<i>Hong Kong’s Last English Bishop: The Life and Times of John Gilbert Hindley Baker</i>, by Philip L. Wickeri

Published in 2021, Philip Wickeri’s Hong Kong’s Last English Bishop: The Life and Times of John Gilbert Hindley Baker sheds light on the unique contributions of an overlooked bishop who presided during some of the most dynamic periods in Hong Kong’s history. Wickeri, a respected scholar of Christianity in China, offers valuable insights into Baker’s role in the history of the Anglican Church of Hong Kong and Macau (HKSKH)—a timely tribute since the HKSKH celebrated its Silver Jubilee as a province and the 180th anniversary of Anglicanism in Hong Kong in 2023.Wickeri’s perspective on this biography of John Gilbert Hindley Baker (1910–86) is “straightforward,” and he has “no overall theme” (4). This position gives readers latitude to explore the connections in Wickeri’s diverse materials. As one reviewer noted, a transnational story of Christianity is embedded in the sources, emphasizing interconnected contexts and networks.Wickeri meticulously lays out these webs of entanglement in seven chapters, beginning with Baker’s English upbringing, particularly his Oxford days. His involvement with the Student Christian Movement and meetings with William Temple and R. O. Hall significantly shaped Baker’s ecumenical outlook and socially minded Christian faith. These experiences prepared him for his later missionary work as a Church Missionary Society missionary in China. Baker also met Lee Shiu Keung, who became a lifelong friend and played a decisive role in Baker’s election as bishop of Hong Kong thirty-three years later (chapter 1).Chapter 2 delves into Baker’s sixteen-year missionary service in China, where he met his wife, the daughter of Episcopal missionaries, while working at Lingnan University in Canton and Lian Da in Yunnan during the Sino-Japanese War. Here he also met future leaders of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement and colleagues from Hong Kong. On his furlough, he traveled to New York to study with Reinhold Niebuhr and Paul Tillich.After his expulsion from China in 1951, Baker worked as an Episcopal priest in Connecticut, followed by ecumenical projects within the Anglican Communion and with the World Council of Churches, which led him to India, Pakistan, Japan, Korea, Jerusalem, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and Hong Kong (chapter 3).Baker’s interest in interfaith dialogue made him a perfect fit as the new acting director at Hong Kong’s Tao Fong Shan Christian Study Center of Chinese Religion and Culture. In an unexpected turn of events, only three months into this post, Baker was elected bishop of Hong Kong and Macau. Chapters 4–6 explore the challenges and milestones of Baker’s bishopric, including his efforts to mend the social divide from the 1967 riots, legalize the ordination of women, and sign a joint agreement on baptism with the Roman Catholics. Assisted by Archdeacon Cheung Wing Ngok, Baker secured government subvention to establish twelve HKSKH secondary schools, fourteen primary schools, and thirty social services centers. The period also marks the tragic death of his wife.Chapter 7 follows Baker into retirement in England, as well as his remarriage, writing projects, and visit to China. He passed away at age seventy-five.The book is full of surprising twists and ironies. For example, Baker had no intention to seek the episcopate. Yet he was elected with the support of his close friend Lee Shiu-Keung despite R. O. Hall’s endorsement of a rival candidate. Baker had no interest in liturgy, but he played a crucial role in drafting and signing “The Joint Declaration on the Sacrament of Holy Baptism” between Anglicans and Catholics in 1974, predating the World Council of Church’s Baptism, Eucharist, and Ministry. He used a loophole in the HKSKH’s ambiguous status to legalize women’s ordination, which made global headlines. Baker was an English bishop but considered himself part of the Chinese Church; he unified the two governing bodies of the HKSKH, the Chinese Synod and the English Churches’ Conference. Unlike the assertive R. O. Hall, Baker earned a trusting working relationship with the Hong Kong government, which enabled the HKSKH to leverage government support to expand social and educational services.In Wickeri’s analysis, Baker was neither a mere placeholder nor an accidental bishop. His ecumenical experience, conciliatory approach, and socially minded faith helped the HKSKH play a crucial role in Hong Kong’s transition from a diasporic refuge to a fledging economy. While oral histories would have added depth to the account, Wickeri’s themeless approach encourages creative exploration of the intricate connections beyond a linear, impact-response historical perspective. Readers interested in global Christianity or Anglicanism in Hong Kong will find the effort particularly rewarding.

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