USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > Hartford > Christ Church parish--a century of its history and a look into the future; a historical sermon preached in Christ Church, Hartford, Feb. 9, 1902 > Part 2
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He was a churchman because he believed in the church, and possibly also because he did not believe in Congregationalism." He gave to the church not only his money but also what was more valuable, his time and loy- alty. Perhaps we scarcely realize today the value of such service and attachment to the church when it was poor, despised, and re- garded with suspicion, as our church was after the Revolution. The value, therefore, of a man's services and attachment - bold, loyal, constant, and generous-in that day is beyond estimation today. It is easy to attach oneself to prosperous undertakings and popular religious organizations. Most people can shout for and desire to ally them- selves with a successful cause; but it de- mands character to side with the weak, the despised, the poor, hence, attachment under these latter circumstances is of far greater value than attachment in prosperous and successful times. I cannot but regard Mr. John Morgan as the great dominant charac- ter of this parish. The printed page which records his deeds and words has made him a real personage to me. I seem to know him, and I say it with truth, I revere his memory. He is a founder of whom any parish may be proud. It was a fitting act of courtesy for the parish, when financial difficulties had beset him, to vote unanimously its thanks to
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him for his thirty-four years of long and faithful services as a warden of the parish, and later vote "that S. Tudor and C. Sigour- ney call on John Morgan, Esq., request him to designate where he would prefer to be seated in the church, and that two seats be reserved for him and Mrs. Morgan where he may select." One thing is still lacking com- pletely to mark the gratitude of the parish. There should be some visible and lasting memorial of him somewhere in this church. And what shall I more say of other departed worthies? I would like to recall for you some of the characteristics of other honored names and benefactors of this parish, but time would fail me, and your patience would also fail. I can only mention some - all de- parted -as they occur most readily to my mind. There were the Sigourneys, the Morgans, Elias, the brother of John, Nathan and Denison, and later Junius S., James Ward and Roswell Bartholomew, the Ol- cotts, Daniel and Michael, Cyprian Nichols and Stedman, Jeremy Hoadley and Isaac Perkins, the Beachs, father and sons, Sam- uel Tudor and Isaac Toucey, the Imlays and Goodwins, Dudley Buck and Zephaniah Preston, the Tuttles and Huntingtons, Sam- uel H., Hezekiah, and Francis J., Ebenezer Flower and Chester Adams, the Beresfords and Sumners, the Northams and Keneys,
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and many others whose names I would gladly record, and whom you would gladly hear, but time forbids me to continue. But they all -recorded and unrecorded -are names that thrill us with emotion for all their possessors did to make this parish strong and honored in our community. It
could not help be so when "it was custom- ary to find whole families in their pews ; the father and mother with all their children who were able to attend." Our historian tells us that in Mr. Burgess's days "the church was filled regularly Sundays on the floor and in the galleries; and from the chancel to the eastern door there was a crowd of men, women, and children." A noble sight indeed.
The congregation had become so great that the need of a new church building, if not separate parish, was strongly urged. As a result of this pressure in 1841 the new par -. ish of St. John's was formed. Many of the parishioners thought the mother parish would be weakened by this separation, but before migration ceased two other parishes were destined to be formed, viz., Trinity, which was organized in 1859, and took from Christ Church some of its oldest and most valued members ; and St. Thomas, organized in 1870, which withdrew many more from the parent parish.
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Whether it was due to the large congrega- tions which used to assemble in the church, or whether decorum in God's house was lax, it is interesting to note that so late as No- vember, 1836, the vestry appointed "a com- mittee to see that tything men be appointed by the town for the ensuing year who will perform their duties in the galleries." There are also votes passed that the wardens and vestry be a committee to preserve order in the church, particularly on Christmas eve when service used to be held. For in the middle of the last century the churches other than Episcopal did not observe Christmas with religious services, and except in the case of Episcopalians business went on as usual, workmen followed their trades, and merchants opened their stores.
