Peter Alan Broadbent (born 31 July 1952), known as Pete Broadbent, is an English Anglican

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 c ...

. He served as the Bishop of Willesden, an

area bishop 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 jurisdiction ...

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 Britai ...

Diocese of London for twenty years, 2001–2021. During the vacancy in the diocesan see from 2017–2018, he served as Acting

Bishop of London 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 ...

Education

Broadbent was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

. He was 15 years of age when he became a committed Christian through the

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

youth organisation. He studied English at Jesus College,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, and then studied theology at

St John's College, Nottingham St John's College, Nottingham, founded as the London College of Divinity, was an Anglican and interdenominational theological college situated in Bramcote, Nottingham, England. The college stood in the open evangelical tradition and stated that i ...

, before being ordained.

Career

He was ordained 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 Chur ...

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, ...

(25 September) 1977 and 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 partic ...

the next Michaelmas (24 September 1978), both times by John Habgood,

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

, at Durham Cathedral. Broadbent's first

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 ...

was at

St Nicholas' Church, Durham St Nicholas Church, commonly known as St Nics, is a Church of England place of worship located on Durham marketplace and is the city's civic church. The church stands in the open evangelical tradition of the Church of England. History Old S ...

when George Carey, who later became the Archbishop of Canterbury, was its vicar. Broadbent moved to the Diocese of London in 1980 to be curate of Emmanuel Church, Holloway and the Chaplain for Mission to Jim Thompson,

Bishop of Stepney The Bishop of Stepney is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of London, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Stepney, an inner-city district in the London Borough of T ...

. In 1983 he was appointed chaplain to the

Polytechnic of North London The University of North London (UNL) was a university in London, England, formed from the Polytechnic of North London (PNL) in 1992 when that institution was granted university status. PNL, in turn, had been formed by the amalgamation of the No ...

, also serving as curate of St Mary's Islington. In 1989 he moved to the

Willesden Willesden () is an area of northwest London, situated 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Charing Cross. It is historically a parish in the county of Middlesex that was incorporated as the Municipal Borough of Willesden in 1933, and has forme ...

area, becoming Vicar of Trinity St Michael, Harrow and also became the Area Dean of Harrow in 1994 and the Archdeacon of Northolt in 1995. Broadbent has served on the

General Synod of the Church of England The General Synod is the tricameral deliberative and legislative organ of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church ...

for over 15 years and was a member of its standing committee. From 1999 to 2000 he chaired the business committee of the synod and played a role in the foundation of the

Archbishops' Council The Archbishops' Council is a part of the governance structures of the Church of England. Its headquarters are at Church House, Great Smith Street, London. The council was created in 1999 to provide a central executive body to co-ordinate and lead ...

. He is active in

Spring Harvest Spring Harvest is an inter-denominational evangelical conference and gathering in the United Kingdom that started in 1979. The festival arose in the late 1970s at a time when evangelicalism was growing in the UK and there was uncertainty as to ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

's largest annual Christian conference. He was ordained and consecrated a bishop on 25 January 2001, having legally taken the See of Willesden in a ceremony immediately beforehand. Broadbent was one of three serving bishops in the Church of England to refuse to attend the 2008

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 ...

, a gathering of all Anglican bishops convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury every 10 years. Broadbent chaired the Diocesan Board for Schools for

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

from 1996 to 2006 and from 1999 to 2003 was on the governing body of the City Parochial Foundation. He is a member of the Labour Party and was a

councillor A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

for the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough in Inner London. Whilst the majority of the district is located in north London, the borough also includes a significant area to the south which forms part of central London. Islington has ...

from 1982 and

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...

, being the chair of their Development and Planning Committee. In the period between Stephen Oliver and Adrian Newman as

, Broadbent temporarily and additionally had episcopal oversight over that area from 7 July 2010 until 22 July 2011.Diocese of London — Ad clerum: Acting Bishop of Stepney
He was later acting area Bishop of Edmonton between the retirement of Peter Wheatley on 31 December 2014 and the consecration of Rob Wickham on 23 September 2015. He additionally served as acting diocesan

between the retirement of

Richard Chartres Richard John Carew Chartres, Baron Chartres , FBS (; born 11 July 1947) is a retired bishop of the Church of England. He was area Bishop of Stepney from 1992 to 1995 and Bishop of London from 1995 to 2017. He was sworn of the Privy Council in t ...

and the consecration of Sarah Mullally. During his tenure he controversially described the Anglican

high church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...

tradition as "faffy ceremonial" that lacked the "deep faith" of the

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...

tradition. With Newman's resignation due to ill health, Broadbent became Acting Bishop of Stepney again, from 31 October 2018 until a new bishop was appointed in 2019. It was announced on 16 March 2021 that Broadbent would resign his see effective 30 September 2021 and take on a new role relating to the Diocesan 2030 Vision. On 1 October 2021, Broadbent received the Bishop of London's

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 ...

and licence as an

honorary assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...

of the diocese; and became the Bishop's Adviser (2030 Vision). He is a trustee of the '' Church of England Newspaper'' Broadbent is married to Sarah and they have an adult son.

Republican controversy

On the announcement of the engagement of Prince William of Wales to

Catherine Middleton Catherine, Princess of Wales, (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne, making Catherine the likely next ...

, Broadbent declared on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

that he is a

republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, said that the couple were "shallow celebrities" who would be " set up to fail by the gutter press", and predicted that their marriage would last less than seven years. He also called the Royal Family "philanderers" and said that the basis of the

monarchy A monarchy is a government#Forms, form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The legitimacy (political)#monarchy, political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restric ...

is "corrupt and sexist", while disparagingly referring to William's parents, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales, as "Big Ears" and the "Porcelain Doll". His views were reported in various Sunday newspapers and were widely condemned.

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Nicholas Soames Arthur Nicholas Winston Soames, Baron Soames of Fletching, (born 12 February 1948) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Sussex from 1997 to 2019, having previously served as the MP for ...

, a close friend of the Prince of Wales, described Broadbent's comments as "extremely rude" and "not what one expects from a bishop". Broadbent subsequently issued an apology for his remarks and agreed to "withdraw from public ministry until further notice" on 23 November 2010.

(and a close friend of the Prince of Wales), said that he was "appalled" by Broadbent's comments and expressed his "dismay on behalf of the Church". It was announced on 10 January 2011 that Broadbent was to return to duty that day, both as Bishop of Willesden and acting Bishop of Stepney.Diocese of London — Ad clerum: The Bishop of Willesden
He remained as acting Bishop of Stepney until 22 July 2011 (when the new bishop, Adrian Newman was consecrated).Diocese of London — Bishop of Stepney

Styles

*''

The Reverend The Reverend is an honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and church traditions. ''The Reverend'' is correctly ...

'' Pete Broadbent (1977–1995) *''The

Venerable The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism. Christianity Cat ...

'' Pete Broadbent (1995–2001) *''The Right Reverend'' Pete Broadbent (2001–present)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Broadbent, Peter Alan 1952 births 21st-century Church of England bishops Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge Alumni of St John's College, Nottingham Anglican chaplains Anglican socialists Archdeacons of Northolt Bishops of Willesden Councillors in the London Borough of Islington English chaplains English Christian socialists English republicans Evangelical Anglican bishops Labour Party (UK) councillors Living people People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood