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Sir Alan Goddison with his wife Rosemary |
Retired diplomat with controversial line in sermons
SIR Alan Goodison, 79, who died suddenly two weeks ago, was a man who defied stereotype. A distinguished diplomat, he was known for an occasionally irreverent sense of humour – including once telling prime minister Jim Callaghan that his YSL tie stood for the “Young Socialist League” instead of Yves St Laurent.
And despite fervent religious beliefs, which resulted in a second career as a lay preacher at Hampstead Parish Church, the unabashed liberal was happy to tackle parts many of his peers were afraid to reach – from gay priests to Catholics and condoms.
But there was more to Sir Alan than the colourful waistcoats he loved or the lurid headlines occasionally provoked by his sermons. A warm, compassionate, generous man who devoted much of his time to the church and charity, he wore his substantial erudition lightly, according to colleagues.
The retired diplomat, who lived on his own in Church Row following his wife Rosemary’s death from cancer in 1994, was passionate about theatre and music, with Bach, Mozart and Wagner, particular favourites. Tragically, Hampstead Parish Church was due to hold a tribute concert for him this autumn to mark both his 80th birthday and his planned retirement from lay preaching.
Born in Sheffield in 1926, Sir Alan was proud to call himself a Yorkshireman, although he left the area at the age of two. The grammar school boy received a scholarship to Trinity College Cambridge at the age of 17. Trained as a specialist in Arab affairs, he spent 37 years in the diplomatic service including stints in Portugal, Germany and Italy, culminating in an appointment as Ambassador to Dublin from 1983 to 1986. He was knighted in 1985.
Amongst a plethora of tributes paid to him this week were accolades from former acquaintances and friends, and from his three children Eleanor, John and Catherine.
Eleanor, who described her father as “ very good company and a great conversationalist” said: “He had firmly held beliefs and he was not afraid to express them. There was always a lively political debate in our house.”
Younger daughter Catherine Gallimore said her father would be “greatly missed” adding: “We all feel a great sense of loss. We have had many letters since he died from people paying tribute to his intelligence, his kindness and his generosity.”
Revd Stephen Tucker, vicar at Hampstead Parish Church, who paid tribute to Sir Alan’s preaching skills, said: “His sermons were always very lively. He had a very strong belief in God and this came through in his sermons which were always plain and direct and challenging.”
In one of his last sermons in May, Sir Alan expressed his personal beliefs simply. He said: “I believe that the Gospel does not give us any guarantee that things will always get better.
“But I do on the whole welcome changes in society which mean greater tolerance, greater love for one another, a greater acceptance of the individual freedom to choose one’s way of life and greater acknowledgement that God loves all his creation, not just the traditionalists.”
Sir Alan’s funeral takes place tomorrow (Friday) at 11am in Hampstead Parish Church, Church Row.
An online book of remembrance has been opened by his family at www.siralan.blogspot.
com.
SUNITA RAPPAI
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