The Very Rev Trevor Beeson obituary

Trevor Beeson wrote books on liturgy and worship, and on the church in oppressed parts of the world, the Soviet Union and eastern Europe, and Latin America Photograph: None

There was a time when Trevor Beeson was one of the most widely known and appreciated figures in the Church of England, through his writings and journalism probably as much as his ministry, which was mainly served in senior positions at Westminster Abbey and Winchester Cathedral.

Both roles reinforced his promotion of modernisation in the church, in support of ecumenism, women’s ordination and reform of the antiquated administration of many cathedrals, at a time when these were not necessarily high on the Anglican agenda, though he lived to see many of those changes brought about. That he was an able preacher and administrator himself, spearheading a major fundraising effort to raise nearly £7m in two years to shore up Winchester, always in danger of sinking into its marshy foundations, was an added bonus.