Richard Kidder
Richard Kidder (1633–1703) was an English Anglican churchman, Bishop of Bath and Wells, from 1691 to his death. He was a noted theologian.
Biography
He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he was a sizar, from 1649, graduating 1652.[1] He became a Fellow there in 1655, and vicar of Stranground, Huntingdonshire, in 1659.[2] He was deprived in 1662.[3]
He was rector of Rayne Parva, Essex, from 1664 to 1674, having conformed to the Act of 1662. He was later vicar of St. Martin Outwich, London, and in 1689 a royal chaplain,[4] and dean of Peterborough.
His A Demonstration of the Messias[5] has been identified as a significant influence on the librettist Charles Jennens, in writing the words for the Messiah of Handel.[6] This book also took up suggestions of Joseph Mede on multiple authorship of the Book of Zechariah.[7]
He was killed in the Great Storm of 1703, on 26 November (7 December in today’s calendar);[8] he was in bed with his wife in the episcopal palace at Wells when the chimney fell on both of them.[9]
Works
- The Christian sufferer supported (1680)
- A Demonstration of the Messias. In which the Truth of the Christian Religion is Proved, Against All the Enemies Thereof; But Especially Against the Jews. In Three Parts (1684, 1699, 1700)
- A sermon upon the resurrection (1694)
- A Commentary on the Five Books of Moses: With a Dissertation Concerning the Author Or Writer of the said books and a general argument to each of them (1694)
- The life of the Reverend Anthony Horneck, late preacher at the Savoy (1698)
- The holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments (1715)
- A Discourse Concerning Sins of Infirmity, and Wilful Sins, with Another of Restitution (reprint, 2010)
Notes
- ↑ "Kidder, Richard (KDR649R)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
- ↑ Concise Dictionary of National Biography.
- ↑ , CNDB.
- ↑ CNDB
- ↑ A Demonstration of the Messias. In which the Truth of the Christian Religion is proved, against all the Enemies thereof; but especially against the Jews. In three volumes, published 1684, 1699, 1700.
- ↑ ; Michael Marissen, Rejoicing against Judaism in Handel's Messiah, Journal of Musicology, Spring 2007, Vol. 24, No. 2, Pages 167-194.
- ↑ Bible Survey: The Book of Zechariah
- ↑ November 27, Every-Day Book
- ↑ Newsletter 35
External links
- Works by or about Richard Kidder in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
| Church of England titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Simon Patrick |
Dean of Peterborough 1689–1691 |
Succeeded by Samuel Freeman |
| Preceded by Thomas Ken |
Bishop of Bath and Wells 1691–1703 |
Succeeded by George Hooper |