Canon Philip Miller writes:
THE Revd Brian Vaudrey Bason, who died on 4 December, aged 86, was
brought up in West Gorton, Manchester, where his lifelong fondness
for Anglo-Catholic worship was nurtured by attendance at St
Benedict's, Ardwick.
He spent his National Service as a miner down the Bradford pit
near by, before his time at Leeds University, and the College of
the Resurrection, Mirfield. Fr Bason was ordained by Bishop Wand at
St Paul's in 1951, and served his titleat St Augustine's,
Haggerston, under the tutelage of Fr Wilson, who dedicated one of
his books to him.
He returned north in 1955, and became the Vicar of St Hilda's,
Audenshaw, for the next 34 years, until retirement. His ministry
there was far from conventional, andhe used his considerable
musical talents not only in worship, but also to entertain in the
pubs and working-men's clubs of the parish. He was in demand as a
witty and compelling preacher and speaker, reiterating over and
over again that "The church is not a cosy club for pious people."
He looked to his congregation to perform practical Christian acts
in the community, and began the famed annual trip for disabled
people to Southport, for which he and his people planned and saved
hard all year long.
He was outspoken on many occasions, and became a member of the
Communist Party. He believed that it was wrong for him to claim a
stipend from the Church while he had gifts that could sustain his
priestly ministry. This led him, in 1973, to become a master at
Audenshaw Grammar (later High) School, where he taught RE and rugby
for the next 26 years, often joking that RE stood for "rugby
education" in his case.
Pastoral work in the parish was undertaken in the evening or at
weekends, and he faithfully visited the sick and housebound,
despite his own personal squeamishness. His energetic life as a
pastor and teacher was sustained by the mass, which he offered
daily until his retirement.
Fr Bason was no lightweight, and was a lifelong learner. A
fluent German speaker, he was still studying works of German
literature, and had recently been learning Hungarian. He had a good
knowledge of Swedish, and continued to be widely read and
articulate in many disciplines. He devoured the works of Richard
Dawkins, and constantly challenged clerical visitors to his home on
matters of faith.
Growing physical weakness characterised his last ten years, but,
although he never married, he received enormous consolation to the
end from the care and ministrations of his close friend and
companion.