- St Stephen's House, Oxford
Oxford College Infobox
primary_colour = black
name = St Stephen's House
picture =
colours =
named_for =Saint Stephen
established =1876
head_name = Principal
head = The Reverend Canon
Robin Ward PhD
undergraduates = 30
graduates = 15
location = 16 Marston StreetOxford ,Oxfordshire
England
homepage = [http://www.ssho.ox.ac.uk/ St Stephen's House website]
boat_club =
ball =
grace =
shield = St Stephen’s House, Oxford (popularly known as 'Staggers'), is anAnglican theological college and one of seven religiousPermanent Private Hall s of theUniversity of Oxford , England. From its mission statement the House asserts it offers "formation , education, and training for a variety of qualifications and ministries rooted in thecatholic tradition, helping the church give faithful witness to Christ in contemporary society" as well as an exceptional educationin a "context encouraging disciplined study, academic research and personal reflection centered in prayer and worship". [ [http://www.ststephenshouse.ac.uk/SSH_life_at_SSH.htm "Ethos of the House"] : St Stevens House, Oxford]__TOC__
History
St Stephen's House was founded in 1876 by members of the
Tractarian movement and has stood ever since in theCatholic tradition of theChurch of England . The principal founder of the House was the laterBishop of Lincoln , Edward King, who was, at the time, Regius Professor of Pastoral Theology at theUniversity of Oxford . King has been acclaimed as one of the outstandingly holy men of his age and exercised considerable influence on the early life of the House. Associated with King wereWilliam Bright , Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History and a great scholar;Edward Stuart Talbot , Warden ofKeble College and subsequentlyBishop of Winchester ;Edwin Palmer , Professor of Latin and Archdeacon of Oxford;Edward Woolcoombe , a Fellow of Balliol with a great interest in and support for the missionary movement; andJohn Wordsworth , Chaplain of Brasenose College. Finally among the founding band wasHenry Scott Holland , then senior fellow at Christ Church and one of the leading figures in the development of the Christian social teaching of the time. It was apparently Holland who suggested the title of House in honour ofSt Stephen and in memory of a promising young priest of the same name who had died tragically.For most of its life the House’s central role has been to train candidates for
ordination in the Church of England and other provinces of theAnglican Communion . Indeed by the 1950s it was a seminary on a very Catholic model, training highly 'professional' priests in the use of the confessional and the practice of Ignatian meditation. Life was quasi-monastic with periods of greater and lesser silence, and prescribed times for prayer. Presiding over it was FatherArthur Couratin , described by some as "a Roman Catholic who uses the Prayer Book" and by others as "Noel Coward in a clerical collar". His relaxed drawl and quick wit concealed a formidable intellect and with him as Principal the House maintained high standards of liturgy, scholarship and morality.In its history the House has produced a number of bishops from its staff. In the early days
James Schuster (Chaplain from 1939-1949) was made Bishop of St John's in South Africa. In more recent timesDavid Hope (Principal from 1974-1982) went on to becomeBishop of Wakefield ,Bishop of London and laterArchbishop of York ;David Thomas (Vice-Principal from 1975-79 and Principal from 1982-87) continues to serve asProvincial Assistant Bishop to theChurch in Wales ;Edwin Barnes (Principal from 1987-1995) becameBishop of Richborough ;Andrew Burnham (Vice-Principal from 1995-2000) is theBishop of Ebbsfleet .The conferral of
Permanent Private Hall status by theUniversity of Oxford in2003 , along with recent developments in the Church, have meant that the House now sees its remit more widely as providing formation, education and training for the whole people of God. Within this overall understanding, the formation of candidates for the diaconate and the priesthood continues to have a prominent role.The House was located originally on the site which is now the
New Bodleian Library in a house opposite the King's Arms public house. It was soon to move into buildings in Norham Gardens, North Oxford. These buildings were developed, a chapel being built to the side of one of the houses and, in later years, accommodation being provided for married students. The buildings, whilst the college's home for many, were never ideal. In 1980 the Society of St John the Evangelist (SSJE) decided to move from its mother house, Cowley St John. These monastic buildings were the ideal setting for a theological college. It was decided to buy the site and move the college to East Oxford. The current buildings contain the church ofSt John, Iffley Road , byG F Bodley , a masterpiece of his work, cloisters, the main buildings, the House Chapel and the old mission house. The house chapel, extended byNinian Comper , is the old monastic chapel and is used for Morning and Evening Prayer. The daily Mass is celebrated in St John's Church. Accommodation in flats and houses on the site is provided for married students whilst single students live in the rooms once inhabited by the SSJE brethren.The buildings of the college provide a catalogue of interesting and important aspects of Anglican history. The Founder's Chapel - where the SSJE community prayed daily until the later completion of what is now the House Chapel - was where
