USA > Connecticut > The history of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, Vol. II > Part 13
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Oliver Wolcott, of Litchfield, who inherited from his father - a signer of the Declaration of Independence - the spirit of a patriot and the qualities of a states- man; and who had been a member of the Cabinet under the administration of John Adams, was put in nomination for governor in opposition to John Cotton Smith, then for four years incumbent of the office. He was a Federalist of the old school, " unenrolled in the ranks of democracy on the one hand, and uninfected with the intrigues and plottings of the dominant party on the other." He was therefore an available candi- date, and at the annual election in 1817, the " Tolera- tion party," which had taken him up, was victorious, and Wolcott was chosen Governor of the State by a small majority, and continued in the office for a decade of years. At that period the tenure of official station was more permanent than now, and partisan sub- VOL. II. 11
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serviency in the minds of the people had not yet taken the place of better qualifications.
This change in her chief magistracy was the begin- ning of a new era in the civil and political history of Connecticut. It was rendered more decisive by a corresponding change in the character of the General Assembly, a majority of whose members were counted on the side of toleration, and among them were some of the most influential and capable men in the State. The Episcopal Church was well represented, and prominent in the Council or Upper House were Jona- than Ingersoll, the Lieutenant Governor, Asa Chap- man and Samuel W. Johnson, and in the popular branch of the Legislature were Charles Denison, chosen Speaker, John S. Peters and Simeon H. Miner, clerks, all Episcopalians, and zealous for the welfare of the religious body with which they were connected. Governor Wolcott, educated among the Congregation- alists, could not be ignorant that his election had turned upon points which required from him some official notice ; and hence in his message to the Gen- eral Assembly, he recommended, among other things, the adoption of measures with a view to a deliberate revision of the ancient system of taxation, but he touched very tenderly upon another matter equally dear to the hopes of the triumphant party. "There are no subjects," said he, " respecting which the sensi- bility of freemen is more liable to be excited to impa- tience than in regard to the rights of conscience and the freedom of suffrage. So highly do the public prize their privileges, that they have sometimes as- cribed to unfriendly motives towards particular sects or denominations, such regulations as were sincerely
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intended to secure an equality of rights to every por- tion of the community. Whenever the public mind appears to be considerably agitated on these subjects, prudence requires that the Legislature should review its measures, and by reasonable explanations or modifications of the law, restore public confidence and tranquillity."
Cautious and measured words like these were not unwise; but the newly chosen Governor was more fear- less in departing from a custom which all his predeces- sors in office had obeyed as implicitly as a law of the land. The General Assembly was then convened semi- annually at Hartford and New Haven in the spring and autumn, and an election for members of the Council and Lower House was held each season, but the State officers were only chosen at the annual Freemen's Meeting in April. The first session and the inauguration of the Governor were always in Hartford, and at the anniversary, a minister of the established faith delivered a sermon " before his Ex- cellency and the Honorable General Assembly," to instruct them in the nature of their duties and in the origin and ends of civil government. The sermon was invariably printed at the public expense, and if the cost of printing had been as great in those days as it is now, the Commonwealth would have paid dearly for its standard theology. The election ser- mon of President Stiles in 1783, was ninety-nine pages in length, and that of Azel Backus in 1798, from the text, " Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice," occupied fifty-four octavo pages. How the legislators had the
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patience to sit through these long disquisitions is a mystery, but they seem to have prized them more highly than their successors at the present time prize the short prayers of the clergy at the opening of the daily sessions.
Governor Wolcott, on the 30th of October, 1817, the very day on which the Legislature closed its autumnal session, addressed a note to the Rev. Mr. Croswell, Rector of Trinity Church, New Haven, saying, "I have requested President Day to preach the Election Sermon before the General Assembly at Hartford, in May next, but as some accident may occasion a disap- pointment on his part, I respectfully request you, sir, to attend the election, prepared to deliver the cus- tomary discourse on that occasion. Your answer, when convenient, will be acceptable." He immediately ac- knowledged the flattering distinction, and said it would afford him great pleasure to comply with his Excel- lency's request. President Day took an early oppor- tunity to make known his purpose not to preach the Election Sermon, and, therefore, as all parties had probably anticipated, the Rector of Trinity Church was left to make the necessary preparation.
