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THE Bishop of Guildford, the Rt Revd Andrew Watson, died on Tuesday, just three weeks after announcing that he had been diagnosed with inoperable pancreatic cancer (News, 13 February).He died peacefully, surrounded by his family, the Bishop of Dorking, the Rt Revd Paul Davies, said in a notice on Tuesday evening.In a press release on 10 February, Bishop Watson had said that stomach pain, an aversion to eating, and consequent weight-loss had prompted a series of investigations within the New Year, which had ultimately led to his diagnosis of a giant tumour within the pancreas that week.In a pastoral letter ten days later, on 20 February, he said that his oncologist had told him that the tumour was “particularly aggressive” and that he could be “doing well” if he was alive in a month’s time (News, 27 February). He was put into the care of the hospice team.Bishop Watson wrote: “I don’t fear the prospect of dying and find to my relief that my faith within the ‘resurrection of the body and the life everlasting’ has only grown stronger over the past few weeks.” While he had had “grumpy patches”, he considered himself “deeply blessed” to have been born right into a loving family, to have been “joyfully married” for 40 years and raised 4 “remarkable” children, and to have had such a satisfying ministry within the Church of England.Bishop Watson had previously hoped to proceed in office until Easter, but after the news had signed a deed of delegation handing responsibility for the diocese to Bishop Davies.Announcing his death on Tuesday, Bishop Davies said: “Whilst his family mourn the lack of a much-loved husband, father, grandfather, son, and brother, we mourn the lack of a much-loved diocesan bishop — in addition to an inspiring fellow disciple, dear brother in Christ, precious friend, and special colleague.”He continued: “In the midst of the shock and sadness of the previous couple of months, Bishop Andrew has been an inspiration. For me, personally, he has taught me a lot about how we must always live and, in these past months, about how we must always die.”Last week, an all-day prayer vigil was held at Guildford Cathedral, during which almost 2000 clergy and lay people from the diocese and beyond attended in a show of support.Bishop Watson was born in 1961 and grew up in Buckinghamshire and Hampshire. He read law at Corpus Christi, Cambridge, before training for the priesthood at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. He was ordained deacon in 1987 and priest in 1988.He served curacies at St Peter’s, Ipsley, in Worcester diocese, until 1991, and St John and St Peter, Notting Hill, within the diocese of London, until 1996. He was appointed Vicar of Twickenham East, where he served until 2008, during which era he was also Area Dean of Hampton. He was consecrated bishop for the suffragan see of Aston, in Birmingham diocese, in 2008, before his translation to Guildford in 2014.He is survived by his wife, Beverly, 4 children (Hannah, Sam, Joe, and Lydia), and three grandchildren, in addition to his mother and three siblings.The Archbishop of Canterbury, who very recently visited Bishop Watson in his home, said on Tuesday that her thoughts and prayers were together with his family: “It is with great sorrow that I received news of Bishop Andrew’s death. Andrew was a person of deep Christian faith who lived his life within the service of Christ and others. In the face of death, he demonstrated a peaceful reassurance of God’s saving grace.“Over 4 many years of ministry, Andrew made an unlimited contribution to the lifetime of the Church of England — and, through his concern for Anglicans and other Christians all over the world, the worldwide Church. He was a delicate man and generous with those that held differing theological views. He will probably be greatly missed, not only by his family and friends, but by the entire Church.”The Dean of Guildford, the Very Revd Bob Cooper, said: “We have lost a shepherd, a servant, and a pricey friend.”The Diocesan Secretary, Geraldine Newbold, said that this was “a really sad time for our diocese. Bishop Andrew was such an exquisite, caring man, who was genuinely keen on people and loved spending time with parishioners. He was also incredibly gifted and knowledgeable, and all of us learnt lots from him.”Obituary to follow
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Source: https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2026/6-march/news/uk/tributes-flow-to-bishop-watson-of-guildford-who-has-died-aged-64
