Arthur Parham

Arthur Groom Parham MC (25 June 1883 – 8 January 1961)[1] was an English Anglican bishop who was bishop of Reading (a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Oxford)[2] from 1942 until 1954.

Arthur Parham
Bishop of Reading
Diocese	Diocese of Oxford
In office	1942–1954
Predecessor	abeyance
Successor	Eric Knell
Other posts	Vicar of St Mary's, Reading (1926–1946) Archdeacon of Berkshire (1942–1954)
Orders
Ordination	1909 (deacon); 1910 (priest) by John Harmer (deacon)
Consecration	1942 by Cosmo Lang
Personal details
Born	25 June 1883 Highbury, London
Died	8 January 1961 (aged 77) Little Wittenham, Berkshire, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Denomination	Anglican
Parents	Edmund & Ann
Spouse	Margaret Montagu (m. 1946)
Children	2 daughters
Alma mater	Exeter College, Oxford

Family and education

Son of Edmund and Ann, Parham was educated at Magdalen College School, Oxford then Exeter College, Oxford (gaining the degree of Oxford Master of Arts). He trained for the ministry at Leeds Clergy School and was ordained a deacon on Trinity Sunday (6 June) 1909 by John Harmer, Bishop of Rochester, at Rochester Cathedral[3] and a priest in 1910.[1]

Ministry pre-war

Beginning his ministry with a curacy at Bromley, Kent (1909–1912), he was then appointed chaplain and precentor of Christ Church Cathedral and chaplain of Magdalen College, Oxford (all 1912–1921); that period was interrupted with World War I service as a temporary chaplain to the Forces during which he was twice mentioned in despatches and awarded the Military Cross.[1]

Ministry in Berkshire

When peace returned, he became rector of Easthampstead (1921–1926), then vicar of St Mary's, Reading (1926–1946; both in Berkshire),[1] and additionally rural dean of Reading[4] (1934–1942); during this period his became an honorary canon of Christ Church (1934 onwards) and was first elected a proctor in convocation (1935–1954). Remaining, to start with, vicar of Reading, he became also archdeacon of Berkshire[5] and bishop of Reading (a suffragan bishop of the diocese), both from 1942 to 1954. He was ordained and consecrated a bishop by Cosmo Lang, archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, on Candlemas (2 February) 1942.[6] In 1946, he both married Margaret Elizabeth Montagu, with whom he had two daughters, and resigned his vicarage (retaining the archdeaconry and suffragan see). He retired in 1954 and continued to serve the Church as an assistant bishop within the Diocese of Oxford; at his death, he lived in Little Wittenham, Berkshire,[1] where he died at home.[7]

References

1. "Parham, Arthur Groom". Who's Who. ukwhoswho.com. 1920–2016 (April 2014 online ed.). A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc. Retrieved 16 April 2017. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
2. "Consecration of the Bishop of Reading". Ecclesiastical News. The Times (49250). London. 1 June 1942. col C, p. 6.
3. "Trinity Ordinations". Church Times (#2420). 11 June 1909. p. 803. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 16 April 2017 – via UK Press Online archives.
4. Berkshire Rural Deaneries at the National Archive
5. Archdeacons of Berkshire Archived 20 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
6. "Candlemas at St. Paul's. Consecration of Bishops". Church Times (#). 6 February 1942. p. 87. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 16 April 2017 – via UK Press Online archives.
7. "In Memoriam: Arthur Parham". Church Times (#5109). 13 January 1961. p. 16. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 16 April 2017 – via UK Press Online archives.

External links

• Portraits of Arthur Parham at the National Portrait Gallery, London