The Lambeth Degree is a real academic award. The candidates are exempted from the requirement to sit an examination: the awards are made on merit in recognition of their contribution to religious, academic and public life.

Lambeth degrees can be awarded in Divinity, Law, Arts, Literature, Medicine and Music.

The Archbishop will preside over a ceremony at Lambeth Palace on Tuesday 1^st July when the degrees will be awarded.

The Archbishop of Canterbury's right to grant degrees is derived from Peter's Pence Act of 1533 which empowered the Archbishop to grant dispensations previously granted by the Pope. The practice began during the time when attendance at Oxford and Cambridge, the only universities at that time in England, was frequently disrupted by the difficulty of travel or outbreaks of the plague. The Archbishop was empowered to grant exemption from the residential requirements necessary for a degree.

Those to be awarded degrees are:

Mrs Margaret Barker   

DD: In recognition of her work on the Jerusalem Temple and the origins of Christian liturgy which has made a significant new contribution to our understanding of the New Testament and opened up important fields for research.

Professor Terence Copley      

DD: In recognition of his contribution to the theory and practice of Religious Education in schools and his promotional work highlighting the importance of the subject in relation to both the educational and wider public agendas.

The Very Revd John Drury 

DD: In recognition of his theological scholarship, arousing interest in religious art and for his significant contribution to liturgy and church music while Dean of King's College Cambridge and Dean of Christ Church, Oxford.

Mrs Margaret Duggan 

MA: In recognition of her 45 years of outstanding and knowledgeable service to the Anglican Church through the columns of the Church Times.

Mr Charles (Bill) Ives

DMus: In recognition of his significant contribution to church music, particularly as a composer and as Organist and Informator Choristarum at Magdalen College, Oxford.

Ms Christine Morgan   

MA: In recognition of her contribution to religious broadcasting, ensuring both its quality and diversity in a highly challenging environment.

The Revd Canon Oestreicher

DD:In recognition of his work as a theologian and his ecumenical commitment to peace, reconciliation and human rights, especially at the height of the Cold War.

The Revd Canon David Scott  

DLitt: In recognition of his contribution to deepening the spiritual life of the Church through his standing as a poet and his teaching ministry, particularly on the work of Thomas Merton but also on a range of other writers from Anglo-Saxon times onwards and his recent work, 'The Mind of Christ'.

The Revd Barry Till                 

DD:In recognition of his work as a Church of England historian, specialising in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

The Revd Canon Andrew Wheeler                 

DD: In recognition of his contribution to the study of African Christianity and his encouragement of Sudanese historical and theological thinking.