Alexander Penrose Forbes (16 June 18178 October 1875) was a Scottish Episcopalian divine, born in Edinburgh. A leading cleric in the

Scottish Episcopal Church The Scottish Episcopal Church ( gd, Eaglais Easbaigeach na h-Alba; sco, Scots Episcopal(ian) Kirk) is the ecclesiastical province of the Anglican Communion in Scotland. A continuation of the Church of Scotland as intended by King James VI, and ...

, he was

Bishop of Brechin The Bishop of Brechin is the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Brechin or Angus, based at Dundee. Brechin Cathedral, Brechin is a parish church of the established (presbyterian) Church of Scotland. The diocese had a long-established Gaeli ...

from 1847 until his death in 1875.

Biography

He was the second son of John Hay Forbes, Lord Medwyn, a judge of the court of session, and grandson of Sir William Forbes, 6th Baronet of Pitsligo. He studied first at the

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is an independent day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in the city's New Town, is now part of the Senior School. The Junior School is located on Arboretum Ro ...

, then for two years under the Rev. Thomas Dale the poet, in Kent, passed one session at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 1831 and, having chosen the career of the

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 300 million p ...

, completed his studies with distinction at the

East India Company College The East India Company College, or East India College, was an educational establishment situated at Hailey, Hertfordshire, nineteen miles north of London, founded in 1806 to train "writers" (administrators) for the Honourable East India Company ( ...

. In 1836 he went to Madras and secured early promotion, but in consequence of ill health he was obliged to return to England. In 1840, he entered

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...

, where in 1841 he obtained the Boden Sanskrit scholarship. He graduated with a B.A. in 1844. He was at Oxford during the early years of the movement known as

Tractarianism The Oxford Movement was a movement of high church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the University of O ...

, and was powerfully influenced by association with

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English theologian, academic, intellectual, philosopher, polymath, historian, writer, scholar and poet, first as an Anglican priest and later as a Catholic priest and ...

Edward Bouverie Pusey Edward Bouverie Pusey (; 22 August 180016 September 1882) was an English Anglican cleric, for more than fifty years Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Oxford. He was one of the leading figures in the Oxford Movement. Early years ...

, and

John Keble John Keble (25 April 1792 – 29 March 1866) was an English Anglican priest and poet who was one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement. Keble College, Oxford, was named after him. Early life Keble was born on 25 April 1792 in Fairford, Glouces ...

. This led him to resign his Indian appointment. In 1844 he was ordained

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 Chur ...

and priest in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

, and held curacies at Aston Rowant and St Thomas's, Oxford; but being naturally attracted to the Episcopal Church of his native land, then recovering from long depression, he removed in 1846 to

Stonehaven Stonehaven ( , ) is a town in Scotland. It lies on Scotland's northeast coast and had a population of 11,602 at the 2011 Census. After the demise of the town of Kincardine, which was gradually abandoned after the destruction of its royal cast ...

, the chief town of Kincardineshire. The same year, however, he was appointed to the vicarage of

St Saviour Church, Richmond Hill St Saviour Church in Richmond Hill, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England is an active Anglican parish church in the archdeaconry of Leeds and the Diocese of Leeds. History The church was built between 1842 and 1845 to designs by architect John Macdu ...

, Leeds, a church founded to preach and illustrate Tractarian principles. On 28 October 1847 Forbes was consecrated to succeed Bishop Moir in the see of Brechin. He removed the episcopal residence to Dundee, where he resided till his death, combining the pastoral charge of the congregation with the duties of the see. When he came to Dundee the churchmen were accustomed owing to their small numbers to worship in a room over a bank. Through his energy several churches were built, among them the pro-cathedral of St Paul's. He was prosecuted in the Church courts for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important relig ...

, the accusation being founded on his primary charge, delivered and published in 1857, in which he set forth his views on the

Eucharist 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 institu ...

. He made a powerful defence, and was acquitted with a censure and an admonition. Keble wrote in his defence, and was present at his trial at Edinburgh. Forbes was a good scholar, a scientific theologian and a devoted worker, and was much loved. He died at Dundee on 8 October 1875. Forbes' younger brother George Hay Forbes was also a member of the Episcopalian clergy, patristics scholar and editor. Bishop Forbes' correspondence is held by Archive Services at the

University of Dundee , mottoeng = "My soul doth magnify the Lord" , established = 1967 – gained independent university status by Royal Charter1897 – Constituent college of the University of St Andrews1881 – University College , ...

as part of the Brechin Diocesan Library Manuscripts Collection. This collection includes correspondence with E. B. Pusey and

William Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

. St Drostan's Episcopal Church in

Tarfside Tarfside is a small hamlet in Angus, Scotland. It is situated in Glen Esk, on the upper course of the River North Esk, around 8 miles north of Edzell, and has a footpath to nearby Loch Lee. Tarfside is commonly seen as a very beautiful place f ...

, Glen Esk, was built in 1879 in memory of Bishop Forbes.

Principal works

*''A Short Explanation of the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is ...

'' (1852) *''An Explanation of the

Thirty-nine Articles The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion (commonly abbreviated as the Thirty-nine Articles or the XXXIX Articles) are the historically defining statements of doctrines and practices of the Church of England with respect to the controversies of the ...

'' (2 vols, 1867 and 1868) *''Commentary on the Seven Penitential Psalms'' (1847) *''Commentary on the

Canticles A canticle (from the Latin ''canticulum'', a diminutive of ''canticum'', "song") is a hymn, psalm or other Christian song of praise with lyrics usually taken from biblical or holy texts. Canticles are used in Christian liturgy. Catholic Church ...

'' (1853)

References

;Secondary sources * Mackey, ''Bishop Forbes, a Memoir''

External links

Bibliographic directory
from

Project Canterbury Project Canterbury (sometimes abbreviated as PC) is an online archive of material related to the history of Anglicanism. It was founded by Richard Mammana, Jr. in 1999 with a grant from Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold, and is ho ...

The Scottish Communion Office Done into Greek
(1865)
Catalogue of Correspondence of Alexander Penrose Forbes, Bishop of Brechin and George Frederick Boyle held at the University of Dundee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, Alexander Penrose 1817 births 1875 deaths Anglican saints Scottish Episcopal theologians Bishops of Brechin (Episcopalian) Clergy from Edinburgh People educated at Edinburgh Academy People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford Anglo-Catholic bishops 19th-century Scottish Episcopalian bishops 19th-century Christian saints Scottish Anglo-Catholics Scottish Calvinist and Reformed theologians Anglo-Catholic theologians 19th-century Anglican theologians