So bold a departure from the established custom was calculated to stir up the jealousy of those who fondly imagined that they had a monopoly of all the religious and civil power in the State. The anniver- sary of the General Election was a high festival with the ministers of the Congregational order. They at- tended in large numbers the levee of the appointed preacher, and joined in a grand procession under a military escort, with a band of music, to the meeting- house where the sermon was to be delivered. They
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were also welcome guests at the dinner provided for them at the public expense. To all this ceremony, the Rev. Mr. Croswell, in accepting the appointment, was obliged to conform, and accordingly, clad in his priestly robe, he received the Congregational minis- ters, as they presented themselves to be introduced and to pay their respects. But it was observed that, on this anniversary, the attendance was small com- pared with former years, the whole number being less than one hundred. No little curiosity was excited to see how the services would be conducted, for many supposed that the Episcopal form was incapable of being adapted to such a commingling of secular and religious practices, and that it would be necessary to bring in a Congregational divine to offer an appropri- ate prayer. The Episcopalians were desirous of seeing the Church fully exhibited on this State occasion, and shortly before the time, Bishop Hobart wrote to Mr. Croswell thus : " The preaching of an Episcopal clergy- man before the Legislature of Connecticut will cer- tainly be a new and interesting event. It is of con- siderable importance that as a precedent is now to be established we should exhibit fully the services of our Church. I have no doubt that you agree with me in this, and intend performing the morning service as if it were in your church. It will certainly be proper that you should introduce appropriate prayers ; and doubtless none can be more suitable than those drawn up by Bishop Seabury." 1
The religious services were held in the large brick meeting-house in Hartford, known as the Centre Church, and two of the oldest divines of the Congre-
1 MS. Letter, May 9, 1818.
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gational order were seated with Mr. Croswell in the pulpit, but they were not expected to bear any part in the exercises. By an arrangement with his Epis- copal friends, he conducted the service in accordance with the prescribed ritual of the Church, slightly abridged and with only one lesson. The sermon which he delivered was published by the General As- sembly, and two or three private editions of it subse- quently passed through the press. It was from the text, " Render therefore unto Cæsar the things which be Cæsar's, and unto God, the things which be God's," and the opening paragraphs were calculated to rivet the attention of his audience.
" Holding in high veneration the character of our pious forefathers, feeling every disposition to treat the customs which bear the sanction of their authority with deference and respect, I would not, without good and sufficient cause, depart from a course which ap- pears to have been ranked among the steady habits of my native State; nor would I, from an affectation of singularity, or on any other slight ground, dissent from opinions, which have long been considered by many as incontrovertible. If, therefore, on the present occasion, I shall appear to entertain doubts of the pro- priety of blending too closely the civil and religious concerns of the community ; or if I shall seem more solicitous to maintain the dignity of my profession, than to subserve any particular political interest ; or if it shall be found that I am more ambitious to fulfill my obligations as a minister of Christ, than to offer the incense of flattery to any sect or denomination of men; I trust you will do me the justice to believe, that I act under the influence of a solemn sense of
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duty, and that I am governed by no other motives than a sincere desire to comply with the spirit of the precept which I have selected for my text. Be this, however, as it may, I hope to find a defence of the sentiments which I may advance, and a justifica- tion of the course which I may pursue, in the example of our blessed Lord, in the case which drew the pre- cept from his lips."
The conclusion of the sermon, which was addressed particularly to the clergy, is equally decisive and em- phatic. He applied the principle embraced in the text to the people collectively ; to the civil rulers and magistrates, and to the clerical profession ; and then he observed the same classification in his closing remarks. " As there are few occasions," said he, " which call such a number of our profession to- gether, I have deemed this a fit and proper oppor- tunity for expressing, not only my own sentiments, but those held by the Church generally to which I belong. And as we have little reason to hope that we shall all meet again in this world, you will permit me now, on parting, to add a word of exhortation. Let us then, my brethren, endeavor to profit by the precept before us. Aiming to maintain the honor of our profession and the dignity of the Christian min- istry, let us not become instrumental in debasing them by worldly mixtures. Let it be our study to stand aloof from those disputes which disturb the peace and harmony of society. Let us not suffer our- selves to be drawn into measures which may tend to promote the spirit of party among our respective flocks. Let us not give any reasonable cause for suspicion that our influence is exerted in those political ques-
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tions, by which the community is unhappily divided. Let us not put it in the power of the historian to accuse us of descending from our high calling to min- gle in those dissensions which are the offspring of human pride and passion. And, above all, let us beware that we do not defraud our Lord and Master of his rightful claims. His kingdom is not of this world. He is jealous of his honor, and will not suffer his unfaithful servants to escape unpunished. We know the nature of our obligations. We know by what solemn vows we have enrolled ourselves under the standard of the Cross. We know that we stand pledged, by everything dear and sacred to man, to preach CHRIST CRUCIFIED. Let us not then incur the dreadful guilt of preaching a religion without a cross. Let us not glory save in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. By this cross, let the world be crucified unto us ; and by the same cross, let us be crucified unto the world." 1
The sumptuous feast provided for the clergy and others at the expense of the State, followed the relig- ious services. In the large dining hall, where the viands were to be served, the table was spread, and at the head of it was placed the appointed preacher, with the two venerable divines who had attended him in the pulpit, seated on either side. One of these was the Rev. Dr. Perkins, of West Hart- ford - the birth-place of Mr. Croswell - who had been his preceptor and pastor in the days of his child- hood, and who seemed very happy to meet his pupil on this festive occasion. "I am always pleased," said he. " to attend these anniversaries, and in forty years
