WILLIAMS
,
WILLIAM RICHARD
(
1896
-
1962
),
minister (Presb.) and Principal of the United Theological College, Aberystwyth
;
b.
4 Apr. 1896
at
Pwllheli, Caerns.
, son of
Richard
and
Catherine
Williams
, his mother of the lineage of
Siarl
Marc
of
Bryncroes
(
DWB
, 614)
. He was educated at
Penlleiniau church day-school
and
Pwllheli County School
. He won a
Mrs Clarke Scholarship
, enabling him to enter
University College
,
Aberystwyth
, where he graduated with first-class honours in
Greek
and second class in philosophy. His father died in
1912
, and he and his mother moved to
Aberystwyth
, becoming members of
Tabernacl church
where he began to
preach
. He
served in the army
for a period during
World War I
. He continued his education at
Lincoln College
,
Oxford
, where he graduated with a first class in theology. He was ord. in
1921
, and served as
minister
of
Bethel
,
Gowerton, Glam.
(
1921-22
) and
Argyle English Church
,
Swansea
(
1922-25
). He was appointed
assistant lecturer
at
Aberystwyth Theological College
(
1925-27
), and then became
Professor of the Philosophy of Religion
(
1927-28
), and of
Greek and N.T. exegesis
(
1928-49
). He was
principal of the college
from
1949
until he d. in
1962
. In
1928
he m.
Violet Irene
Evans
of
Swansea
, and they had a son.
W.R.
Williams
d.
18 Dec. 1962
.
He was a
prominent figure in his denomination
. He delivered the
Davies Lecture
in
1939
on ‘
The Missionary Spirit in the Early Church
’, which was not published. He served as
Moderator
of the
General Assembly
(
1960
), and
Moderator
of the
South Wales Association
(
1962
). He took an interest in the
Sunday school
and the
Foreign and Home Missions
, and was
president
of the
Forward Movement
for many years. He was
one of the leading promoters of the ecumenical movement
in
Wales
; he was the first
secretary
of the
Council of Churches of Wales
, and its
president
when he d. In
1961
he was elected
chairman
of the
British committee of the Presbyterian Alliance
. He was a
member of the joint-committee which was appointed to prepare a new English translation of the Bible
, and in
1961
he was appointed
director of the committee which was established to prepare a new Welsh translation of the Bible
. He
contributed to the periodicals of his denomination
and published three volumes of biblical commentary:
Arweiniad i Efengyl Ioan
(
1930
),
Yr Epistol at yr Hebreaid
(
1932
),
and Epistol cyntaf Ioan
(
1943
).
Sources:
-
Who's who in the Free
Churches?
(1951)
(1951)
, 358;
-
Blwyddiadur y Methodistiaid Calfinaidd
,
1964
, 284-5;
-
Y Drysorfa
,
1960
, 114-7;
1962
, 64-7;
May 1963
;
-
information from his son, the
Rev. Richard Williams
;
- personal acquaintance.
Author:
Rev. Gomer Morgan Roberts, M.A., (1904-93), Pont-rhyd-y-fen / St
Dogmael's / Llandybïe
