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Timothy Dudley-Smith

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The Right Reverend

Timothy Dudley-Smith

OBE
Bishop of Thetford
DioceseNorwich
In office1981–1992
PredecessorHugh Blackburne
SuccessorHugo de Waal
Other post(s)Honorary assistant bishop in Salisbury (1992–2024)
Archdeacon of Norwich (1973–1981)
Orders
Ordination1950 (deacon); 1951 (priest)
Consecration1981
Personal details
Born(1926-12-26)26 December 1926
Manchester, England
Died12 August 2024(2024-08-12) (aged 97)
Cambridge, England
NationalityBritish
DenominationAnglican
ParentsArthur and Phyllis Dudley-Smith
Spouse
June Arlette MacDonald
​
​
(m. 1959; died 2007)​
Children3
ProfessionBishop, hymnist
Alma materPembroke College, Cambridge

Timothy Dudley-Smith OBE (26 December 1926 – 12 August 2024) was a bishop of the Church of England and a noted hymnwriter. He wrote around 400 hymns, including "Tell Out, my Soul".

Early life and Education

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Dudley-Smith was born on 26 December 1926 in Manchester, England, to Phyllis and Arthur Smith. His father was a schoolteacher in Derbyshire who instilled in Dudley-Smith a love for poetry.[1][2][3] Arthur fell ill and died when Dudley-Smith was eleven years old and shortly thereafter, he desired to be a minister.[4] He was educated at Tonbridge School before studying maths and then theology at Pembroke College, Cambridge.[1] After graduating in 1947, he began his ordination training at Ridley Hall, Cambridge.[5] He was ordained deacon in 1950 and priest in 1951 by Christopher Chavasse, the Bishop of Rochester.[1]

Ministry

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After ordination, Dudley-Smith served as a curate in Northumberland Heath from 1950 to 1953 and as an honorary chaplain to Chavasse.[1][6] He later served as head of the Cambridge University Mission in Bermondsey, a boys club located in South London.[6] In 1955, he was appointed editor and education secretary of the Evangelical Alliance and editor of the new Crusade magazine, created after Billy Graham's 1954 London mission.[5][1][2] After leaving the Evangelical alliance in 1959, Dudley-Smith began serving with the Church Pastoral Aid Society, first as assistant secretary, and then as general secretary from 1965 until 1973.[2][1][6] While there, Dudley-Smith started writing hymns, with his first published hymns appearing 1965 Anglican Hymnbook.[7][1] He also published the hymnals Youth Praise (1966; 1969) and Psalm Praise (1973).[7]

From 1973 to 1981, Dudley-Smith served as Archdeacon of Norwich and as Bishop of Thetford from 1981 to 1991.[1] He also served as president of the Evangelical Alliance from 1987 to 1992.[8] He was chairman of the governors of Monkton Combe School from 1992 to 1997.[9]

In 1959, he married June Arlette MacDonald, a junior Wimbledon competitor and former day care worker.[6] They were together for 48 years until her death in 2007 and they had one son and two daughters.[1] His son, James, is also ordained in the Church of England, and currently serves as rector of St John's Church, Yeovil.[10]

Dudley-Smith was part of what has been described as a British "hymn explosion" after World War II.[11]

Dudley-Smith died in Cambridge on 12 August 2024, at the age of 97.[7]

Honours

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Dudley-Smith was a member and honorary vice-president of the Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland; he was also awarded fellowships from the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada and the Royal School of Church Music.[12] In 2003, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire "for services to hymnody".[12] In July 2009 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree by Durham University.[13]

Selected works

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  • Dudley-Smith, Timothy (1987). A Flame of Love: a personal choice of Charles Wesley's verse. London: SPCK.
  • —————— (1989). Praying with the English Hymn Writers. London: SPCK.
  • —————— (1999). John Stott: The Making of a Leader. London: IVP.
  • —————— (2001). John Stott: A Global Ministry. London: IVP.
  • ——————; Dakers, Lionel (2001). Beneath a Travelling Star. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • —————— (2003). A House of Praise: Collected Hymns 1961–2001. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • —————— (2006). A Door for the Word: 36 new hymns 2002–2005. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • ——————; Llewellyn, William (2006). A Calendar of Praise. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • ——————; Llewellyn, William (2007). High Days and Holy Days. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • ——————; Llewellyn, William (2008). The Voice of Faith. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • ——————; Llewellyn, William (2009). Above Every Name. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • —————— (2009). Snakes and Ladders: a Hymn Writer's Reflections. London: The Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
  • —————— (2009). Praise to the Name: 36 new hymns 2005–2008. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • ——————; Llewellyn, William (2010). Draw Near to God. Canterbury: Canterbury Press.
  • —————— (2011). Seasons and Reasons: New Hymns for various times and occasions. Bromsgrove: Christian Music Ministries.
  • —————— (2012). Beyond Our Dreaming: 36 new hymns 2008–2011. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • —————— (2015). A House of Praise 2: Collected Hymns 2002–2013. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • —————— (2017). A Functional Art: Reflections of a Hymn Writer. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • —————— (2019). A House of Praise 3: Collected Hymns 2013–2018. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Saward, Michael (2006). "Timothy Dudley-Smith: An Acknowledged Master Craftsman" (PDF). Anvil. 23 (4): 290. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "The Rt Rev Timothy Dudley-Smith, leading writer of singable hymns like Tell out, my soul – obituary". The Telegraph. 13 August 2024. Archived from the original on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  3. ^ Shirt, Esme (1 December 1997). "Lord, for the years..." Evangelicals Now. Archived from the original on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  4. ^ Silliman, Daniel (15 August 2024). "Died: Timothy Dudley-Smith, Who Turned Metrical Poetry into Hundreds of Hymns". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on 15 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b "A Song Was Heard at Christmas". Carols.net. 2012. Archived from the original on 11 December 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d "The Rt Rev Timothy Dudley-Smith obituary: prolific hymn writer". The Times. 14 August 2024. Archived from the original on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 17 August 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "Timothy Dudley-Smith, hymn-writer and bishop, has died". Church Times. 12 August 2024.
  8. ^ Dudley-Smith, Timothy (1997). "Lord, for the Years..." Evangelicals Now. Interviewed by Shirt, Esme. Archived from the original on 27 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  9. ^ A Delightful Inheritance by P. LeRoy, Monkton Print, 2018.
  10. ^ "James Dudley-Smith". St John's Church. Archived from the original on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  11. ^ Giles, Gordon (28 October 2016). "Singing through the tide of change". Church Times. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Dudley-Smith, Timothy". Hope Publishing. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  13. ^ Watson, J. R. (2009). "Timothy Dudley Smith: Doctor of Divinity" (PDF). Durham, England: Durham University. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
[edit]
Church of England titles
Preceded by Bishop of Thetford
1981–1992 		Succeeded by
Religious titles
Preceded by
Unknown
 President of the Evangelical Alliance
1987–1992 		Succeeded by
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