Rose Josephine Hudson-Wilkin, (born 19 January 1961) is a British
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 the ...
bishop, who has been suffragan
Bishop of Dover in the diocese of Canterbury - deputising for the Archbishop - since 2019: she is the first black woman to become a
Church of England bishop. She had served as
Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons
The Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, also known as the Speaker's Chaplain, is a Church of England priest who officiates at services held at the Palace of Westminster and its associated chapel, St Mary Undercroft. The Chaplain a ...
from 2010 to 2019, and previously in the
Church Army
The Church Army is an evangelistic organisation and mission community founded in 1882 in association with the Church of England and now operating internationally in many parts of the Anglican Communion.
History
The Church Army was founded in ...
and then parish ministry.
Early life
Born in
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore, all of which form the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area, h ...
,
Jamaica, Hudson-Wilkin was raised by her father and aunt Pet, her mother having left for England when she was born. She did not meet her mother again until she was nine.
She was educated at
Montego Bay High School, an all-girls
secondary school in
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore, all of which form the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area, h ...
. She was 14 when she decided to join the ministry and, in a 2012 interview in the ''
Daily Telegraph
Daily or The Daily may refer to:
Journalism
* Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks
* ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times''
* ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
'', she said: "I simply had this overwhelming sense that this was what I was called to do."
Ordained ministry
In 1982, Hudson-Wilkin travelled to the UK to train at the
Church Army
The Church Army is an evangelistic organisation and mission community founded in 1882 in association with the Church of England and now operating internationally in many parts of the Anglican Communion.
History
The Church Army was founded in ...
college in the
West Midlands.
She later trained at the West Midlands Ministerial Training Course in preparation for ordained ministry, being made a
deacon in the
Church of England at
Petertide
Petertide (also known as St Peter's Tide) refers to the Sunday nearest to St Peter's Day on 29 June and to the period around that day.
In Anglicanism, Petertide is the major one of two traditional periods for the ordination of new priests (the ot ...
1991 (30 June) by
Keith Sutton,
Bishop of Lichfield
The Bishop of Lichfield is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers 4,516 km2 (1,744 sq. mi.) of the counties of Powys, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire and W ...
, at
Lichfield Cathedral
Lichfield Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, one of only three cathedrals in the United Kingdom with three spires (together with Truro Cathedral and St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh), and the only medie ...
. From 1991 to 1994, she served as the parish deacon of
St Matthew's Church, Wolverhampton. She was ordained a
priest on 23 April 1994 (by Sutton, at Lichfield Cathedral), in the first few weeks that the Church of England
ordained women to the priesthood. Remaining at St Matthew's Church, she served her
curacy
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 ...
from 1994 to 1995.
From 1995 to 1998, she was assistant curate of
St Andrew's Church, West Bromwich. During this time, she also worked with the Committee on Black Anglican Concern.
It was founded after the ''
Faith in the City
''Faith in the City: A Call for Action by Church and Nation'' was a report published in the United Kingdom in autumn 1985, authored by the authored by Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie's Commission on Urban Priority Areas. The report created ...
'' report was published in 1985 and worked to combat racism in the Church of England. It has since been replaced by the Committee for Minority Ethnic Anglican Concerns.
In 1998, she took up the role as
vicar of
Holy Trinity Church, Dalston
Holy Trinity Church, Dalston, also known as the Clowns’ Church, is a Church of England parish church in Beechwood Road in the London Borough of Hackney. It is in the parish of Holy Trinity with St Philip Dalston and All Saints Church, Haggerst ...
, and
All Saints Church, Haggerston
All Saints Church, Haggerston, also Church of All Saints, is an Anglican church in Livermere Road, near the junction with Haggerston Road, in Haggerston in London Borough of Hackney, east London. It is part of a parish with Holy Trinity Church and ...
, an inner-city parish in
Hackney, London.
She was appointed a
Chaplain to the Queen in 2008.
