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Peter
was ordained a priest in the Church of England at Canterbury Cathedral. He
was chaplain at Girton College, the women’s college at Cambridge University
and Curate at Great St Mary’s, the university church at Cambridge. He then
served parishes in and around London including us here at St Mary’s of
course coming with Vicky and his young family in 1977 and being our Vicar
until 1984. During that time we saw the introduction of the Alternative
Service Book, vestments and the huge restoration of the church in 1980. He
was a superb preacher. He kept himself in touch with current trends in the
church and its vision for the future and endeavoured to bring this into the
life of St Mary’s.
There were the parish trips to the Holy Land, Rome and Venice which he led;
parish trips to the opera and he wrote his book on Verdi whilst here, to be
followed later by one on Puccini.
After leaving Merton he was made a Canon of Chelmsford Cathedral where he
oversaw the continuing education of clergymen. He was a sought-after
teacher of preaching.
Unhappily, despite a long struggle to keep their marriage intact, Peter and
Vicky were divorced. Some time later, whilst at a preaching conference in
Chicago,
Peter met Nancy, herself a minister in the United Church of Christ in
America and now Senior Minister at Old South Church in Boston, and they
were married in
New
York
in October 1996. As a result Peter has lived since then in the States
firstly in Boise, Idaho and more recently in
Boston
Massachusetts. Sadly he was first diagnosed with cancer at about the time
he was moving to the States. He did have a long remission but it returned
and this time he was not able to win the battle, which he fought
courageously.
Peter and Vicky lived out their Christian faith together in practical
ways. Notable here was the adoption of Miranda whom they nurtured and saw
through her education and onwards to independence. There are many in the
Parish who would bear witness to other manifestations, in acts of kindness
and support.
He
died at home in
Boston
on 7th June aged 64.
Brenda Richards
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