[1][2] He obtained a second-class degree in Literae Humaniores and a first-class degree in theology, winning the Senior Hall Houghton Greek Testament Prize in 1880.
He was ordained as a priest in the Church of England, and was curate of Kidlington, Oxfordshire from 1879 to 1881.
Between 1881 and 1884, he was appointed principal of St Stephen's House, Oxford (an Anglican theological college, which is now a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford).
He was tutor in theology at Merton College, Oxford, from 1883 to 1895, holding in addition between 1885 and 1895 the positions of Merton College chaplain and vicar of All Saints Church, Oxford.
[1] The Life of Pusey, according to his obituary in The Times, was "monumental" and had "practically killed" Liddon to prepare;[2] Johnston completed the work.