In 2010, she was appointed
Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons
The Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, also known as the Speaker's Chaplain, is a Church of England priest who officiates at services held at the Palace of Westminster and its associated chapel, St Mary Undercroft. The Chaplain a ...
in addition to her parish work.
In March 2013, she was installed as a
prebendary of
St Paul's Cathedral in recognition of "her service to the Church, community and most recently as Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons". In October 2014, it was announced that she was to become
priest-in-charge
A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent. Such priests are not legally responsible for the churches and glebe, but simply hold a ...
of
St Mary-at-Hill
St Mary-at-Hill is an Anglican parish church in the Ward of Billingsgate, City of London. It is situated on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap.
It was founded in the 12th century as "St. Mary de Hull" or "St. Mary de la Hulle". It was s ...
,
City of London. She moved to her new parish in November 2014, while maintaining her additional appointments.
Since November 2014, she was priest-in-charge of
St Mary-at-Hill
St Mary-at-Hill is an Anglican parish church in the Ward of Billingsgate, City of London. It is situated on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap.
It was founded in the 12th century as "St. Mary de Hull" or "St. Mary de la Hulle". It was s ...
,
City of London,
until late 2019, additionally holding the role of Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, as well as
priest vicar at
Westminster Abbey and a
Chaplain to the Queen.
In 2012, she was tipped as likely to be one of the first women to become bishops in the Church of England.
On 28 June 2019 she was announced as the next
Bishop of Dover, to run the
Diocese of Canterbury on behalf of the
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 Jus ...
.
On 19 May 2018, she was one of several religious leaders to lead prayers at the
wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was held on Saturday 19 May 2018 in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom. The groom is a member of the British royal family; the bride is American and previously worked as an ...
.
Bishop of Dover
On 28 June 2019, it was announced that Hudson-Wilkin was to become
Bishop suffragan of Dover. As a
suffragan bishop, the Bishop of Dover has authority delegated by the
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 Jus ...
to oversee the
Diocese of Canterbury as if the
diocesan bishop; she took up her
see immediately before her
consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
, which was scheduled for 19 November 2019 at
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Gr ...
.
[ ] Press coverage of the announcement noted that she would be the first black woman to become a Church of England bishop;
Guli Francis-Dehqani
Gulnar Eleanor "Guli" Francis-Dehqani (born 18 June 1966) is an Iranian-born British Anglican bishop who has been Bishop of Chelmsford since 2021. She previously served as the first Bishop of Loughborough, the sole suffragan bishop in the Dioc ...
was the first ethnic minority woman to become a bishop, in 2017.
On 19 November 2019, Hudson-Wilkin was consecrated a
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 ...
by
Archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
Justin Welby
Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is a British bishop who is the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. He has served in that role since 2013. Welby was previously the vicar of Southam, Warwickshire, and then Bishop of Durham, serving for j ...
at
St Paul's Cathedral.
She was
installed as Bishop of Dover during a service at
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 C ...
on 30 November 2019.
Hudson-Wilkin was appointed
Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the
2020 New Year Honours
The 2020 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebration ...
for "services to young people and the Church". She was also listed in the
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...
and
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
''
Powerlist
The ''Powerlist'' is a list of the 100 most influential people of African or African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annually and has been published in book format by Powerful Media since 2007. The ''Powerlist'' i ...
'', of the 100 the most influential people in the UK of African/African-Caribbean descent.
Public attention
After taking up her parish role in
Hackney, Hudson-Wilkin staged a rooftop protest on the church with her
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 ...
to highlight the need for funds to repair the fabric of the building.
Speaking on ''
Desert Island Discs'' in January 2014, she said that with so much development going on in Hackney, she was trying to draw attention to the plight of the church, which had a leaking roof, adding that she wished she could have stayed a little longer on the roof as the protest attracted donations for its repair.
Hudson-Wilkin came to wider attention as the first black female to hold the role of Queen's Chaplain.
