natal, South Africa, the diocese has its northern boundary at the Tugela River. The episcopal leader of the diocese is the bishop of Natal. History The history of the Diocese in the Colony of Nata ...

. In 1980 he was named Archbishop of Cape Town by the Episcopal Synod of the Anglican Church after the Diocese of Cape Town was unable to decide between

Desmond Tutu Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian, known for his work as an anti-apartheid and human rights activist. He was Bishop of Johannesburg from 1985 to 1986 and then Archbishop ...

and

Michael Nuttall Michael Nuttall (born 3 April 1934) is a former South African Anglican bishop and author. He was educated at Maritzburg College, the University of Natal and Rhodes University and ordained in 1965. His first post was as a curate at Grahamsto ...

, the then

Bishop of Pretoria The Diocese of Pretoria is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. It is divided into seven archdeaconries and has 61 parishes. History The diocese originally covered the whole of the South African Republic, which later became the T ...

. He retired on the 31st August 1986, being succeeded by

. Philip had the title "Archbishop Emeritus" conferred on him by the Synod of Bishops in 1997.

Apartheid

As a parish priest in country towns, he started expressing his doubts about Apartheid in sermons. In 1962 he saw black people and white people sitting together and talking for the first time, while at a church council. He served on the council of

Diakonia A diaconia was originally an establishment built near a church building, for the care of the poor and distribution of the church's charity in medieval Rome or Naples (the successor to the Roman grain supply system, often standing on the very sites o ...

, an ecumenical body which was very active in both the spiritual and social service sides of Christian life. He was an ardent supporter of human rights through the

South African Institute of Race Relations Established in 1929,http://www.sairr.org.za/profile/ the South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) is a research and policy organisation in South Africa. The institute is "one of the oldest liberal institutions in the country". The in ...

and the Civil Rights League. His ecumenical enthusiasm led him to an active involvement in Diakonia, Vuleka Trust, the

South African Council of Churches The South African Council of Churches (SACC) is an interdenominational forum in South Africa. It was a prominent anti-apartheid organisation during the years of apartheid in South Africa. Its leaders have included Desmond Tutu, Beyers Naudé an ...

and 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 ...

Publications

* with

Lawrence Bekisisa Zulu Lawrence Bekisisa Zulu was a South African Anglican bishop. Personal life Zulu went to Cambridge University and graduated with a BA in 1965 and an MA in 1969. Church life Zulu was Bishop of Zululand The Diocese of Zululand is a diocese ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Philip 1919 births 2013 deaths Members of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Anglican Church of Southern Africa bishops People from Durban Anglican archbishops of Cape Town Anglican bishops of Natal Anglican bishops of Port Elizabeth South African military personnel of World War II