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Ripon College Cuddesdon is an Anglican theological college (seminary) located in Cuddesdon, a small village a short distance from Oxford.
[edit] Tradition
Traditionally 'Cuddesdon', as it is commonly known, stood in the Catholic wing of the Church of England. The college was founded in 1854 as the Oxford Diocesan Seminary, by Samuel Wilberforce, bishop of Oxford, as a training establishment for graduates from Oxford and Cambridge and quickly became known as Cuddesdon College . The college buildings, mostly designed by G E Street, were erected opposite his episcopal palace. The "Ripon" part of the college's current name (which deliberately contains no comma) derives from an amalgamation in 1975 with Ripon Hall, a modernist theological college formerly located at Boar's Hill near Oxford. Currently, men and women who come with a wide range of previous experience, but are not necessarily graduates, pursue a two or three year course of study incorporating pastoral and academic training. Courses of study are validated by Oxford University and Oxford Brookes University. Nowadays Cuddesdon students come from across the spectrum of the Church of England and it is one of the few training institutions that no longer has a distinctively party character. It still maintains a regular and disciplined approach to prayer, and seeks to help students develop a modern critical approach to the Christian tradition as found in the Church of England. Recently the part-time Oxford Ministry Course, has been integrated as part of the college.
[edit] Staff members
Among the college's previous staff members are: Edward King, who later became bishop of Lincoln, Charles Gore, successively bishop of Worcester, Birmingham and Oxford, and Robert Runcie, archbishop of Canterbury. When Runcie retired from the archbishopric he took the title Baron Runcie of Cuddesdon.
The current principal is the Revd Canon Professor Martyn Percy, who is apparently the only living author to be referred to in Dan Brown's bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code. The Revd Dr Mark Chapman is Vice Principal. The Revd Gerald Heggarty has overall responsibility for the Oxford Ministry Course which is a part of the College. The Revd Dr Leslie Milton teaches New Testament; The Revd Dr David Heywood is Director of Pastoral Studies. The Revd Dr Andrew Teal teaches Patristics; the Revd Dr Helen-Ann Hartley teaches New Testament and Greek; Dr Hywel Clifford teaches Old Testament. Revd Dr Philip Tovey teaches liturgy and Revd Lister Tonge is Chaplain. Dr Wendy Dackson, Research Fellow.
[edit] Notable alumni
- See also Category:Alumni of Ripon College Cuddesdon.
[edit] Literature
- Chapman, Mark D. (ed.), Ambassadors of Christ. Commemorating 150 Years of Theological Education in Cuddesdon 1854-2004, Burlington (Ashgate) 2004.
- Chapman, Mark D., God's Holy Hill. A History of Christianity in Cuddesdon, Charlbury (The Wychwood Press) 2004.
[edit] External links