When she was appointed to the Commons some people alleged that this was an act of
political correctness
''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
on the part of the
Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** In ...
John Bercow. Ultimately, the traditional role was split in two with Hudson-Wilkin remaining in her Hackney parish and attending to the Commons via daily prayers and services in
St Mary Undercroft
The Chapel of St Mary Undercroft is a Church of England chapel located in the Palace of Westminster, London, England. The chapel is accessed via a flight of stairs in the south east corner of Westminster Hall.
It had been a crypt below St Steph ...
, while
Andrew Tremlett
Andrew Tremlett (born 9 March 1964) is a British Church of England priest. Since 2022, he has served as Dean of St Paul's, and is therefore the head of the Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral and the most senior priest in the Diocese of L ...
took up the post of Canon of Westminster and Rector of
St Margaret's, Westminster.
In an interview in ''
The Observer'' a year after her appointment to the Commons, Hudson-Wilkin commented that she would like to see a more civil attitude among
MPs: "That's my secret prayer actually: the world is looking on and I just believe that I would like to see a change there in the way they handle listening to each other and the way they speak to each other."
Hudson-Wilkin has updated the traditional 17th-century prayers before parliamentary debates by introducing mention of topical events, also saying a prayer on behalf of
International Women's Day
International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...
in 2010 that reportedly attracted complaints to the Speaker by some MPs.
A critic of what she has described as
institutional racism
Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded in the laws and regulations of a society or an organization. It manifests as discrimination in areas such as criminal justice, employment, housing, health ...
in the church, she has also spoken on the subject of
gay marriage, telling ''
The Times'' that the church is "obsessed with sex" and there are many more important issues.
During her interview on ''Desert Island Discs'', Hudson-Wilkin was asked about the proposed ordination of women as bishops and said: "I believe that we hold certain prejudices about certain things and we believe them to be true ... What I want is for people to be open to the possibilities that their minds might be changed." She added: "I think the church has been the poorer actually for not having the gifts of women – men and women – in its leadership."
In an episode of the BBC programme ''
The Big Questions
''The Big Questions'' is an interfaith dialogue and ethics television programme usually presented by Nicky Campbell. It is broadcast live on BBC One on Sunday mornings, replacing '' The Heaven and Earth Show'' as the BBC's religious discussion p ...
'' aired January 2015, discussing the lack of legal recognition for
humanist marriages, Hudson-Wilkin repeatedly characterised humanists as "anti-religion" and expressed bewilderment that humanists would want to get married, saying "Marriage is a sacred act. We see it as a gift from God, so it is not something we think anybody just gets up and, stands in front, and says I’m marrying you. If humanists are anti-religion I don’t understand why you want to keep and do all of the things that religion does."
Personal life
She met her husband, the Revd Kenneth Wilkin, when she was training at the
Church Army College. He currently serves as
chaplain to
HM Prison Downview
HM Prison Downview is a women's closed category prison. Downview is located on the outskirts of Banstead in Surrey, England (overlooking Banstead Downs), and is immediately adjacent to the southern boundary of Belmont in Greater London. The ...
near
Banstead
Banstead is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England. It is south of Sutton, south-west of Croydon, south-east of Kingston-upon-Thames, and south of Central London.
On the North Downs, it is on three of the four main ...
in
Surrey. The couple have two daughters and a son.
References
External links
Biography on Church of England siteRose Hudson-Wilkin on ''Desert Island Discs'
Download of Rose Hudson-Wilkin ''Desert Island Discs'' episode
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hudson-Wilkin, Rose Josephine
1961 births
Living people
Jamaican women
Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom
Jamaican clergy
People from Montego Bay
21st-century English Anglican priests
BBC 100 Women
Chaplains of the House of Commons (UK)
Church Army people
Honorary Chaplains to the Queen
Bishops of Dover, Kent
Women Anglican bishops
Jamaican Anglicans
Members of the Order of the British Empire