A Question of Continuity

As dean of Christ Church, and therefore of an Oxford College and a cathedral both, the Very Reverend John Lowe has been at Oxford for nine years, but few Oxonians would claim to know him well. He is a spare and stooped theologian, unfailingly polite to everyone--and just as unfailingly aloof. He gives no tutorials, has made few academic changes, seldom even invites anyone in to tea. But last week all Oxford was talking about John Lowe. He had just been made vice chancellor, the nearest thing Oxford has to a president (the chancellorship, at present held by Lord Halifax, is largely honorary).

The appointment came as a surprise to Oxonians, probably including John Lowe himself. When Vice Chancellor W.T.S. Stallybrass was killed in an accident a fortnight, ago (he was the first ever to die in office), his job should normally have gone to the next senior college head--Dr. John R. H. Weaver, president of Trinity. Dr. Weaver declined the appointment for reasons of health. Next in line: Dr. Cecil Maurice Bowra, warden of Wadham, who was at Harvard as a visiting professor and did not want to interrupt his visit to return to England. So the appointment fell to Lowe.

Not only is John Lowe the first Canadian ever to be chosen, but at 49 he is one of the youngest vice chancellors in Oxford's history. Born in Calgary, Alberta, he studied at Toronto's Trinity College, won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford, then taught for twelve years at Trinity before returning to Oxford. Over the years, John Lowe has never changed the quiet pattern of his life, and does not intend to change it now. Says he of his new job: "It's just a question of continuity, just a question of carrying on."

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