Background
He was born in the parish of Saint Mary"s, Ely, in 1573, and went the free school there.
churchman author Bishop of Bristol
He was born in the parish of Saint Mary"s, Ely, in 1573, and went the free school there.
He graduated Bachelor of Arts in 1593, Master of Arts
Under Master Spight." He proceeded to Jesus College, Cambridge, where he was elected a scholar, and afterwards held a fellowship from 1599 to 1603. in 1596, and Bachelor of Divinity in 1604. He was incorporated Bachelor of Divinity at Oxford on 9 July 1611, proceeded Doctor of Divinity at Cambridge in 1615, and was reincorporated Doctor of Divinity at Oxford on 26 March 1644. On 5 August 1619 he was admitted a student at Gray"s Inn.
On 28 April 1615 he was appointed to the rectory of Hornsey, which he retained until 1637.
On 14 November 1631 he was collated archdeacon of Saint Albans, and on 17 December 1633 was included in a royal commission to exercise ecclesiastical jurisdiction in England and Wales. In 1631 he became president of Sion College.
On the outbreak of the First English Civil War he continued to reside in London, but, falling under suspicion of royalist sympathies, he was abused in the streets and sequestered from Saint Bartholomew. He left for the king"s forces, and on 26 April 1642 was consecrated bishop of Bristol, in succession to Robert Skinner.
Westfield held his other offices in commendam with his bishopric, probably without deriving any revenue from them.
The emoluments of his bishopric also were at first retained from him by the parliament, but on 13 May 1643 they were restored to him by order of the parliamentary committee of sequestrations out of respect for his character, and he was given a pass to Bristol. This good treatment may have been due to his consent to attend the Westminster Assembly, which met on 1 July. Although his share in the proceedings was small, he was present at least at the first meeting.
By her he had a daughter Elizabeth.
An emotive preacher, he was known as "Mournful Jeremy" and the "weeping prophet".