College News

It is with great sadness that we announce that the Reverend Don Cupitt, Life Fellow of Emmanuel, died on 18 January in Addenbrooke’s Hospital after a short illness. 

Don Cupitt was born in 1934 in Lancashire, England, and educated at Charterhouse, Trinity Hall Cambridge and Westcott House Cambridge. He studied, successively, Natural Sciences, Theology and the Philosophy of Religion. In 1959 he was ordained deacon in the Church of England, becoming a priest in 1960. 

After a short period as a curate in the North of England, and as Vice-Principal of Westcott House, Cupitt was elected to a Fellowship and took up office as Dean of Emmanuel College in 1966. He served as Proctor (Senior) 1967-68. In 1968 he was appointed to a University Assistant Lectureship in the Philosophy of Religion and became a University Lecturer in 1973. He resigned as Dean in 1992 and stopped officiating at public worship around the same time. Four years later he retired from the University, becoming a Life Fellow of Emmanuel.  

Don Cupitt is best known for his radical interventions in contemporary theological debates, which attracted both a devoted following and controversy. His global influence on thinking about theology, religion and ‘non-realist’ philosophy has been immense and he is rightly regarded as a key theorist of the postmodern age, embracing a radical philosophical non-realism in every field: every human construction of religion, knowledge and culture is as equally untrue as it is true. He first provoked hostile notice through his participation in the symposium The Myth of God Incarnate (1977), and then became known for his media work, especially the three BBC television projects Open to Question (1973), Who was Jesus? (1977), and the acclaimed Sea of Faith series (1984), recently re-aired on BBC4. The publication of Taking Leave of God (1980) confirmed him as a non-realist and ‘the most radical theologian in the world’ in the eyes of the press. The Archbishop of Canterbury at the time, Robert Runcie, the Bishop of Ely, Peter Walker, and the Master of Emmanuel, Derek Brewer, defended his right to put forward his ideas.  

Don Cupitt’s thinking continued to develop through a long line of further publications, including The New Religion of Life in Everyday Speech (1999), Philosophy’s Own Religion (2000), What is a Story? (2012), moving increasingly towards a new ethical vision defined by ‘solarity’ in Solar Ethics (1995) and Ethics in the Last Days of Humanity (2015). His thinking gained wide currency through the formation of the international Sea of Faith Network (https://www.sofn.uk). His legacy survives not only through his published works but also in the Sea of Faith archive at Gladstone’s Library, Hawarden (https://doncupitt.chi.ac.uk/sea-of-faith-archive/), and in the influence he has had on subsequent generations of theologians, many of whom were his students. This wide influence was recognised in an international conference to mark the 40th anniversary of the Sea of Faith series at Emmanuel College in July 2024, and in a special feature of the Church Times (28 June 2024). 

Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Susan, and children and grandchildren as they come to terms with his death. 

A book of condolence will be available in the Chapel. If you can't sign the book in person, you can leave a message of remembrance online, to be included with the physical book. Funeral arrangements will be posted here as soon as they are available. 

We were delighted to welcome the University of the Third Age's annual Ron Gray Conference to Emmanuel, where Ron was a fellow, as well as being a U3AC lecturer. Bill Randall, Lent Term 2024's Derek Brewer Visiting Fellow, organised the conference at the College, alongside the rest of the U3AC team.

Mark Sanderson (U3AC Council Member and Conference organiser) who is also an Emmanuel member, sent us this report of the fascinating work that the U3AC undertook during their day here: "We were very lucky to have Professor Bill Randall, Emeritus Professor of Gerontology, from St Thomas University, Canada, join us as he was a visiting fellow at Emmanuel College. Bill put together a day of talks and workshops on the subject of narrative gerontology.

Bill gave the opening talk on exploring the insights into our lives, our selves, and our relationships that can be accessed by reflecting on fables, fairy tales, and other little stories, that we first encountered as children but that, for various reasons, have stayed in our minds ever since. Such stories allow us to frame our lives and draw comparisons from.

The members then rotated around three workshops. Oddgeir Synnes,  Professor of Health Humanities, VID Specialized University, Oslo, Norway, gave us a workshop as an introduction to creative writing in later life based on the speaker’s vast experience from giving courses in creative writing for older adults in various settings. The workshop aimed to engage members through various exercises of creative writing to give an increased understanding of what the method might have to offer.

Karen Skerrett, Clinical psychologist, from University of Chicago and Northwestern University showed how telling stories shape the way we see and react to the world. While some life stories promote a positive, fulfilling life, others undermine well-being. Creating a better story for life, one characterized by a sense of purpose, meaning, caring relationships with others, and wisdom lead to a better quality of life.

David Amigoni, Professor of Victorian Literature and Director of Keele Institute of Social Inclusion, Keele University, was joined by Brenda Hennessey, Jacky Carter, and Steve Bambury from Ages and Stages Theatre Company based at the New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme. The workshop encouraged members to use theatrical techniques to explore body and spoken languages. The workshop had everyone working collectively ‘in the round’ (in a circle) and in breakout groups. The aim was to stimulate members’ creativity, mental flexibility and thinking skills by using improvisation scenarios.

