Dr John Moses

Areas of Interest

International, Media, Religion

Honorary Award

Honorary Doctor of the University, 1997

Biography

A graduate of Nottingham University, John Moses was Dean of St Paul's from 1996 to 2006. After training at Lincoln Theological College he was ordained in 1964 and went on to serve first as Assistant Curate of St Andrew's, Bedford, then later as Rector of the Coventry East Team Ministry and as Rural Dean of Coventry East. In 1977 he was appointed Archdeacon of Southend, also serving as the Bishop of Chelmsford's Officer for Industry and Commerce, as Chairman of the Diocesan Retreat House and as Chairman of the Diocesan Advisory Committee. In 1982 he became Provost of Chelmsford before taking over as Dean of St Paul's in 1996 and was then appointed as KCVO by HM the Queen on retirement from St Paul's in 2006. He has published a number of books including The Sacrifice of God (1992), A Broad and Living Way (1995), The Desert (1997), One Equal Light, an Anthology of the Writings of John Donne (2003), The Language of Love (2007) and Divine Discontent: The Prophetic Voice of Thomas Merton (2014). In 1992 he was appointed the first Rector of Anglia Ruskin University.

In 2013, Moses was appointed as the John Macquarrie Professor of Anglican Theology at Graduate Theological Foundation in Mishawaka, Indiana.

In 1997 The Very Rev Dr John Moses KCVO was made an Honorary Doctor of the University.

Citation

"Dr John Moses was brought up in London an educated at Ealing Grammar School before proceeding to Nottingham University, Trinity Hall Cambridge and Lincoln Theological College. He was ordained in 1964 and served as the Assistant Curate of St Andrew, Bedford from 1964 to 1970. In 1970 he moved to a large inner city parish in Coventry to establish the Coventry East Team Ministry, the first in the diocese. He served during his years in Coventry as Rector of the Coventry East Team Ministry, as an Examining Chaplain to the Bishop of Coventry and as Rural Dean of Coventry East.

He moved in 1977 to become Archdeacon of Southend with responsibility for 200 parishes and 150 clergy in south Essex. He served also as the Bishop of Chelmsford's Officer for Industry and Commerce, as Chairman of the Diocesan Retreat House and as Chairman of the Diocesan Advisory Committee. In 1982 he became Provost of Chelmsford where he presided over significant developments in the re-ordering of the Cathedral, the building of the Chapter House, the construction of the new organ and the establishment of the choral foundation.

He has been a member of the General Synod since 1985; a Church Commissioner since 1988; a Pro-Proculutor of the Lower House of the Convocation of Canterbury since 1995; and a member of the Standing Committee of the General Synod since 1996. His publications include books on atonement theology (The Sacrifice of God, 1992) church-state relations (A Broad and Living Way, 1995) and the desert tradition of spirituality (The Desert, 1997).

He left Chelmsford in the autumn of 1996 on taking up his present appointment as Dean of St Paul's. He serves also in that capacity as the Dean of the Order of St Michael and St George and of the Order of the British Empire.

But it is particularly for his time with us here as Provost that Dr Moses is honoured today. As Provost he proved not only a true friend and supporter of the University but also encouraged the development of links between the Cathedral and the University and the Cathedral and the Community. With his support the visionary foundation for the University's Chaplaincy services were established serving the needs of all members of the University of all creeds. A Choral Scholarship Scheme was established reflecting his great love of and contribution to high standards of church music. Under his leadership the Chelmsford Cathedral festival was established which, each summer, attracts artists of international repute not just in music but also in other art forms. In 1992 Dr Moses was appointed the first Rector of Anglia Polytechnic University, a position which he occupied with distinction."