One feature of interest in the history of the parish would be to trace the develop- ment of the music in our church service from its beginnings. In 1801, the year in which the first church was consecrated, an organ was put in, the first in Hartford. It was a small affair, not more than five or six feet wide. For the use of this organ, and for an organist to play on "each whole Sun- day and on publick days," the vestry agreed to pay $2 a week. From this small begin- ning to the vested choir, which was perma- nently established in 1886 under Mr. (now
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Bishop) Nichols, meant many changes and many differences of opinion. The first or- gan owned by the church was purchased by subscription in 1817, another was put in in the new church in 1829, while the last one purchased is that now in use, and was set up so late as 1889. There were times when the singing was far from satisfactory, and on one occasion a very strong report on the subject of the music was brought in by a committee, of which Mr. Samuel Tudor was chairman. He disliked innovation or florid music, and urged that "the old familiar tunes are to be preferred, both because they are good and because we are generally ac- quainted with them." Congregational sing- ing was what he desired. He urged that there was no more need of novelty and fre- quent change in tunes than there was need of change in our service-the prayers, the litany, and the communion office. But there was one long period of general satisfaction and calm when Mr. Henry Wilson for twenty-two years had charge of the music and organ.
But music, the support of public worship, and the outlay incident to the maintenance of any parochial organization, involves con- siderable expense, which it has been ob- served is generally met by a comparative few. So, too, in the case of debts, the bur-
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den has fallen as a rule on the generous few. Some system of equitable distribution of the burdens and obligations of a parish is yet to be discovered. "In the much abused sys- tem of freedom in this country men often resort to presumptions and evasions which cannot be justified by any proper sense of morals, or by their duty to support public re- ligious worship, which is one of the safe- guards of the state. Respectable persons and pecuniarily prosperous have wished for that kind of liberty which made them free, free to come and free to go, free to remain and enjoy, and free not to contribute." When at length, after long years of debt, this parish was at last free, it passed a vote declaring against the creation of any future debt, and affirming it a Christian duty so to economize expenditures that they should not exceed the annual income. Nothing is so vital to the well-being and success of a par- ish as living within its income, and no pains should be spared by parochial authorities to keep within such limits. The wreck of numberless parishes is due to parochial ex- travagance. Competition in attractions ex- ists among parishes as among individuals. And ruin is certainly in sight when expenses are maintained without income sufficient to meet these expenses.
The second period of this parish's life may
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be said to extend from 1829 to 1879, when the semi-centennial of the consecration of this present church was celebrated. This occasion marks the completion of the church in its architectural features. The tower had been added in 1839, and forty years later the memorial recess chancel, as it now exists in all its beauty, was completed. The celebra- tion in 1879 is relatively so recent that I need do nothing more than refer to it as be- ing one of the most successful parish cele- brations ever attempted.
No history would be complete were not reference made to the many memorials and gifts which beautify and adorn this noble fane of worship. The chancel, chapel, and parish buildings, the reredos and alms ba- sins, the chancel window, the vases, the cre- dence and part of the communion vessels, the chancel rail and bishop's chair, the fonts in both church and chapel, the stained glass windows, the paintings on either side of the chancel arch, the new organ, and the rectory, all are memorials or gifts from devoted and loyal members or friends of this parish. Reference should also be made to the va- rious funds for various purposes which have been left to the parish. Some of these gifts have been large, some small, but all alike testify to the devotion of those who, now worshiping no more in earthly courts of the
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church militant, made provision so far as they could that prayer and praise should never cease in this beloved church below, and that here the poor might find refresh- ment, and the weary rest.
