W. J. E. Bennett

Deceased Person

1804 – 1886

12

Who was W. J. E. Bennett?

William James Early Bennett was an Anglican priest. Bennett is celebrated for having provoked the decision that the doctrine of the Real Presence is a dogma not inconsistent with the creed of the Church of England. This followed the publication of his pamphlet A Plea for Toleration in the Church of England in the form of a letter to Edward Pusey.

Bennett was born at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 15 November 1804, the eldest son of Major William Bennett, R E and of Mary, daughter of James Early. He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford. He was married in 1828 to Mary Concetta Franklin, before being ordained a priest on 6 June 1830 by the Bishop of London.

Bennett initially served in 1830 as curate of Oxford Chapel, but he soon moved to curacies at Holy Trinity Church Marylebone, followed by All Souls Church, Langham Place. For a while he held this latter post alongside the Perpetual curacy of Portman Chapel, Portman Square 1836-1841. His post was subsequently redesignated as Perpetual curate of St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge and St Barnabas, Pimlico. He supervised the completion of the former church and was effectively the founder of the latter. At the same time he conceived the idea of establishing a college there to accommodate the priests and its choristers. In 1851 he felt obliged to resign these posts following doctrinal complaints and a theological dispute with his bishop, Charles Blomfield - after being accused of ritualism. Finally in 1852 he was appointed as Vicar of Frome or Frome-Selwood in Somerset, where he remained until his death on 17 August 1886.

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Born
1804
Religion
  • Anglicanism
Education
  • Westminster School
Died
1886

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

Citation

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