Paul Williamson

Paul Stewart Williamson (born 1950) is a vexatious litigant and controversial Anglo-Catholic priest in the Church of England. He has brought high-profile civil suits in English courts over matters of Anglican faith and practice, including the ordination of women to the priesthood and the legality of the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales to Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.

Ordained ministry

Williamson was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon in 1972 and as a priest in 1973. Since 1992, he has been priest in charge of St George's Church, Hanworth, West London.[1]

Williamson is an Anglo-Catholic. He is a member of the Society of Mary.

Activism

Williamson is a well-known opponent of the ordination of women to the priesthood. In 1997 he sued the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral for appointing a woman as a minor canon.[2] On 16 July 1997, he was declared to be a vexatious litigant by justice Christopher Rose at the Royal Courts of Justice.[3] As a result, he is no longer allowed to bring action within the Courts of England and Wales without permission.[4]

In 2005, Williamson protested the legality of the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales to Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.[5]

In 2011, with others, Williamson challenged a major grant by the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament to the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham. The Charity Commission for England and Wales, which described the complainants as "a substantial number", subsequently ruled that the grant had been unlawful.[6]

On 26 January 2015, Williamson interrupted the consecration service for the Church of England's first woman to become a bishop, Libby Lane, at York Minster. His objection was responded to by John Sentamu, Archbishop of York (who was officiating) and the service continued.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Paul Stewart Williamson". Crockford's Clerical Directory (online ed.). Church House Publishing. Retrieved 30 November 2015. (subscription required)
  2. ↑ "Frailty, thy name is Williamson". The Independent. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "VEXATIOUS LITIGANT - ATTORNEY GENERAL v WILLIAMSON". Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  4. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/vexatious-litigants
  5. ↑ Dutta, Kunal (25 February 2005). "Turbulent priest". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  6. ↑ The ruling of the Charity Commission for England & Wales is available in full here
  7. ↑ The Telegraph, 26 January 2015]

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, January 31, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.