John Stott

John Stott, a British Evangelical Anglican pastor and theologian, was a major figure in the global evangelical movement. He helped write the Lausanne Covenant in 1974, and in 2005, *Time* magazine listed him among the world’s 100 most influential people.

Born in London on 27 April 1921 to Sir Arnold Stott, an agnostic Harley Street physician, and Emily Stott, a Lutheran-raised mother who attended All Souls, Langham Place, Stott was sent to boarding school at age eight. He attended Oakley Hall prep school and later Rugby School. In 1938, a sermon by Eric Nash (“Bash”) at Rugby prompted Stott to reflect on Revelation 3:20, a verse he said had a deep impact on him. Nash became his mentor, writing weekly letters on Christian growth and practical leadership. At this time, Stott was a pacifist and member of the Anglican Pacifist Fellowship, though he later adopted a just-war stance.

He studied modern languages at Trinity College, Cambridge, earning a double first in French and theology. Active in the Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, the executive committee considered him too valuable to ask to join. He then trained for ordination at Ridley Hall Theological College. In 1983, he received a Lambeth Doctorate of Divinity.

Ordained a deacon in 1945, Stott became a curate at All Souls Church, Langham Place, where he had grown up, and served as its rector from 1950 to 1975. In 1956, he hired Frances Whitehead as his secretary; they worked together until his death, with “Auntie Frances” as his right hand. As rector, Stott gained national and international influence, notably during the 1966–1967 debate over evangelicals staying in the Church of England. He founded the Church of England Evangelical Council in 1960 to unite evangelical strands. By 1970, outside demands led him to appoint a vicar at All Souls, and in 1975 he resigned as rector, becoming rector emeritus. Michael Baughen succeeded him.

In 1969, Stott founded the Langham Trust, and in 1982 the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity, where he remained honorary president until his death. He gathered leading evangelical intellectuals to create courses on communicating Christian faith in secular contexts, often speaking with paediatrician John Wyatt and broadcaster Elaine Storkey on “Matters of Life and Death.” After chairing the second National Evangelical Anglican Congress in April 1977, the Nottingham statement was issued, which said, “Seeing ourselves and Roman Catholics as fellow-Christians, we repent of attitudes that have seemed to deny it”—a statement that stirred controversy among some evangelicals.

Stott retired from public ministry in April 2007 at age 86, moving to the College of St Barnabas in Lingfield, Surrey, a retirement community for Anglican clergy, while remaining rector emeritus of All Souls. He died there on 27 July 2011 at 3:15 pm, surrounded by family and close friends who were reading the Bible and listening to Handel’s *Messiah*. An obituary in *Christianity Today* attributed his death to age-related complications and described him as “an architect of 20th-century evangelicalism [who] shaped the faith of a generation.” The BBC noted his ability to “explain complex theology in a way lay people could easily understand.” Obituaries appeared in *The Daily Telegraph* and *The New York Times*. Billy Graham called him “one of the greatest spokesmen” of the evangelical world, and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams also paid tribute. His funeral was held on 8 August 2011 at All Souls Church. A memorial website attracted over one thousand comments, and services were held at St Paul’s Cathedral, London; Holy Trinity Cathedral, Auckland; St Andrew’s Cathedral, Sydney; College Church, Wheaton, Illinois; Anglican Network Church of the Good Shepherd, Vancouver; and St. Paul’s, Bloor Street, Toronto.