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The Revd Dr John Coleman 1924-2003

This tribute from Terry Waite originally appeared in Church Times (5 September 2003) and is reprinted by kind permission.

Held hostage in Iran

Dr John Coleman, who died on 16 August, aged 79, was, above all, a loyal and true Christian, and that is how he would have wished to be remembered.

I shall never forget my first meeting with him. It took place in Tehran in early 1981. For several weeks, I had been conducting difficult discussions with Revolutionary Guards, in an attempt to secure the release of John, his wife Audrey, Jean Waddell, secretary to the Anglican Bishop, and several Iranian Anglicans. All were being held hostage.

Eventually, I was able to win the trust of the guards, and they conducted me to an interrogation centre somewhere on the outskirts of the city. I was escorted to a small cell, all the while wondering if I was going to be detained myself. The door was unlocked, and there, sitting on the floor, was Dr John Coleman.

Eventually, I had the pleasure of returning to the UK with all the British hostages, and thus began a friendship with John and Audrey that lasted for almost 25 years.

John had a great sense of humour. In captivity, he wore the same pair of Marks & Spencer trousers day and night for several months. He wore the same vest also, and by then it was full of holes. He made great play of this, and on his release M&S presented him with several new pairs that he wore with pride.

Although he suffered in captivity, never once did he express any bitterness against his captors. His truly forgiving spirit made a considerable impression on them.

John was from a Christian tradition different from my own, but that never once proved to be a barrier to our friendship. His faith was firm; his compassion was deep; and his love extended to all who came in contact with him.

Son of a missionary doctor

John Coleman was born in Cairo in 1924, the son of a missionary doctor working at Harpur Memorial Hospital. He formed a strong affection for the Middle East. His family returned to the UK within a few years, and his father worked as a GP in Bromley, Kent. At eight, he vowed that he would be a missionary doctor like his father.

He studied at Christ’s College, Cambridge, and St Thomas’s in London, and in 1946 married Audrey Ponsford, a pharmacist. Their missionary life began in Palestine in 1948 with the Church Mission Society (CMS), but this was disrupted by conflict there, and they transferred to Iran.

For 17 years, he worked in Shiraz as a hospital doctor. Iranians took to him, and he was given the freedom of the city. Some of his happiest memories were of weekly safaris to remote villages, where he would conduct clinics and preach. There was always a team of helpers, and they would travel with him in the back of a truck. John would lead rounds of hearty singing.

Patients would line up to see him, usually accompanied by numerous relatives, who would tap his knees to catch his attention in order to offer their ideas about what was wrong.

He often took with him an Armenian friend, who read the Bible out loud as the clinic went on. John didn’t seem to worry much about whether the people understood his thick Armenian accent. Afterwards he would always preach himself.

Work in Bethnal Green

The Colemans returned to England in 1964, for the education of their sons, Nigel, Gordon, Christopher and Andrew. They settled in the East End of London, and for 13 years he was Superintendent of the Bethnal Green Medical Mission. He kept this link for the rest of his life. He gave generously. He always kept a separate bank account that he called ‘The Lord’s Fund’. During his days at Bethnal Green, he developed a close link with the Crypt Project at Christ Church, Spitalfields. He regularly invited alcoholics from the project to share the Coleman Christmas lunch.

Doctor and priest in Yazd

When the Colemans returned to Iran in 1978, they were based at a clinic in Yazd. There was no priest, and it was agreed that John should be ordained. He was certainly no theologian, and in many ways hung loose to Anglicanism. With customary vigour, he completed 19 essays, though some of them were brief.

John was an activist, and his was an activist brand of Evangelical Christianity. He would become completely focused on a project, sometimes telephoning a colleague in the middle of the night, unaware of the time. He didn’t mind risk. In later years, he insisted on visiting Yemen, a place that the Foreign Office said Britons should avoid.

One of his gifts was an interest in people, and he put great effort into keeping in touch with people all over the world. He became adept in the use of email, and at the time of his death his email address book contained 450 entries.

Audrey was his fount of strength. Her death in 2001 deeply saddened him. He was a great romantic, and regularly left her appreciative notes and flowers. He urged his sons to do the same with their wives.

I last met him in the hospice in his beloved East End. We laughed together as we remembered the time I took him round an airport duty-free store and he, an ardent teetotaller, emerged with a bag of peanuts! John was a steadfast friend to many, and a devoted family man.

The East London Tabernacle was packed out for his Thanksgiving Service on 8th September.

Dr John in Egypt

The Rt Revd Mouneer Anis, Anglican Bishop in Egypt adds:

Bishop Ghais Malek invited Dr John Coleman, in 1985, to be the minister in charge of the church of the Epiphany in Port Said, where he spent five years. During this time he frequently visited Menouf to help in surgical operations at Harpur Memorial Hospital and to preach at St Mark’s church. When he returned to the United Kingdom in 1989, he continued to serve the diocese of Egypt through the Egypt Diocesan Association and also in his capacity as the Bishop’s Commissary.

Dr John loved Egypt and considered it his home. He had excellent relationships with all his friends and colleagues in the Diocese. It is not surprising that he has many friends here in Egypt.

Dr John helped me to realise that I have a role in God’s great commission. This experience transformed my life, and I am proud to think of myself as one of his disciples. We all thank God for the life of Dr John Coleman and all that he gave to the church in Egypt and the world. Let us rejoice that he is with his Master hearing, “Well done, good and faithful servant”.

The Very Revd Brian George Henry 1930-2003

The Venerable Michael Mansbridge, former Archdeacon in the Gulf, writes as follows:

Archdeacon in Cyprus

The Very Revd Bryan George Henry died in Wales on the 9th of May this year, 2003, leaving behind his widow, Chris, and his son, Martyn and his family.

Bryan Henry was Provost of St Paul’s Cathedral, Nicosia, and Archdeacon in Cyprus from 1981 to 1990. He brought to St. Paul’s Cathedral, Nicosia, not only his experience as an RAF Chaplain, but also much energy and enthusiasm. With Chris, his wife, they made a ministry team which attracted many to the Cathedral to worship, and many to the Vicarage for generous hospitality. They gave much sympathy with tea and coffee for those in need, and for all, warmth and laughter. Theirs was a memorable time, and the circle of their friends widened year by year, not only in Nicosia but throughout Cyprus, where Bryan’s lead as Archdeacon in both Anglican and Ecumenical affairs was important. In the Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf his role on committees, in Synod, and much activity on behalf of the Bishop, was appreciated.

It was on his initiative that the idea of the Diocesan Office and St Paul’s Parish Hall was turned into a vital reality, and one that has been of inestimable benefit to both.

Bryan’s gathering together of diplomats and others working for a short spell in Nicosia, and his blending them with the permanent congregation of Cypriot-British families was significant. In this, Chris and the St Paul’s Ladies Guild and Friendship Group were a strong support and example.

During most of this period, Bryan was also the Provincial Secretary of the Central synod of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East.

Together Bryan and Chris left an indelible mark on St Paul’s. His gift for preaching held his hearers fixed, and his kindness and that of Chris won many for Christ. We offer our gratitude to God for his ministry