Andrew Rumsey
{{short description|British Anglican bishop (born 1968)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type =
| honorific_prefix = The Right Reverend
| name =
| honorific_suffix =
| title = Bishop of Ramsbury
| image =
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| caption =
| church = Church of England
| province =
| diocese = Diocese of Salisbury
| see =
| term = 2019 to present
| predecessor = Ed Condry
| successor =
| other_post =
| previous_post =
| ordination = 1997 (deacon)
1998 (priest)
| ordained_by =
| consecration = 25 January 2019
| consecrated_by = Justin Welby
| laicized =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1968|2|11|df=yes}}
| birth_place =
| death_date =
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| nationality =
| religion = Anglicanism
| residence =
| parents =
| spouse = {{marriage|Rebecca|1998}}
| children = 3
| occupation =
| profession =
| education =
| alma_mater = University of Reading
Ridley Hall, Cambridge
King's College London
}}
Andrew Paul Rumsey (born 11 February 1968) is a British Anglican bishop. Since January 2019, he has served as the Bishop of Ramsbury in the Church of England.
Early life and education
Rumsey was born in 1968 in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England. He studied history at the University of Reading, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1989."Ramsbury, Bishop Suffragan of, (Rt Rev. Dr Andrew Paul Rumsey) (born 11 Feb. 1968)." WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 1 Dec. 2019 He trained for ordination at Ridley Hall, Cambridge,{{Crockford| surname = Rumsey | forenames = Andrew Paul | id = 15371 | accessed = 21 September 2024}} and graduated with a Master of Arts (MA) degree in pastoral theology in 1998. He later undertook a Doctor of Theology and Ministry (DThMin) at King's College London, which he completed in 2016. His doctoral thesis was titled "What kind of place is the Anglican parish? A theological description".{{cite thesis |last= Rumsey |first= Andrew |date= September 2015 |title= What kind of place is the Anglican parish? A theological description |degree= DThMin |publisher= King's College London |url= https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/60862287/2016_Rumsey_Andrew_09607231_ethesis.pdf |accessdate= 21 September 2024}}
Ordained ministry
Rumsey was ordained in the Church of England: made deacon at Petertide 1997 (26 June) by Richard Chartres, Bishop of London, at St Paul's Cathedral;{{Church Times | title = Ordinations | archive = 1997_07_11_006 | issue = 7013 | date = 11 July 1997 | page = 6 | accessed = 15 July 2019 }} and ordained priest the Petertide following (5 July 1998), by Graham Dow, Bishop of Willesden, at St Martin's Church, Ruislip.{{Church Times | title = Ordinations | archive = 1998_07_10_017 | issue = 7065 | date = 10 July 1998 | page = 17 | accessed = 15 July 2019 }} From 2011 to 2018, he was Rector of St Mary's Church, Oxted in the Diocese of Southwark.{{Crockford| surname = Rumsey | forenames = Andrew Paul | id = 15371 | accessed = 22 October 2018}}
In October 2018, he was announced as the next Bishop of Ramsbury, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Salisbury.{{cite web |last1=Ford |first1=Michael |title=New Bishop of Ramsbury Announced |url=https://www.salisbury.anglican.org/news/new-bishop-of-ramsbury-announced |website=www.salisbury.anglican.org |publisher=Diocese of Salisbury |accessdate=22 October 2018 |date=22 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201215545/https://www.salisbury.anglican.org/news/new-bishop-of-ramsbury-announced |archive-date=1 December 2021}}{{cite web |title=Queen appoints Suffragan Bishop of Ramsbury |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/queen-appoints-suffragan-bishop-of-ramsbury |website=GOV.UK |publisher=Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street |accessdate=22 October 2018 |date=22 October 2018}} On 25 January 2019, he was consecrated a bishop by Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, during a service at Southwark Cathedral.{{cite web |last1=Ford |first1=Michael |title=The new Bishop of Ramsbury is ordained and consecrated |url=https://www.salisbury.anglican.org/news/the-new-bishop-of-ramsbury-is-ordained-and-consecrated |website=Diocese of Salisbury |accessdate=1 February 2019 |language=en-gb |date=25 January 2019}} He was welcomed into the diocese as the 17th Bishop of Ramsbury during Evensong at Salisbury Cathedral on 26 January 2019.