1 Sermon, pp. 15, 16.
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I have never been absent but once from the annual election dinner. But I little thought, when I cate- chised the children at the South End, that Harry Cros- well would become an Episcopal minister and preach the Election Sermon." "
The innovation of Governor Wolcott upon the cus- tom of his predecessors did not stop with a single example. The preachers before the General Assembly were subsequently selected not only from the Episco- pal Church, but from among the Methodists and Bap- tists. The clergy, however, were less and less inclined to attend the anniversary ; the public interest grad- ually diminished, and after a few years, the practice, with all its accompanying ceremonies, fell into disuse.
The party which came into power in 1817 was bent on the accomplishment of great changes in the gov- ernment of the State. From the beginning of the century, there had been much uneasiness among a minority of the people, and several meetings had been held in different places at which the old charter of King Charles the Second was freely discussed, and the way prepared for a political revolution. The spirit of the leaders in these movements was bold and deci- sive, and one of the pamphleteers of that day said in reference to them, " the peace of families, of neighbor- hoods, of towns, and of the whole community, has been almost turned into war, and hatred and revenge have succeeded to kindness and mercy."
The complaints of the minority were treated as imaginary, or as the offspring of ambitious dema- gogues, and many reasons were urged for continuing under a charter which had served the Commonwealth
1 Annals of Trinity Parish, MS.
1
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so well for more than one hundred and fifty years. The historical associations connected with its preser- vation in the hollow of an oak at Hartford had their influence upon the Puritan mind, and the established religion was fortified by statutes which had grown up under it, and which, according to the indications, would be set aside in framing a new constitution. Instead of yielding, therefore, to the sentiments of the minority, care was taken to check their advancement, and some acts were passed by the General Assembly which were regarded as arbitrary and oppressive. The " stand up law,"1 as it was called, touching the elective franchise, was one of these, and it made no friends for the party that procured its enactment. The list of grievances was large, and the first decisive steps to secure a new constitution were taken in the last week of August, 1804, when a convention of men from ninety-seven towns in the State, and under- stood to represent the sentiments of the Republicans, or Democrats as they were stigmatized by the Fed- eralists, met at New Haven and passed a series of resolutions in favor of the change which they so much desired. This action cost some of the leading spirits of the convention the loss of their humble offices ; 2 but two years afterwards another meeting, bolder and more decided in its tone, was held by the same polit-
I For example, the Council or Upper House was composed of twelve mem- bers, and this law prescribed that votes should be given for one candidate at a time, by the freemen rising or standing, while they were counted, in case of a division ; and then the parties withdrew to opposite sides, and this was done twelve times in succession. The law was often the means of designating objects of denunciation ; and in many instances deterred the dependent man from voting, or ruined him for exercising that right with more courage than policy.
2 Hollister's History of Connecticut, vol. ii. p. 512.
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ical party at Litchfield, and thus things went on until the War of 1812. Connecticut was opposed to this war, and in the disputes that accompanied it the Con- gregational clergy, as in the struggle for Independ- ence, bore a conspicuous, though different part, and many sermons were preached that helped to strengthen the State government at the expense of the general administration. But the war, which was popular in some sections of the land, gained supporters in Con- necticut as it progressed, and closed with better re- sults and a better reputation than its opponents had predicted, and too soon for the Hartford Convention to urge upon the public its schemes for " a limitation of powers which," it was claimed, " had been misused."
It has already been mentioned that at this period in our civil history, the old issues between Federalists and Republicans were forgotten, and the great basis on which the new party achieved their success was that of " toleration." But though coming into power under a new name, the grievances of the minority in the past were remembered and measures at once adopted to provide for their redress. Governor Wol- cott, who, with the rest of the people, had learned to reverence the ancient charter, thus spoke of the ex- pediency of some change, in his message to the Gen- eral Assembly at the May session, 1818.
" Prior to the establishment of American Independ- ence, the charter of Charles the Second of England was viewed as the palladium of the liberties of Con- necticut. It surely merited all the attachment it re- ceived; for whatever had been the claims of the British crown or nation to jurisdiction or territory, they were all with mere nominal exceptions, surrendered
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to our ancestors by that instrument ; especially there was expressly conceded to them and their posterity, the inestimable privilege of being governed by muni- cipal regulations, framed and executed by rulers of their own appointment. The Revolutionary War, of course, occasioned no change or dissolution of our social system. Considered merely as an instrument defining the powers and duties of magistrates and rulers, this charter may justly be considered as unpro- visional and imperfect, yet it ought to be recollected that what is now its greatest defect, was formerly a preeminent advantage, it being then highly important to the people to acquire the greatest latitude and authority with an exemption from British interference and control."
