Keith Newton (bishop)
Encyclopedia
Revd Msgr Keith Newton PA (born 10 April 1952) is an English priest of the Roman Catholic Church
and the first Ordinary
of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
. Newton was formerly a bishop
of the Church of England
and served as the Bishop of Richborough
in the Province of Canterbury
from 2002 to 2010.
. He later earned a PGCE
at Christ Church College Canterbury.
.
Newton held the following positions in the Church of England:
From 1995 to 1998 Newton was Rural Dean of Brislington. From 1998 to 2001 he was area dean of the new deanery of Bristol South.
Newton was named Bishop of Richborough
and provincial episcopal visitor
for the Province of Canterbury
in 2002. He held this post until 31 December 2010.
to discuss the possibility of joining the Roman Catholic Church.
On 8 November 2010 Newton announced his intention to leave the Church of England at the end of the year in order to join the proposed personal ordinariate
of the Roman Catholic Church for former Anglicans.
Newton was received into the Roman Catholic Church on 1 January 2011, at Westminster Cathedral
, with his wife Gill, by Bishop Alan Hopes
. Also received at the same ceremony were Andrew Burnham (former Bishop of Ebbsfleet
), John Broadhurst
(former Bishop of Fulham
) and his wife Judith and three former sisters of the Society of St Margaret (Walsingham) - Sister Carolyne Joseph, Sister Jane Louise and Sister Wendy Renate. On 13 January 2011 he was ordained to the diaconate with the two other former Church of England bishops, Andrew Burnham and John Broadhurst
. Two days later, on 15 January 2011, they were ordained to the priesthood by Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, in Westminster Cathedral
. On this date Pope Benedict XVI
appointed Newton the first ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
in England and Wales. Being married, he is not permitted to be ordained to the episcopate.
Although Newton does not have an episcopal ministry, as the ordinary (a person who has jurisdiction over a group of people) he has been granted permission to wear a mitre, pectoral cross and ring and also carry a crozier in the same manner as some abbots of monasteries.
On 17 March 2011, it was announced that Newton had been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to the rank of protonotary apostolic
(the highest rank of monsignor
).
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and the first Ordinary
Ordinary
In those hierarchically organised churches of Western Christianity which have an ecclesiastical law system, an ordinary is an officer of the church who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute the church's laws...
of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham is a personal ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church within the territory of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, but immediately subject to the Holy See in Rome and encompassing Scotland...
. Newton was formerly a bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
and served as the Bishop of Richborough
Bishop of Richborough
__noTOC__The Bishop of Richborough is a suffragan bishop and provincial episcopal visitor for the whole of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England....
in the Province of Canterbury
Province of Canterbury
The Province of Canterbury, also called the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces making up the Church of England...
from 2002 to 2010.
Early life
Newton was educated at King's College LondonKing's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
. He later earned a PGCE
Postgraduate Certificate in Education
The Postgraduate Certificate in Education is a one-year course in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for undergraduate degree holders that allows them to train to be a teacher....
at Christ Church College Canterbury.
Anglican ministry
Newton completed his theological studies as an Anglican ordinand at St Augustine's College, CanterburySt Augustine's College, Canterbury
St Augustine's College, Canterbury was a Church of England theological college in Canterbury, Kent that opened in 1848 and closed in 1976. Many of those who trained there went on to serve as missionaries...
.
Newton held the following positions in the Church of England:
- 1975-1978, Curate of Great Ilford St Mary, Chelmsford
- 1978-1985, Team Vicar at St Matthew’s Wimbledon in the Wimbledon Team Ministry, Southwark
- 1985-1991, Rector of Blantyre, MalawiMalawiThe Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
and then Dean of Blantyre Cathedral - 1991-1993, Priest-in-Charge of Holy Nativity Knowle, BristolBristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
- 1993-2001, Vicar of Holy Nativity Knowle, Bristol
- 1997-2001, Priest-in-Charge of All Hallows, Easton
From 1995 to 1998 Newton was Rural Dean of Brislington. From 1998 to 2001 he was area dean of the new deanery of Bristol South.