Dietrich Bonhoeffer is reputed to have decided to return to Germany where he met with martyrdom.Culture
The house has aways been located in the
Anglo-Catholic tradition of theChurch of England . A great emphasis has always been placed on the formation of the person in their journey toward ordination. At the heart of the House is prayer with Morning and Evening prayer forming the 'bookends' of the day. Ordinands are required to attend both. The daily Mass also provides a critical point of spiritual nourishment. Theological training appropriate to the person is provided, as is time for ministerial preparation. Ordinands are expected to take an active part in the life and work of the house, serving at dinner, keeping up the gardens, and cleaning the church and chapels.Sports are often popular and teams are fielded for a variety of university games, although it does somewhat depend on the enthusiasm of the students. The House currently has its own football team which has competed against other Christian training establishments in Oxford and, also,
Pusey House .The house has a good musical tradition with a variety of traditional and contemporary music being used at major liturgies and a choir made up from within the student body. The House Chapel contains a small chamber organ and St John's Church, a larger instrument with an impressive case above the north side of the
rood screen .The college has, at times, had a reputation for being quite camp and attracting a number of
gay ordinands, especially in the late 1960s and early 1970s.David Hope , laterArchbishop of York , was recruited as principal in 1974 to rein in excesses and to ensure the college remained on track in its mission. [Bates, S. (2004) " [http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1341282,00.html Archbishop's despair over Anglican infighting] ", "The Guardian", accessed2 November 2007]A.N. Wilson fictionalised this turn of events in his novel "Unguarded Hours".Richard Kirker of theLesbian and Gay Christian Movement , quoted in "A Church at War: Anglicans and Homosexuality", claims its proportion of gay students has been as high as ninety percent, although this would seem significantly overstated. Prominent gay clericJeffrey John is an alumnus. Wilson writes that in his time there students were given opposite-sex "names in religion". [Wilson, A.N. (2003) " [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2003/06/17/do1701.xml&sSheet=/opinion/2003/06/17/ixopinion.html Tawdry Audrey, Bobo, Maud, Pearl... all better men than I] ", "Telegraph.co.uk", accessed3 November 2007]Notable former students
Many former students, in the tradition of the House, go on to minister in urban priority areas and parishes which continue to suffer poverty and deprivation.
* The Rt Revd Andrew Burnham -
Bishop of Ebbsfleet and former Vice-Principal
* The RevdAnthony Caesar ,composer
* The Rt RevdAlan Chesters - formerBishop of Blackburn
* The Revd CanonArthur Couratin , Liturgiologist and former Principal
* The Revd Mark Turnham Elvins, OFMCap - Catholic priest and friar
* The Rt Revd and Rt Hon. Lord Hope of Thornes - formerArchbishop of York and Principal
*William Cecil James Philip John Paul Howard, 8th Earl of Wicklow
* The Very Revd Jeffrey John, Dean ofSt Albans
* The Rt RevdEric Kemp , formerBishop of Chichester
* The Rt Revd W Gordon Roe, formerBishop of Huntingdon
* FrJohn Saward , theologian, fellow ofGreyfriars, Oxford [ [http://www.christendom-awake.org/pages/jsaward/saward.html Fr John Saward.] Retrieved2008-02-11 ]
* The Rt RevdGlyn Simon , formerArchbishop of Wales
* The Rt Revd Gordon Wheeler, former Roman CatholicBishop of Leeds
* The Venerable Colin Williams - General Secretary of theConference of European Churches
*A. N. Wilson - journalist
* The Rt RevdDavid Thomas -Provincial Assistant Bishop ,Church in Wales & Former Vice-Principal and PrincipalAcademics and teachers
* The Revd Canon Dr Robin Ward [Principal]
* The Revd Edward Dowler [Vice-Principal]
* The Revd Dr Andrew Davison
* Mr Ian Boxall
* Dr John Jarrick
* Mrs Lucy GardnerPart-time staff
* Sister Benedicta Ward SLG
* The Revd Canon Vincent Strudwick
* The Revd Canon Beaumont Stevenson
* The Revd Dr Simon Jones
* The Revd Elaine BardwellReferences
External links
* [http://www.ststephenshouse.ac.uk/ St Stephen's House website]
* [http://www.chem.ox.ac.uk/oxfordtour/ststephenshouse/index.htm Virtual tour of St Stephen's House]
* [http://www.ststephenshouse.ac.uk/SSH_background.htm History of St Stephen's House]
* [http://www.ox.ac.uk/aboutoxford/maps/colls.shtml Oxford University map of the Colleges and Halls]
* [http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/postgraduate/colleges/sste.shtml Oxford University Graduate Studies Prospectus site of St Stephen's House]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.