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Rev. Bernard Thorogood, who served as the first general secretary of the Council for World Mission and also served on the World Council of Churches (WCC) central and executive committees, was 92 when he passed away peacefully in Sydney.
He also served as a missionary of the former London Missionary Society during the 1950s and 60s in the Pacific region, mostly in the Cook Islands. At a time when the churches, founded by the early missionaries, were seeking to establish themselves as credible and authentic witnesses to the gospel in context, Thorogood was a positive source of influence and inspiration for the people. He assisted them to assert their identity and to affirm their place in the great missionary enterprise, which needed to find root in the voices, faces and experiences of the local people.
Susan Durber, WCC Faith and Order moderator, said: “Bernard was the most gracious and godly person I have ever met and I will never forget his encouragement of a young minister and the sense I had that here was someone to whom God was close. I have been glad to follow him into the ecumenical movement - I would have followed anywhere he walked.”
WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca reflected that Thorogood has left a heritage that continues to bear fruit. “His legacy in the ecumenical movement and in the global field of mission will continue to shape our work for unity and peace,” said Sauca.
In 1977, Thorogood was appointed as the first general secretary of the Council for World Mission. After retiring from that position, he went on to serve the United Reformed Church as its general secretary, a position he held until 1992.
He is survived by his wife Joan, and his children John and Neil.
Rev. Tony Coates, a former WCC staff member who worked with the Language Service, wrote in “Who They Were,” a description of Thorogood as an effective church administrator and ecumenist.
“Bernard Thorogood’s quiet wisdom is evident in several books,” wrote Coates. “As his leisure activity he lists sketching and his sketches reveal his sensitivity and appreciation of natural and architectural beauty.”