The Very Rev. Bede Jarrett O.P. | |
|---|---|
.png) | |
| Born | Cyril Jarrett (1881-08-22)22 August 1881 Greenwich, England |
| Died | 17 March 1934(1934-03-17) (aged 52) London, England |
| Education | |
| Occupations | Clergyman, writer |
Bede Jarrett OP (22 August 1881 – 17 March 1934) was an EnglishDominicanfriar andCatholic priest who was also a noted historian and author. Known for works includingMediæval Socialism andThe Emperor Charles IV, Jarrett also founded Blackfriars Priory at theUniversity of Oxford in 1921, formally reinstating the Dominican Order at that university for the first time since theDissolution of the Monasteries underKing Henry VIII.
Born inGreenwich asCyril Jarrett, he was the fifth of six sons to parents Colonel H.S. Jarrett, Companion of theOrder of the Indian Empire (CIE), and Agnes (Beaufort) Jarrett.[1][2] Beginning in 1891, Jarrett studied atStonyhurst, and in August 1898 he joined the Order of Preachers (OP), also known as the Dominican Order, atSt Dominic's Priory in London.[2] Jarrett continued to study at thenovitiate inWoodchester and became anovice on 24 September 1898 under the new name of Friar Bede.[2][3] Hisreligious name was forBede, known as "the Venerable Bede", an early British Catholic saint sometimes called the Father of English History.[1][4] On 30 August 1900, Jarrett moved to continue his studies of philosophy, theology and history atHawkesyard Priory and received minor orders and thesubdiaconate, anddiaconate in 1902.[2][3]
In 1904 Jarrett became the first Dominican friar since the Reformation to study at the University of Oxford,[5] matriculating as a student with theBenedictines atSt. Benet's Hall. He studied history and completed his degree in 1907.[1] On 18 December 1904, after his first term at Oxford, Jarrett was ordained in Woodchester.[3] To complete his formal education, in 1908 he received his lectorate in theology atLouvain.[1]
St Dominic's Priory became Jarrett's first and long-time station.[6] Appointedprior at the "unusually early"[3] age of 33 and beginning his position on 17 June 1914, Jarrett became the electedprovincial two years after on 5 September 1916 and held the office until his death in 1934 after a record four successful elections.[3][6] His accomplishments at St Dominic's included expanding the Laxton Dominican School for Boys, beginning a series ofThomistic lectures sponsored by London University and launching missions in the Middle East and South Africa.[3] He felt it was important that Dominicans preach abroad rather than concentrate efforts domestically, a departure from the previous provincial who had not pursued the South African mission for that reason.[7]
Jarrett also founded theBlackfriars Dominican priory in Oxford.[3] Construction began on 15 August 1921; it took Jarrett eight years to raise the funds to build the new priory, the success of which peers attributed to his frequent trips to and fundraising in the United States.[8] The event earned a letter of congratulations and encouragement from PopeBenedict XV.[9] The priory opened in 1929 but was incomplete at the time of Jarrett's death.[3][10]
Jarrett authored numerous books, prayers and articles, including five entries in theCatholic Encyclopedia.[11] He also purchasedBlackfriars, a Dominican magazine renamedNew Blackfriars in the 1960s, for £40 in 1919 and persuaded publisherBasil Blackwell to publish it, which prevented it from being discontinued.[12][13]
Jarrett died of sudden illness at theHospital of St John and St Elizabeth in London on 17 March 1934.[3][14] He was buried at the Dominican priory in Woodchester.[15]
| Title | Publication date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mediaeval Socialism | 1914 | |
| S. Antonino and Mediæval Economics | 1914 | |
| Meditations for Layfolk | 1915 | Later published under the titleClassic Catholic Meditations[19] |
| Saint Catherine of Siena: Her Life and Times | 1916 | With Catherine Mary Antony |
| The Abiding Presence of the Holy Ghost in the Soul | 1918 | Later published under the titlesHe Dwells in Your Soul andThe Little Book of the Holy Spirit[20] |
| Living Temples | 1919 | |
| The Religious Life | 1920 | |
| The English Dominicans | 1921 | |
| Life of St. Dominic | 1924 | |
| Social Theories in the Middle Ages: 1200–1500 | 1926 | |
| A history of Europe from earliest times to the present | 1929 | |
| The Space of Life Between | 1930 | |
| House of Gold: Lenten Sermons | 1931 | |
| No Abiding City: Lenten Conferences Given at Our Lady of Victories | 1932 | |
| Our Lady of Lourdes: Meditations on the Saleve Regina | 1934 | |
| Contardo Ferrini | 1934 | |
| The Emperor Charles IV | 1935 | Published after Jarrett's death[21] |
| Purity | 1937 |
| Title | Publication date | Editor(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letters of Bede Jarrett | 1989 | Simon Tugwell [Wikidata],Aidan Bellenger |
