Abba Seraphim
Oriental Orthodox | |
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William Henry Hugo Newman-Norton (born 27 February 1948) is a British independent
In 1975, Norton also succeeded William Bernard Crow as head of the Order of the Holy Wisdom.[3]: 294
Early and private life
Norton was born on 27 February 1948.[3]: 294
In August 1961, when Norton was just 13 years old, he led a petition which was supported by the poet, writer and broadcaster John Betjeman to save the original vestry hall of Lewisham Town Hall.[4] However, the new civic leaders insisted that the vestry hall had to be demolished in 1968 to make way for a "Civic Suite" which was designed by A. Sutton and completed in November 1971.[5]
Ministry
Priesthood, Catholicate of the West
On 27 February 1971, Norton was
In 1979, Norton succeeded Newman as head of the Catholicate of the West which was sometimes called Orthodox Church of the British Isles.[3]: 294 [6]
In the Coptic Patriarchate
The
On 6 April 1994, a protocol enacting the merger of the Orthodox Church of the British Isles into the Coptic Orthodox Church was signed by both parties. The Orthodox Church of the British Isles, headed by Norton, changed its name to British Orthodox Church for the union, and became "a diocese of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria with jurisdiction over the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands". The British Orthodox Church was distinct from the other communities in the British Isles of the Coptic Church.[8][9]
Norton, primate of the British Orthodox Church, was not reordained, but received a chrismation. On 19 June 1994, Norton "was consecrated as a Metropolitan in the Coptic Patriarchate by His Holiness Pope Shenouda assisted by some seventy Metropolitans and Bishops". Norton then became member of the Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church.[8][9]
In the independent British Orthodox Church
On 4 October 2015, the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate, in response to a request from the British Orthodox Church, agreed to the British church returning to its pre-1994 status as an independent jurisdiction, with Norton as primate.
On 7 January 2019, it was announced that Metropolitan Seraphim (Norton) would be once again considered as
Private life
As of 2022, Norton is Vice Chairman and a Trustee of the Lewisham Local History Society.[11]
See also
References
- ^ "About the British Orthodox Church". Retrieved 8 November 2015.
- ^ a b "The British Patriarchate Restored After 24 Years In Commission". 7 January 2019. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-55888-307-9.
- ^ "The Faded Grandeur Of London's Old Town Halls". The Londonist. 30 April 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- ^ "Lewisham Town Hall, Civic Suite Prior To Official Opening Nov 1971". Borough Photos. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-7876-9696-2.
- ISBN 978-0-415-25413-7. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
- ^ a b c "Press Release on the union of Coptic and British Orthodox Churches". The British Orthodox Church within the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate. Archived from the original on 30 November 2010. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
- ^ a b c "BRITISH ORTHODOX UNITE WITH COPTIC PATRIARCHATE". British Orthodox Church. Archived from the original on 5 November 2004.
- ^ "Joint announcement from the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom and the British Orthodox Church of the British Isles" (PDF) (Press release). 5 October 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
- ^ "Lewisham Local History Society Officers 2023-". Lewisham Local History Society. Retrieved 15 January 2023.