The day finished with a panel discussion where presenters took questions from the floor.

I would like to thank Bill and his colleagues for presenting on the day. Thanks to Emmanuel College for hosting us, and thanks to all those members who joined us."

The college is sad to announce that our Bye-Fellow Jack Lang died on Tuesday 23 April after a long illness.

Jack matriculated in 1966 and had been, at various times, our Director of Studies in Computer Science and in Management Studies. He was appointed a Bye-Fellow in 2003.

Jack was a serial entrepreneur and business angel. Interested in ‘computer science and how the brain works’, his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Sciences led to a Computer Science diploma and a spell as Demonstrator in the Computer Laboratory. He left the University to found, with Professor Shon Ffowcs-Williams, the consulting company TopExpress, one of whose projects was designing some of the software for the BBC Microcomputer.

Jack also founded Electronic Share Information Ltd, which was acquired by E*Trade Inc in 1995, and was a founder of Netchannel Ltd, which was acquired in 1998 by ntl, for whom he subsequently became Chief Technologist. He was also co-founder of Raspberry Pi in 2012, which achieved its aim of putting high-performance, low-cost, general-purpose computing platforms in the hands of enthusiasts and engineers all over the world. Over 60 million computers have been sold in the last decade and the Raspberry Pi Foundation enables young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. Jack  was one of the most significant figures in computing education in the UK.

He was author of ‘The High Tech Entrepreneurs Handbook’ (2002) and taught courses in Business Studies, Entrepreneurship and Ecommerce for the University of Cambridge Computer Science Laboratory. He was Entrepreneur in Residence at the Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning at the Judge Business School.

Jack was a keen sourdough baker, a passionate cook and a caring owner of a very productive apple orchard. A side project was as founder (and sometime chef) of Midsummer House Restaurant, Cambridge's only Michelin starred restaurant. And in keeping with his polymath nature, having mastered the art of designing and making fireworks at a relatively young age, he also became the architect of, and long-term champion for, the Cambridge fireworks display.

He will be much missed and long remembered by many around the world.

Each term, Emmanuel welcomes Visiting Fellows to the College from across academic disciplines to work with Fellows, enjoy college life and explore interdisciplinary connections across our community.

This Lent Term, we’ve been delighted to welcome Professor Bill Randall, who studied with us in 1976, as Derek Brewer Visiting Fellow. He is Emeritus Professor of Gerontology at St Thomas’ University in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, where he has helped to pioneer a unique field of study known as  “narrative gerontology”.  His research and writing explore the complexity of biographical (vs biological) ageing,  changes in autobiographical memory over the lifespan, and the nature of narrative resilience in later life..

His conference (March 19-20, 2024) explores the theme of later life as a journey of consciously growing old instead of passively getting old; as a time of discovery and not just decline. It will explore the possibility of changing the narrative of later life from the sad, slow tragedy in terms of which it is often perceived to, instead, an adventure, one which can lead in a variety of directions (outward, backward, inward, forward). The overarching aim of the event is to foster conversation concerning – and in a sense to test out – such a counter-intuitive vision.

Topics to be discussed include learning, spirituality, and creativity in later life; the role of gender and culture in shaping ageing; ageing and civic engagement; and the place of literature, theatre and poetry in fostering continued development, even amid dementia and at the end of life. While speakers will represent a range of disciplines including psychology, sociology, religious studies, literature, medicine and psychotherapy, the event is geared not only to researchers or practitioners but also to older adults themselves.

The College is sad to announce that our Life Fellow Professor Christopher Burgoyne died suddenly on 2 January in Addenbrookes. A book of condolence will be available in the Chapel. If you can't sign the book in person, you can leave a message of remembrance online, to be included with the physical book.

To generations of Engineers at Emma, Chris was very much a father-figure combining compassion with clearly expressed expectations. Talking to any engineering student in the last 30 years, Chris was central to all aspects of their Cambridge experience. His particular research interest was concrete structures, an area in which he was an acknowledged expert.  Anyone who interacted with Chris was instantly aware of his love of concrete in all its forms, ranging from Coventry Cathedral to Hammersmith Flyover. This structural expertise was also directly applied within College to the awarding-winning Queen’s Building, and the recent development of Young’s Court. 

He joined Emmanuel College in 1989 as an Official Fellow and College Lecturer in Engineering. He was the long-time Director of Studies in Engineering. His knowledge and direct advice made him a valuable member of College Council and many other committees. Though in his own words no sportsman, Chris was involved in both the CU Swimming and Water Polo Club, and also the CU Life-Saving Club. 

He will be deeply missed and long remembered. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Vanessa, and family as they come to terms with his unexpected death.

• Further information & registration for the funeral service