Rumsey has created several series of short video reflections on the theology of place, entitled Going to Ground, which are available on YouTube.{{Cite web|title=Andrew Rumsey - YouTube|url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjpW4BoTTmCtsINrdC-h9DA?app=desktop|access-date=2021-12-01|website=www.youtube.com}} The first series began in March 2020, at a time of national lockdown due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Many of the videos are recorded on the grounds of church buildings in and around Wiltshire, while others are recorded in the natural rural environment.
In an interview following his consecration as Bishop of Ramsbury, Rumsey stated that Evensong is his favourite form of church service.{{Cite web|title=Andrew Rumsey - Learning the Dialect|url=https://www.salisbury.anglican.org/whos-who/bishops/the-bishop-of-ramsbury|access-date=2021-12-01|website=www.youtube.com}}
Rumsey has written several books, most recently English Grounds in 2021, published by SCM Press.{{Cite web|title=English Grounds A Pastoral Journal by Andrew Rumsey - Hardback - 9780334061144|url=https://scmpress.hymnsam.co.uk/books/9780334061144/english-grounds|access-date=2021-12-04|website=scmpress.hymnsam.co.uk}}
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In November 2023, he was one of 44 Church of England bishops who signed an open letter supporting the use of the Prayers of Love and Faith (i.e. blessings for same-sex couples) and called for "Guidance being issued without delay that includes the removal of all restrictions on clergy entering same-sex civil marriages, and on bishops ordaining and licensing such clergy".{{cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Francis |title=Don’t delay guidance allowing priests to be in same-sex marriages, say 44 bishops |url=https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2023/3-november/news/uk/don-t-delay-guidance-allowing-priests-to-be-in-same-sex-marriages-say-44-bishops |access-date=2 November 2023 |work=Church Times |date=1 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102131648/https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2023/3-november/news/uk/don-t-delay-guidance-allowing-priests-to-be-in-same-sex-marriages-say-44-bishops |archive-date=2 November 2023}}
Also in 2023, Rumsey took part in a ceremony to bless the River Marden as a sentient being, together with Kate Dineen, a shamanic practitioner. The event is to be repeated in March 2024.{{cite news |last1=Moriarty |first1=Jessica |title=Blessing to take place on Wiltshire's river Marden |url=https://www.wiltshiretimes.co.uk/news/24176124.blessing-take-place-wiltshires-river-marden/ |access-date=21 September 2024 |work=Wiltshire Times |date=12 March 2024 |language=en}}
Personal life
In 1998, Rumsey married Rebecca.{{cite web |title=Ramsbury, Bishop Suffragan of, (Rt Rev. Dr Andrew Paul Rumsey) (born 11 Feb. 1968) |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U291770 |website=Who's Who 2024 |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=21 September 2024 |language=en |date=1 December 2023}} Together they have three children; two daughters and one son.
Selected works
- {{cite book |last1=Rumsey |first1=Andrew |title=Homing in |date=1998 |publisher=Paternoster Press |location=Milton Keynes |isbn=9781900507721}}
- {{cite book |last1=Rumsey |first1=Andrew |title=Strangely Warmed: Reflections on God, Life and Bric-a-Brac |date=2009 |isbn=978-1441130686 |series= The Mowbray Lent Book 2010}}
- {{cite book |last1=Rumsey |first1=Andrew |title=Parish: An Anglican Theology of Place |date=2017 |publisher=SCM Press |location=London |isbn=978-0334054849}}
- {{cite book |last1=Rumsey |first1=Andrew |title=English grounds: a pastoral journal |date=2021 |publisher=SCM Press |location=London |isbn=978-0334061144}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Bishops of Ramsbury}}
{{Diocese of Salisbury}}
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Category:Alumni of the University of Reading
Category:Alumni of Ridley Hall, Cambridge
Category:Alumni of King's College London
Category:20th-century English Anglican priests
Category:21st-century English Anglican priests