John Inge

John Inge was born to Geoffrey Alfred and Elsie Inge (née Hill) on 26 February 1955,. He was educated at Kent College in Canterbury, at that time an all-boys direct grant grammar school, now a private school in Kent. He went on to study chemistry at St Chad's College, Durham University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1977. That same year Inge performed with Arthur Bostrom at the Edinburgh Festival as part of Durham University Sensible Thespians (DUST), which would be renamed the Durham Revue in 1988. In 1979, he undertook teacher training at Keble College, Oxford and received a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). He also served as a tutor of Teme House, one of the school's boarding houses. He trained for ordination at the College of the Resurrection, Mirfield. During his ministry, he returned to Durham University for postgraduate study. He completed a Master of Arts (MA) degree in systematic theology in 1994 and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in 2002. His doctoral thesis was titled "A Christian theology of place", which was revised and published under the same name in 2003 via Ashgate Publishing. ==Ordained ministry==

Inge was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon at Petertide 1984 (30 June), by Eric Kemp, Bishop of Chichester, in Chichester Cathedral and as a priest in Lancing College Chapel on 7 July the next year. From 1984 to 1986, he was the assistant chaplain at Lancing College. He then moved to Harrow School, an all-boys independent boarding in London, where he was junior chaplain from 1987 to 1989 and senior chaplain from 1989 to 1990, while also continuing to teach. by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, at Westminster Abbey, to serve as Bishop of Huntingdon (suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Ely). As the warden for readers in the Ely diocese he encouraged and equipped lay ministry; he chaired the Cambridgeshire Ecumenical Council and co-chaired the East of England Faiths Council. he retired as Bishop of Worcester on 9 October 2024. Other work Inge served as chair of the board of the College of Evangelists from 2010 to 2018. He served as a member of the Faith and Order Commission (FAOC) from 2011 to 2016 and on the council of Ridley Hall, Cambridge from 2004 to 2010. He was for some years a trustee of Common Purpose UK, an international, not-for-profit organisation which organises leadership courses across the UK and abroad for the public, private and voluntary sectors, and for which he is now a trust protector. a post in the royal household. He took part in the Royal Procession at the 2023 Coronation. Views In November 2022, he published a letter alongside his suffragan bishop, Martin Gorick, that stated "the time has come for the Church to celebrate and honour same sex relations" and supported the introduction of same-sex marriage in the Church of England. He later published a detailed letter explaining his view. 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". ==Personal life==

Inge was married to Denise; she died from cancer on April 20, 2014, at the age of 51. Together they had two children. Through his second marriage, he has two step-children. He is a Vice President of the National Churches Trust. ==Honours==

Inge was awarded an honorary DLitt from the University of Worcester in 2011. On 13 November 2024, on his retirement as Lord High Almoner, the King invested Inge with the insignia of a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO). ==Publications ==

As well as numerous articles, he is the author of A Christian Theology of Place (2003), which was shortlisted for the Michael Ramsey Prize for Theological Writing, and ''Living Love: in Conversation with the No 1. Ladies' Detective Agency'' (2007). ==References==