The Bishops of Ottawa

The Right Reverend John Baycroft,
M.A., D.D.S.Litt.
The Seventh Bishop of Ottawa
1993 to 1999

Bishop Baycroft has spent most of his ordained ministry in the Diocese of Ottawa. Before becoming Bishop of Ottawa in 1993 he had been Suffragan Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa since l985. Before that he was Dean of Ottawa and rector at Christ Church Cathedral, rector at St. Matthias Church, Ottawa (for seventeen years), rector in Perth, Ontario, and assistant rector at St.Matthew's Church, Ottawa.

He has been Regional Dean, Archdeacon, and for many years Canon Theologian of the diocese. He was ordained in l955 in the Diocese of Ontario where he served as rector of Loughborough.

He has been a chaplain and lecturer at Carleton University in both the Religion and History Departments and taught in the Faculty of Theology at Saint Paul University, Ottawa.

He has written widely as a newspaper columnist and produced many popular and some scholarly articles and reviews. His books, including the best selling The Anglican Way, have sold over 50,000 copies.

He has been active in a variety of fields including prison chaplaincy, militia chaplaincy and has travelled widely as a retreat conductor, lecturer and conference leader.

He is a member of the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and co-chair of the Canadian Anglican Roman Catholic Dialogue. He was a consultant at the Lambeth Conference in l988. He chaired the Anglican Church of Canada's Task Force on "Surrogate Motherhood".

Interests include theatre and ballet, the visual arts, literature and history. His membership in the National Press Club is an indication of concern for the contemporary situation in the National Capital Region and the world.

Bishop Baycroft is originally from Yorkshire and studied at Cambridge and Oxford before coming to Canada with his wife, Joan. They have two daughters, one son-in-law, one son, a daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren.

[February 1994]


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