Donald Allister

The Rt Revd  Donald Allister  MA[1]
Bishop of Peterborough
Church	Church of England
Diocese	Diocese of Peterborough
Enthroned	17 April 2010
Predecessor	The Rt Revd Ian Cundy
Other posts	Archdeacon of Chester (2002–2010)
Orders
Ordination	1976
Consecration	25 March 2010
Personal details
Born	1952 (age 58–59) Liverpool
Nationality	British
Denomination	Anglican
Residence	Bishop's Lodging, The Palace, Peterborough
Spouse	Janice
Children	1 son, 2 daughters
Alma mater	Peterhouse, Cambridge

Anglicanism portal

Donald Spargo Allister (born 1952) is a Church of England bishop. He was Archdeacon of Chester from 2002–2010, and on 5 November 2009 was nominated as the next Bishop of Peterborough, a post into which he was installed on 17 April 2010.

Allister served in parish posts in Hyde, Greater Manchester; Sevenoaks, Kent; Birkenhead, Merseyside and Cheadle, Greater Manchester. While at Sevenoaks he also served as a consultant editor of the Church of England Newspaper, and in Birkenhead he was also a part-time hospital chaplain. He has been a member of the General Synod of the Church of England since 2005, and was on the committee which drafted proposals relating to the consecration of women bishops. He is also a member of the Council for Christian Unity.

In 2001 Allister attracted media attention after it was reported that he had refused to allow a couple to have the hymns "Jerusalem" and "I Vow to Thee, My Country" at their wedding. He has also spoken out about baptising the children of unmarried couples, and sex outside marriage more generally.

Early life

Allister was born in Liverpool in 1952,^[2] the son of a manager in the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company and a nursing sister.^[3] The family soon moved across the Mersey to Birkenhead on the Wirral peninsula.^[3] Later they moved to Bromley, Kent, before returning to the Wirral when they settled in Heswall, before finally returning to Birkenhead,^[3] where he attended Birkenhead School.^[2] In his childhood he was a choirboy at several churches, and also an altar server for his uncle from whom comes his middle name of Spargo.^[4]

Allister then went up to Peterhouse, Cambridge to read medicine, later switching to theology. After graduation, he undertook further theological study at Trinity College, Bristol.

Ministry

After ordination Allister served as a curate at St George's Church, Hyde from 1976–1979. He served a further curacy at St Nicholas' Church, Sevenoaks from 1979–1983. During this period he was also a consultant editor of the Church of England Newspaper. He was then appointed vicar of Christ Church, Birkenhead in 1983, also working as a part-time hospital chaplain.^[4]

In 1989 Allister became rector of St Mary's Church, Cheadle,^[4] and took on the additional role of rural dean of the Cheadle Deanery in 1999.^[5] In 2001 he attracted considerable media coverage when it was reported that he had refused to allow a couple to have the hymns "Jerusalem" and "I Vow to Thee, My Country" sung at their wedding.^[6] He later said:

I never banned the hymn. But most people who come to be married ask for it so I do encourage them to choose something else. In this case the bride-to-be phoned the church while I was on holiday and spoke to the organist who mistakenly said the hymn was not permitted. It was blown out of all proportion.^[7]

He had previously also refused to baptise the children of unmarried parents, and condemned sex outside marriage.^[6]

In 2002 Allister was appointed Archdeacon of Chester.^[4][8] In this role he has also chaired the diocesan committees on education, houses and glebe. He also acted as the bishop's adviser on healthcare chaplaincy. He became a member of General Synod in 2005 and was appointed to the commission drafting legislation relating to the consecration of women as bishops in 2006, serving until it delivered its proposals in 2008.^[4][9]

On 5 November 2009 it was announced from 10 Downing Street that Allister had been nominated as the next Bishop of Peterborough.^[1] The see had become vacant with the death of Ian Cundy in May 2009.^[4] The announcement was followed by a press conference in Peterborough.^[10] The Congé d'Elire officially authorising his election as bishop was issued by The Queen on 1 December 2009.^[11] He was consecrated as a bishop in St Paul's Cathedral on 25 March 2010,^[12] and was enthroned as Bishop of Peterborough in Peterborough Cathedral on 17 April 2010.^[4]

Personal life

Allister is married to Janice, a general practitioner. They have one son and two daughters. Their son, John, has followed in his father's footsteps and is now a curate in Macclesfield. Their elder daughter is a vet in Edinburgh, while their younger daughter has one son of her own and is currently a full-time mother, having given up her academic career for the moment.^[4]

Styles

• Donald Allister Esq (1952–1976)
• The Revd Donald Allister (1976–2002)
• The Ven Donald Allister (2002–2010)
• The Rt Revd Donald Allister (2010—)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Diocese of Peterborough". Website of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. 5 November 2009. http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page21214. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Donald Allister at Burke's Peerage
3. ^ ^{a b c} Dunn, Justin (5 November 2009). "Birkenhead-bred Archdeacon of Chester appointed new Bishop of Peterborough". The Wirral Globe. http://www.wirralglobe.co.uk/news/4722271.Birkenhead_bred_Archdeacon_of_Chester_appointed_new_Bishop_of_Peterborough/. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
4. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} "The Ven. Donald Allister". Diocese of Peterborough. 5 November 2009. http://www.peterborough-diocese.org.uk/people/donaldallister.htm. Retrieved 6 November 2009. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ "Church news" (Features). The Times (London). 30 July 1999. p. 26.
6. ^ ^{a b} Brockes, Emma (10 August 2001). "Vicar with attitude—He condemns sex before marriage and the baptism of children born out of wedlock. But there's more - this week he refused to let a couple play Jerusalem at their wedding. The Reverend Donald Allister tells Emma Brockes why, yet again, he is right". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,534604,00.html. Retrieved 6 April 2001. 
7. ^ Dye, Stuart (27 September 2002). "Diocese's new man puts record straight ; Archdeacon denies he ever banned Jerusalem" (subscription required for access to archived online copy). Liverpool Daily Post: p. 7. Archived from the original on 27 September 2002. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2003&res_dat=xri:pqil:res_ver=0.2&res_id=xri:newsuk&rft_id=xri:newsuk:newsart:199160001. 
8. ^ "Church news; The Register" (Features). The Times (London). 27 August 2002. p. 28.
9. ^ Gledhill, Ruth (28 August 2008). "Report sets out roadmap for women bishops". The Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article3833950.ece. Retrieved 6 November 2009. 
10. ^ "Meet the next Bishop of Peterborough". Diocese of Peterborough. 5 November 2009. http://www.peterborough-diocese.org.uk/people/newbishop.htm. Retrieved 6 November 2009. ^{[dead link]}
11. ^ London Gazette: no. 59262. p. 21165. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 8 April 2010.
12. ^ "Monthly news - March 2010". Diocese of Peterborough. http://www.peterborough-diocese.org.uk/newsandevents/monthlynews.htm. Retrieved 5 March 2010. 

External links

• The Diocese of Peterborough

Church of England titles
Preceded by Ian Cundy	Bishop of Peterborough 2010—	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Allister, Donald
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1952
Place of birth	Liverpool
Date of death
Place of death