Newton was named Bishop of Richborough
Bishop of Richborough
__noTOC__The Bishop of Richborough is a suffragan bishop and provincial episcopal visitor for the whole of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England....
and provincial episcopal visitor
Provincial episcopal visitor
A provincial episcopal visitor is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who do not in conscience accept the ministry of women priests....
for the Province of Canterbury
Province of Canterbury
The Province of Canterbury, also called the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces making up the Church of England...
in 2002. He held this post until 31 December 2010.
Ordination in the Roman Catholic Church
In 2008 Newton met officials of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the FaithCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith , previously known as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition , and after 1904 called the Supreme...
to discuss the possibility of joining the Roman Catholic Church.
On 8 November 2010 Newton announced his intention to leave the Church of England at the end of the year in order to join the proposed personal ordinariate
Personal Ordinariate
A personal ordinariate is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church enabling former Anglicans to maintain some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the bishops of the geographical dioceses of the Catholic Church and to preserve elements of their distinctive Anglican...
of the Roman Catholic Church for former Anglicans.
Newton was received into the Roman Catholic Church on 1 January 2011, at Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster...
, with his wife Gill, by Bishop Alan Hopes
Alan Hopes
Alan Stephen Hopes, is a Roman Catholic Bishop in Great Britain. He currently serves as Auxiliary Bishop of the Westminster and titular Bishop of Cuncacestre. He was born in Oxford, England on 17 March 1944....
. Also received at the same ceremony were Andrew Burnham (former Bishop of Ebbsfleet
Bishop of Ebbsfleet
The Bishop of Ebbsfleet is a suffragan bishop who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor for the whole of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England....
), John Broadhurst
John Broadhurst
John Charles Broadhurst is an English priest of the Roman Catholic Church. Broadhurst was formerly a bishop of the Church of England and served as the Bishop of Fulham in the Diocese of London from 1996 to 2010...
(former Bishop of Fulham
Bishop of Fulham
The Bishop of Fulham is a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of London in the Church of England. The bishopric is named after Fulham, an area of south-west London....
) and his wife Judith and three former sisters of the Society of St Margaret (Walsingham) - Sister Carolyne Joseph, Sister Jane Louise and Sister Wendy Renate. On 13 January 2011 he was ordained to the diaconate with the two other former Church of England bishops, Andrew Burnham and John Broadhurst
John Broadhurst
John Charles Broadhurst is an English priest of the Roman Catholic Church. Broadhurst was formerly a bishop of the Church of England and served as the Bishop of Fulham in the Diocese of London from 1996 to 2010...
. Two days later, on 15 January 2011, they were ordained to the priesthood by Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, in Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster...
. On this date Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
appointed Newton the first ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham is a personal ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church within the territory of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, but immediately subject to the Holy See in Rome and encompassing Scotland...
in England and Wales. Being married, he is not permitted to be ordained to the episcopate.
Although Newton does not have an episcopal ministry, as the ordinary (a person who has jurisdiction over a group of people) he has been granted permission to wear a mitre, pectoral cross and ring and also carry a crozier in the same manner as some abbots of monasteries.
On 17 March 2011, it was announced that Newton had been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to the rank of protonotary apostolic
Protonotary apostolic
In the Roman Catholic Church, protonotary apostolic is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in the Roman Curia or, outside of Rome, an honorary prelate on whom the pope has conferred this title and its special privileges.-History:In later antiquity there were in...
(the highest rank of monsignor
Monsignor
Monsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...
).
Personal life
Newton is married to Gill, a teacher, with whom he has three adult children; Lucy, Tom and James.Styles
- Keith Newton Esq (1952–1975)
- The Revd Keith Newton (1975–1995)
- The Revd Canon Keith Newton (1995–2002)
- The Rt Revd Keith Newton (2002–2010)
- Keith Newton Esq (1-13 January 2011)
- The Revd Keith Newton (13 January–17 March 2011)
- The Revd Monsignor Keith Newton (17 March 2011–present)