Jonathan Woodhouse (minister)

The Reverend

Jonathan Woodhouse

CB QHC
Woodhouse in 2013
Born (1955-03-29) 29 March 1955 (age 69)
Cardiff, Wales
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchBritish Army
Years of service1990 - 2014
RankMajor-General
Service number534661
CommandsRoyal Army Chaplains' Department
Battles / warsCold War
Iraq War

Jonathan Woodhouse, CB, QHC (born 29 March 1955) is a British Baptist minister and retired senior British Army officer. He was Chaplain General and head of the Royal Army Chaplains' Department from 2011 to 2014.[1][2] He is the first Baptist and the second member of the Free Churches to become Chaplain General.[3][4]

Early life and education

Woodhouse was born on 29 March 1955 in Cardiff, Wales.[5] He was educated at Whitchurch Grammar School, a state grammar school in Whitchurch, Cardiff.[5] He studied at the London School of Theology a theological college in Northwood, London, graduating Bachelor of Arts (BA).[1][6]

Ordained ministry

Woodhouse was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1980.[5] He served as a minister in Eastbourne, East Sussex and at Selsdon Baptist Church in Croydon, London.[1]

Military career

On 8 May 1990, Woodhouse was commissioned into the Royal Army Chaplains' Department, British Army, as a Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class (equivalent in rank to captain but lacking executive authority).[6] He transferred from a short service commission to a regular commission on 8 May 1995.[7] On 8 May 1996, he was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 3rd Class (equivalent in rank to major).[8] He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 2nd Class (equivalent in rank to lieutenant colonel) on 30 October 2002.[9] In March 2003, he was posted to Iraq as part of the invasion force at the beginning of the Iraq War.[10] In July 2005, he was appointed the senior chaplain at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.[10]

On 1 January 2006, he was appointed Denominational Representative Chaplain of the United Board.[11] The United Board is a special grouping of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, the United Reformed Church and the Congregational Federation for the purpose of providing military chaplains.[12] He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 1st Class (equivalent in rank to colonel) on 2 May 2006.[13] On 2 May 2008 he was appointed Deputy Chaplain General and the granted the rank of brigadier.[14] On 29 July 2011, he was appointed Chaplain General to Her Majesty's Land Forces and promoted to the rank of major general.[15]

Woodhouse has seen active service, working on the frontline in Iraq during the 2003 to 2011 war.[4] He has also completed overseas postings to Germany.[1]

Later career

In 2015, Woodhouse served as Convenor of the United Navy, Army and Air Force Board:[5] it "is responsible for [recommending] ordained ministers from Baptist, URC, Congregational, Elim and Assemblies of God denominations to serve in the chaplaincies of the Royal Navy, Army or Royal Air Force".[16] Since 2015, he has been a chaplain at Moorlands College, a non-denominational evangelical theological college in Hampshire.[5]

Honours and decorations

On 1 August 2008, Woodhouse was appointed Honorary Chaplain to the Queen (QHC).[17] He was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2014 Birthday Honours.[18][19]

He is a recipient of the Iraq Medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.[4][20]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Former LST student gets top job in the Army". LATEST NEWS. London School of Theology. 27 July 2010. Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  2. ^ "Call me Padre' – meet the Army's head chaplain". Ministry of Defence. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  3. ^ Woods, Mark. "Kingdom builders". The Baptist Times. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  4. ^ a b c "Army chaplains 'need to show their steel under pressure'". The Times. 1 October 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d e "WOODHOUSE, Rev. Jonathan". Who's Who 2016. Oxford University Press. November 2015. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  6. ^ a b "No. 52138". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 May 1990. p. 9160.
  7. ^ "No. 54027". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 May 1995. p. 6606.
  8. ^ "No. 54397". The London Gazette. 13 May 1996. p. 6688.
  9. ^ "No. 56742". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 November 2002. p. 13364.
  10. ^ a b Gledhill, Ruth (8 March 2006). "Princes get ethics lesson: no torture and no revenge". The Times. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  11. ^ "No. 57906". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 February 2006. p. 2495.
  12. ^ "United Board". Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  13. ^ "No. 57970". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 May 2006. p. 5983.
  14. ^ "No. 58690". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 May 2008. p. 6866.
  15. ^ "No. 59866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 August 2011. p. 14713.
  16. ^ "About Us". unitedboard.org.uk. United Navy, Army and Air Force Board. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  17. ^ "No. 58786". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 August 2008. p. 11862.
  18. ^ "No. 60895". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 June 2014. p. b3.
  19. ^ "Queen's birthday honours list 2014: Military". The Guardian. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  20. ^ "Service of Remembrance to Commemorate the 70th anniversary of El Alamein". Press & Communications. Westminster Abbey. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2014.