People
Vicar (elect)
Fr Jonathan Lewis-JongBio
Having grown up in Malaysian Borneo, Jonathan then completed his undergraduate and doctoral studies in New Zealand before arriving in Oxford in 2012 for postdoctoral research at the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography as well as for ordination training at Cuddesdon. Once he was ordained in 2014, he served his curacy here at St Mary Magdalen's, and stayed on thereafter as Associate Priest. He married Ella Mae here in 2019, where they also met. Jonathan and Ella left Oxford in 2020, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, new baby Edith (and puppy Nimbus) in tow, to be closer to family in West Sussex. From 2021, Jonathan was Rector of Cocking with West Lavington, Bepton, and Heyshott—a Benefice of three rural parishes—while also maintaining his academic work at the intersection of psychological science and theology. His most recent books include Experimenting with Religion (2023; OUP) and The Nature of Belief (2026; OUP, with Eric Schwtizgebel, eds)—more information about his academic work can be found at www.jonathanlewisjong.info. Jonathan, Ella Mae, Edith, and Nimbus return with a more recent addition to the family, Caspar, who is turning three.
Associate Priest
The Revd Professor Judith M. BrownBio
Judith is an Emeritus Fellow of Balliol College (and helps in the college chapel). She was from 1990 to 2011 Beit Professor of Commonwealth History at Oxford, having taught previously in Manchester University and Cambridge. She did her own undergraduate and post-graduate work in Cambridge and became a Fellow of Girton, her own college. Her academic speciality is modern India. She was born in India and has spent considerable time there for research. She has travelled widely for leisure and also for academic work, including giving summer courses in the University of Natal, South Africa, and serving on the Scholars' Council for the Library of Congress, Washington DC. She knew she was called to the priesthood as a young woman, well before the Anglican church ordained women. Eventually she was able to respond to that calling and after training at Cuddesdon was ordained in 2009. Before coming to Mary Mags in 2014 she ministered in the Botley benefice, with a particular care for St. Frideswide's church. She acted as interim chaplain at Brasenose college in 2017, and is a spiritual director. She was married to her late husband, Peter, for 31 years: their son, James, works in political consultancy in London and is married to Julia Sitkovetsky, an opera singer. Judith is a passionate gardener, and also enjoys walking and classical music.
Email The Revd Professor Judith M. Brown
Associate Priest
The Revd Dr Melanie MarshallBio
Mthr Mel is currently Acting Chaplain at Balliol College. She spent her twenties studying and teaching classics in Oxford before before being sent from Mary Mags to Westcott House and Emmanuel College Cambridge. After serving as a curate at St Michael and All Angels Bedford Park in the Diocese of London, Mthr Mel returned to Oxford to spend five extremely happy years as Chaplain of Lincoln College. She loves opera and knitting and writing sermons and helping her friends with their renaissance Latin, but above all things she likes just hanging out with people. It was Fr Peter who introduced her to her husband Mark, a fellow classicist and theologian. They live in Headington with their son Clement, small daughter Ursula and Bruno the ginger cat.
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Churchwarden
Deborah VorhiesBio
Deborah was born in Cape Town and has spent most of her life working in international policy in Geneva and saving the environment in various unlikely locations. Now settled in Oxford, she works with FairWild Foundation and AWEI -the African Wildlife Economy Institute. In her leisure hours she can be found attending concerts, dabbling in her tiny garden and indulging in the sport of philosophy, specifically ethics.
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Churchwarden
Charl EngelaBio
Charl was born half-Scots and half-Afrikaans in Chelsea, grew up on a farm in South Africa, and moved to Oxford in September 1996. He has degrees in art history and music, and spent most of his working life as an IT consultant. He now works for Oxfordshire County Council but has no responsibility for potholes. Having passed through Catholic school, Ulster Presbyterian, and strict Calvinist churches, he has found his spiritual home at St. Mary Mags. His pastimes include playing bass in various Oxfordshire jazz bands, making and drinking cocktails, and supporting the Springboks, Oxford United, and Aston Villa. He is married to Suzie with whom he shares five adult children and stepchildren, and three grandsons.
Email Charl Engela
Director of Music
Will DawesBio
Will Dawes is Director of Music at the church of St Mary Magdalen's; Director of Chapel Music of Somerville College, Oxford; and Director of Frideswide Voices (Oxford’s first liturgical choir for 7-14 year-old girls). He studied Choral Conducting and Singing at RAM, and has since directed numerous excellent choral societies and chamber choirs across the UK. He was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music in 2018.
Will is active as a consort singer and is a member of the internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble Stile Antico. The group performs all over the globe, including concerts in the Wigmore Hall, at the BBC Proms, and in 2018 performed at the Grammy's in Madison Square Garden. He is a former Lay Clerk of Christ Church, Oxford, and has sung with Collegium Vocale Gent, The Cardinall's Musick, Magnificat, and Polyphony.
As a soloist, Will has sung works such as Carmina Burana (Orff), Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Mahler), and The Wound Dresser (Adams) as well as more canonic works by Bach and Handel. His one and only operatic role to date is that of Mr Gedge in Albert Herring.
For further information, including forthcoming performances, please visit http://www.willdawes.co.uk
Safeguarding Officer
Peter DockrillBio
Born in the Riviera of the North, Blackpool, Pete grew up near Cambridge and studied Physics at University College London, where he specialised in High Energy Particle Physics and worked on the DUNE and SuperNEMO experiments. Following choral scholarships at Chelmsford, Southwark, Lincoln and Wells Cathedrals, Pete was a Lay Clerk in the choir of King's College Cambridge and currently sings as a Lay Clerk in the choir of The Queen’s College Oxford. After several years working in bioinformatics, Pete recently became a maths teacher.
Pete is always happy to discuss anything relating to safeguarding at St Mary Magdalen, either in person or via email.
Hon. Treasurer
Oscar Riba-ThompsonBio
Oscar has been Treasurer of St Mary Magdalen since 2025.
Email Oscar Riba-ThompsonParish Administrator
Matthew WattsBio
Matthew has been parish administrator of St Mary Magdalen since 2026.
Email Matthew Watts