Churchill Julius 		September 23
Bishop, first Archbishop of New Zealand
Churchill Julius was bishop of Christchurch from 1890 to 1925 and the first primate to be styled “Archbishop of New Zealand”, a position he held from 1922 to 1925. He was also a very able and forthright leader of the church.
Churchill Julius was born at Richmond in England in 1847 and was brought up in a strict evangelical household. He attended Blackheath Proprietary School, then run by Bishop Selwyn’s cousin, Edward Selwyn. After a bout of ill health, Churchill attended King’s College School in London and Worcester College, Oxford.
Oxford was still the centre of the Anglo-Catholic revival. Julius however came under the influence of Canon Christopher of St Aldate’s, the stronghold of evangelicalism in Oxford. Julius was warmed by Christopher’s devout and industrious life, especially during a cholera epidemic. Churchill Julius graduated in 1869, was ordained deacon in 1871 and priest in 1872. He was an evangelical, but with no antipathy to the Oxford Movement.
After several curacies he became vicar of Islington, a London slum. He excelled in the development of a well-organised parish and the provision of activities for the young people. He demonstrated a love of humanity and developed a strong social conscience. Then in 1883 Bishop Thornton of Ballarat, on a visit to England, invited Julius to become archdeacon of Ballarat, and in 1884 he and his family sailed to Australia. Julius again showed himself a gifted motivator in the development of the parish and in particular its educational work.
Churchill Julius was nominated to the Diocese of Christchurch in 1889 in succession to Bishop Harper and was consecrated in 1890. New Zealand was entering one of its first periods of industrial turmoil. Julius was involved with labour organisations from the outset’ and used his outstanding eloquence to speak out against cruelty, oppression and tyranny in the workplace. He delivered a stinging attack on competitive individualism and willingly accepted the label “Christian Socialist”, by which he meant social co-operation and organisation with a religious base.
The bishop was a strong proponent of the role of women in the church and in society. In 1893 he secured the services of Sister Edith (see 24 May) from the Deaconess Community of St. Andrew to found a community in Christchurch for work in education, nursing and welfare. The community eventually became the Community of the Sacred Name. Julius admired the work of Sisters Etheleen and Geraldine in Dunedin at St Hilda’s School and invited their community, the Sisters of the Church, Kilburn, to establish a school in Christchurch. St Margaret’s College was opened in 1910. In 1916 the bishop surrendered half his stipend so that it could be used for education, moved from Bishopscourt to his own house, and used Bishopscourt to found a teaching order. The teaching order did not eventuate, but the “Bishop’s Hostel”, opened in August 1917, continued for the benefit of teachers’ college and university women students. This became Bishop Julius Hostel (now Bishop Julius Hall).
In 1919 Julius presided over one of the few ecclesiastical courts to be held in New Zealand, concerning ritualist practices at St Michael and All Angels, Christchurch. The Bishop’s judgement shows a learned and judicious acceptance of varieties of Anglican practice, with a typically Anglican liking for things to be done decently and in order. Within the province as a whole he was a strong advocate of a standing committee of General Synod, which was set up in 1916. Also, though few others agreed with him, he was in favour of a primatial see. The irony was that he was himself elected primate in 1922, and was the first primate to be titled “archbishop”, an innovation he opposed, hoping that no-one would call him “Your Grace”. He retired as bishop of Christchurch and archbishop in 1925 and died in 1938.
For Liturgical Use
Churchill Julius was born in England in 1847. His background was evangelical. After studies at Oxford and various positions in England he became archdeacon of Ballarat in Australia in 1884. He became bishop of Christchurch in 1890 and developed a strong reputation as an eloquent defender of the rights of workers. He described himself as a Christian Socialist. He was a champion of the role of women in the church. He became primate in 1922, the first in New Zealand to be termed “archbishop”. He retired in 1925 and died in 1938.
Sentence
Blessed are those who consider the poor and helpless; the Lord will save them in time of trouble.		Psalm 41:1
Collects
Gracious God, 
your servant Churchill Julius
won your people’s love and respect
by his faithful witness;
give us a like soundness of advice,
and a steadfast care for all in need;
through him who came among us
as servant of all, 
Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Jesus Christ, 
heart and head of the church,
we thank you for Churchill Julius,
worthy leader and archbishop in his generation;
may we build wisely
on the foundation he and his companions laid.
Psalms 	1	112
Readings
Micah 6:6-8		Walking humbly with God
Philippians 4:4-9		Excellent and praiseworthy
Matthew 10:32-42		Confessing Christ
Post Communion Sentence
Jesus said, “We must work the works of the one who sent me while it is day.”	John 9:4