At the same session of the Legislature, it was " Re- solved, That it be and is hereby recommended to the people of this State, who are qualified to vote in town or freemen's meetings, to assemble in their respective towns on the 4th day of July next, at nine o'clock in the morning, at the usual place of holding town or freemen's meetings, and after having chosen their presiding officer, then and there to elect by ballot as many delegates as said towns now choose representa- tives to the General Assembly, who shall meet in con- vention at the State-house in Hartford, on the fourth Wednesday of August next ; and when so convened, shall, if it be deemed by them expedient, proceed to the formation of a constitution of civil government for the people of this State."
Further provision was made that a copy of the constitution, when formed, should be transmitted to each town clerk with instructions to lay it before the
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people of his town, for their approval and ratification. When ratified by a majority of the qualified voters, assembled in legal meeting, it was to become and remain the supreme law of Connecticut.
In this way was adopted the new Constitution, which abolished the established ecclesiastical system, and gave to all the inhabitants of the State equal civil and religious privileges. They were no longer obliged to enroll themselves among Episcopalians or the "minor sects " to escape taxation for the support of the Standing Order. The last restriction upon the consciences of men was now removed, and religion in every denominational form was left to their free acceptance or deliberate rejection. They might be infidels, and yet enjoy the wholesome protection of Christian laws, without contributing a farthing to- wards the maintenance of Christianity. It was against the plan of the voluntary system that theologians and politicians of that period protested and strove, and some of them spoke of it as a scheme which would open the flood-gates of ruin on the State. But the experience of half a century has proved the ground- lessness of their fears ; and the promise of our Divine Lord still continues to be the source of all human encouragement amid heresies and false doctrine, that the Church, being built upon a rock, is so strong that " the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
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CHAPTER XIII.
PROSPERITY OF THE DIOCESE; CORRESPONDENCE AMONG THE CLER- GY; AND ELECTION OF A BISHOP.
A. D. 1818-1819.
THE adoption of the new Constitution was of no direct or special advantage to the Church in Connecti- cut. Many, to escape taxation for the support of the Standing Order, and some on political grounds, had already been drawn within her fold and become interested in her services ; but the number of par- ishes remained the same, and the list of the clergy was not immediately increased. Those who, from any cause, after the adoption of the Constitution, be- came dissatisfied with the religious society to which they belonged, could " sign off," and still continue of the same faith, without being subjected to personal liability for its maintenance. So far the change in the law was rather unfavorable to the Christian bod- ies that had gained now and then from the necessities of the case.
The power of Congregationalism, however, as a State religion was destroyed, and the future of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut was brighter for the events of the political revolution. Her clergy and leading laymen knew this, and directed their move- ments with reference to the accomplishment of great and ennobling results. Several of the parishes, par-
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ticularly in Fairfield County, prior to this date, had established permanent funds, the interest of which was applied annually to the support of their rectors, and thus the odious system - as many termed it - of taxation for church purposes, was in a measure avoided. These funds were raised in some parishes soon after the erection of their houses of worship, and in others at a later period, and in all they were the result of a feeling that it was wise to provide for religious instruction and the regular administration of the ordinances without imposing any burdens upon posterity. Before the voluntary system had been tried, fears were entertained that the interests of Christianity would suffer, if the civil government did not compel all tax-payers to support some form of public worship, and hence, after the repeal of the law, the disposition to create or enlarge the endowments of the parishes was encouraged. The scheme ex- tended to the Congregationalists as well as to the Epis- copalians, and ecclesiastical funds at one time consti- tuted no small item in the banking capital of the State. But those who projected and urged this scheme lived long enough to acknowledge that while it might be prudent in certain cases, it was unwise on the whole to make such provision; for people are not apt to esteem very highly that which costs them nothing. The children of each generation have their duties and responsibilities, and in entering upon their inheritance they should understand that nothing done by their fathers can excuse them from bearing the heat and burden of the day in which they live.
The Annual Convention, which met at Bridgeport in 1818, was attended by twenty-five clergymen and
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thirty-six lay-delegates. Bishop Hobart was present and repeated the Charge which he delivered eight months before to the clergy of the Diocese of New York, entitled, " The Corruptions of the Church of Rome, contrasted with certain Protestant Errors." It reveals the temper of the times, and contains state- ments which ought always to be remembered. A single extract will show how firmly he vindicated the primitive institutions of our Church from the asper- sion that they "symbolized " with the corruptions of the Papal hierarchy.
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