Of the rectors of the first period I have already spoken. Of those since 1829 I can but briefly recall their names, Smith and Burgess and Chauncey. The first and last stayed each but a year or two, but the name of Bishop Burgess of sainted memory is still a benedic- tion in some of the families of this city. Then there was Dr. Clark, still alive and now the venerable and revered presiding bishop of our church, noted while here for his eloquence and attractiveness. After him came Aber- crombie and George Clark, brother to the bishop, and Meech, the latter two still living. Of the remaining rectors who still live in what I venture to call the third period of this parish, from 1879 and on, when begins what [ may call the institutional phase of parish work, and the era of organization made pos- sible by the facilities offered by the parish buildings, the memory of them is still so fresh that I need only mention their names, Nichols, Tomkins, Saltonstall. But during the hundred years in which this parish has been fully organized for the work of Christ among men and for the preaching of the gospel of redemption, it has been loyally
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served by faithful priests, as rectors and assistant ministers, some of them men of exceptionable ability.
The worth of their service and teaching is evident in the churchmanship of the parish, which has adhered loyally to the " doctrine, discipline, and worship" of this church, has carefully avoided extremes and eccentricities in ceremony, and "has pursued its middle way in peace and quietness," in the mainte- nance of a service orderly, rubrical, and dig- nified.
Such is in brief the history of the parish during the last one hundred years as regards its organization, its edifices, its worthies, its rectors, its beneficences, its churchmanship, and ere we close let us take a quick look into the future to see what hope we may find for it from this survey of the past.
Think first what changes this parish has seen in our land since in 1786 those few churchmen associated themselves to form an Episcopal society in Hartford. In na- tional life, these thirteen struggling colonies have passed through two wars with England, and become a nation which has survived a civil strife that threatened its existence ; has waged successful war with Spain, and now stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the lakes to the gulf, reaching still further east to the islands of the Atlantic,
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and west to the islands of the Pacific, the parish has seen these thirteen colonies con- solidated into a Union of forty-five States, and admitted today one of the great powers of the world.
In home affairs the parish since its origin has seen the colony become a state marked by the enterprise of its citizens, and noted for the " steady habits " of its people ; a state which has grown marvelously in wealth and culture, which in 1818 made a resettlement of its political and religious relations, and which today once more in a constitutional convention in our city is endeavoring to re- adjust its political relations to its changed conditions.
In civic affairs the parish has seen the small settlement of Hartford expand into a large city, until its limits have become co- terminous with the former town limits; its population, which was homogeneous and about 5,500 in numbers, confined mostly be- tween Main street and the river, become a heterogeneous population of over 80,000 souls, spreading for miles north, west, and south of its former boundaries. It has seen the small settlement become the sole capital of the State, a city noted for its higher insti- tutions of learning, its schools, hospitals, charities, libraries, museums, and parks ; a city noted for its insurance, industrial, and
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commercial interests, and, relatively to its population, one of the richest cities in the United States; a city distinguished for its citizens who have achieved eminence in na- tional and state administrations, for its men and women renowned in literature and art, in science and theology.
In its individual life the parish has had a large development. The small wooden church on the northeast corner of our street has been replaced on the present site by this solid and noble structure in which we worship today, beautifully adorned and equipped, rich in memorials in stone and tile, in painted wall, and painted glass,
"Of storied windows richly dight, Casting a dim religious light;"
fragrant with the memory of a long succes- sion of noble men and women who during these one hundred years made up the con- gregation -some of them well known and prominent in this community, others hum- ble, perhaps little known or altogether un- noticed, yet God-fearing and God-loving, whose prayers have risen like holy incense to the Divine throne, and whose lives have been a benediction to the parish and their fellow-men.
