Reverend James Stuart Udy (30 September 1920 – 24 February 2003) was an Australian Uniting Church minister, Master of Wesley College, University of Sydney, author and President of the World Methodist Historical Society from 1977 until 1983.[1]
Jim Udy was a Methodist minister, and one of three brothers who became ministers of religion. Gloster Udy was his older brother, and Richard Udy was his younger brother. James attended Newington College (1930),[2] North Sydney Boys High School, Maitland High School, University of Sydney and took a PhD at Boston University. James married Anne Benua after meeting on a European bike tour that he took and together they had six children.
Udy offered himself for service as a chaplain immediately after his ordination at Melbourne in January 1945. After his arrival on the island of Morotai with an engineer unit, he organised the construction of a chapel, which was dedicated on 25 July. Shortly afterwards, Udy was posted to 2/26 Supply Depot Company on the island of Labuan, where, after the Japanese surrender, another chapel (built to the same plans as the first) was constructed by 2/14 Works Unit. During this period, Chaplain Udy worked extensively with repatriated Prisoners of War, and with their Japanese former captors.[3]