Vigo Auguste Demant, Anglican clergyman, theologian and social commentator, was one of the 14 committee members who served on the Wolfenden report

Wolfenden report

The Report of the Departmental Committee on Homosexual Offences and Prostitution was published in Britain on 4 September 1957 after a succession of well-known men, including Lord Montagu, Michael Pitt-Rivers and Peter Wildeblood, were convicted of homosexual offences.-The committee:The...

 on Homosexual Offences and Prostitution. He was born on 8 November 1893 and died on 3 March 1983 at the age of 89. He was Canon of Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

 and Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology

Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology

The Regius Professorship of Moral and Pastoral Theology was founded at the University of Oxford in 1842; the initial title was Regius Professor of Pastoral Theology.*1842-1873 Charles Atmore Ogilvie*1873-1885 Edward King*1885-1892 Francis Paget...

 at the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

 from 1949 to 1971.

He served two curacies, one in Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

 and the second in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. He became Vicar

Vicar

In the broadest sense, a vicar is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior . In this sense, the title is comparable to lieutenant...

 of St John’s, Richmond, in Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

 in 1933 and nine years later he became a Canon of St Paul’s Cathedral.Crockfords Clerical Directory 1973

The Wolfenden report was published in Britain on 3 September 1957 and, disregarding the conventional ideas of the day, recommended that "homosexual behaviour between consenting adults in private should no longer be a criminal offence".

Demant was a regular broadcaster on BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

's Third Programme in the 1950s. supported Maurice Reckitt

Maurice Reckitt

Maurice Benington Reckitt was a leading British Anglo-Catholic and Christian Socialist writer. He edited Christendom, A Journal of Christian Sociology from 1931 to 1950....

 in founding the Christendom Trust to encourage and fund research into the application of Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

social thought.