How changed seems the picture as we look on things as they are today. The circum-
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stances as they existed fifty years ago have greatly altered. This church is now far away from the residential center. Further, the organization of other parishes has drawn from this parish. But should these changed conditions depress us, or should this not fill us with determination and zeal to make the future of this parish more glorious even than its glorious past ? Have you not much more than what your early predecessors possessed ? These walls seemingly built for centuries to come should be the type of the parish itself, - strong, unshaken, large, and inviting- calling to the thousands that throng by its doors, enfolding them in its arms, and bring- ing to them the consolations and hopes, the strength and the joy of the Gospel ; a parish preaching and testifying to the one gospel of Christ for all men, for the poor as well as for the rich, a gospel unchanged and unchang- ing despite the vagaries of thought; a parish holding firmly and staunchly to evangelic truth and apostolic order, holding fast to the moorings of the ancient faith, while others are perhaps swept away from the standards of their faith and go drifting into the cheer- less regions of vague speculation or uncer- tainty. What we need if we are still to minister to men is a gospel of certainty not doubt, of affirmations not negations, a firm faith, not inconstant opinion : we need a
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certain grasp of the promises of God and hope of life in His Son for the hopelessness prevailing as to any future, for the disbelief which says " There is no God."
Further, we must be hopeful and consider that if in the fourth decade of the last century, when the population of Hartford ranged from 10,000 to 13,000, this church was crowded, surely in the larger Hartford with its 80,000 it should still be possible to fill this church. To do this, however, hope and con- fidence are needed in you, the members, to say it can be done and will be done. This calls for loyalty, zeal, constant attendance, and constant labor. It calls for warm invita- tions to your friends and acquaintances, and your courtesy and hospitality to strangers who may happen in your midst. Your eyes need to look for the light and the suc- cesses before you, not on the victories behind you, but with heart and will and strength rejoicing in what you have, you may make others appreciate and rejoice in what you have to offer. This means that the services must be made helpful and attractive, that your methods must be adapted to your con- ditions ; that opportunities to minister to the needs of the people of this city must always be accepted. Thus will you stimulate and perpetuate the life of this parish.
To do all this we must not blind ourselves
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to the need of larger endowment, in order that the work may be carried on vigorously ; and more insistent still is the need of a parish house fully equipped and adapted to meet the conditions of our present life, with its temptations, hurry, thoughtlessness, crimes, loneliness, and friendlessness; a house placed in the very tide of the rushing life of our city, which may and shall mould or correct and control the careers and destinies of men and women who would otherwise be but the flotsam and jetsam of life, hurled and dashed about by its swift tides and left at last stranded and shattered. "With its endowments and a faithful band of intel- ligent and zealous members, the parish can still be successfully sustained and enabled to do its full share of duty."
But all this is conditioned on the absolute need of anchoring the church just where it is. It must adapt itself to its environment, it should by no means move. In many places the old churches have followed their congre- gregations and sold the old building and site. But all the past of this parish seems to me to be a pledge that it will not be moved, as it ought not to be. As Bishop Clark said of this church here in 1879: "Such a landmark as this ought never to be removed. Let it stand in the very midst of all the turmoil of traffic, to remind men that their life con-
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sisteth not in the abundance of the things which they here possess. The very walls of the building where we have so often prayed together, where we have welcomed the new-born immortal to the fold of Jesus, at the baptismal font, where we have knelt at the altar and taken the eucharistic bread, and where we have sung the funeral anthem over the cold remains of our fathers, our brethren, and our children, these very walls seem to press upon us as though they would not let us leave them. The graves of the dead whisper to us, 'Abide in your place till you are called to join us here.'"
May then this church, so richly provided with all the accessories for worship in the beauty of holiness, continually find mani- fested here the beauty of holy worship, and may it ever stand here on this corner in these busy haunts of men as the unchanging sym- bol of the divine presence and the divine power in this erring, restless, and sorrowing human life of ours, to endow and bless it with comfort, strength, and peace. May it one hundred years hence, when we all here today shall be gathered to our fathers, be found filled with its worshipers offering the same prayers and singing the same hymns, and may they hand down to generations after them for their inspiration the same
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words of the Psalmist we have here used today : "Walk about Zion and go round about her, and tell the towers thereof, mark well her bulwarks, set up her houses, that ye may tell them that come after."
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