USA > Connecticut > The story of the Diocese of Connecticut : a new branch of the vine (Espiscopal Church) > Part 42
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From the first Bishop Gray conceived his office as a means of promoting the intellectual and spiritual life of the Diocese and the Church. He has lectured at Berkeley Divinity School and the Virginia Seminary, presided over the Church Congress, and taken an effective part in the Presiding Bishop's Conference on Theo- logical Education, and the committee on the Intellectual Life of the Church. He has served as an editor of the Anglican Theologi- cal Review, and encouraged unity among the branches of the An- glican Communion by editing Pan-Anglican, a magazine of news and history which was officially commended by the 1958 Lam- beth Conference. Bishop Gray was Chairman of one of the five committees.
Regional and diocesan conferences and study groups have engaged Bishop Gray's ardent interest. He has furthered religion
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among students and young people, church school teacher training, conferences to promote missions, the diocesan schools, societies to assist candidates for orders, and the Church Missions Publishing Company of Hartford. In spite of many demands upon his time, the Bishop has written a book on the Creed, Our Belief (1945) and The Future Course of the Anglican Communion (1946). His annual Christmas poems have become a tradition and have been kept over the years by many recipients. (For Bishop Gray's pro- gram of diocesan expansion, see Chap. 28, "Our Oldest Diocese Looks Forward").
ROBERT MCCONNELL HATCH (Suffragan Bishop: 1951-1958)
At the Convention of 1950, before he became Diocesan, Bishop Gray suggested that Connecticut needed a suffragan to meet the challenge of expansion and to free him for more pastoral ministry. The Church required, he believed, "not merely harassed office executives burdened with unending routine and details of administration and planning, but pastors and leaders in things spiritual."24 He wanted to be such a bishop. One of his first acts as Diocesan was to summon a special Convention on January 30, 1951, to elect a suffragan. There were eight nominees, seven being priests of the Diocese. The Convention did not hesitate long and on the third ballot chose the Rev. Robert McConnell Hatch, rector of St. John's Church, Waterbury. On motion by two of the other nominees, the choice was confirmed unanimously. His consecration took place on April 17, 1951.
The new suffragan was born in Brooklyn, New York, on July 6, 1910, the son of the Rev. William Henry Paine Hatch and Marion Louise (Townsend) Hatch. His father at that time was an instructor in the General Theological Seminary, and later he be- came Professor of Literature and Interpretation of the New Testa- ment in the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge. He was well known as the author of several studies of New Testament manuscripts.
Bishop Hatch prepared for college at Saint Mark's School in Southborough, Massachusetts, and was graduated from Harvard University in 1933. He achieved the Master of Arts degree at Columbia University in 1935, and four years later was graduated
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from the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge. Bishop Henry K. Sherrill of Massachusetts ordained him as a deacon in June, 1939, and as a priest in May, 1940. In the following month he was married to Helen Crocker Addison.
For about six years Mr. Hatch remained in the Diocese of Massachusetts, as a curate at Trinity Church in Boston (1939-1941) and as rector of St. John's in Arlington (1941-1945), then went to Delaware to be Dean of St. John's Cathedral in Wilmington (1945- 1948). His next and last parochial ministry was at St. John's Church, Waterbury (1948-1951). The Diocese of Delaware elected him as a delegate to the General Convention of 1946, and as presi- dent of its Standing Committee (1947-1948), and Connecticut placed him on its Executive Council in 1950-1951. His writings in- clude several widely-read pamphlets on Christian marriage, pray- er, and other topics, and he holds the degree of S.T.D. from Berkeley Divinity School, and the degree of D.D. from Trinity College.
During his years as a suffragan, Bishop Hatch became great- ly respected, admired, and loved throughout the Diocese. Church people have been known to have their children christened with his name. His many friends rejoiced and yet regretted to see him leave the Diocese, when he was elected in 1957 as Bishop of Western Massachusetts.
JOHN HENRY ESQUIROL (Suffragan Bishop: 1958-)
The departure of Bishop Hatch left Bishop Gray to carry alone the governance of his rapidly growing Diocese. The Diocese shared his conviction that assistance was imperative, and on Janu- ary 10, 1958 a special Convention elected as suffragan the Very Rev. John Henry Esquirol, Dean of Christ Church Cathedral. There he was consecrated on April 9th.
Like his predecessor in the office, he was born in Brooklyn, New York. The date was May 18, 1900, and his parents were Joseph Henry and Grace Ella (Alfred) Esquirol. From high school in Brooklyn he went to New York University, where he was gradu- ated B.S. in 1920. He continued in the Law School, and was gradu- ated in 1923 with the degree of Doctor of Jurisprudence. For thirteen years Mr. Esquirol practiced law successfully in Brook-
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lyn, and on April 28, 1927 he was married to Margaret Louise Joost. In 1936 came the call to the ministry, and a year of study at General Theological Seminary. His bishop, Ernest M. Stires of Long Island, raised him to the diaconate in 1936, and to the priesthood in 1937.
The first four years of his ministry were passed on Long Island, as assistant at St. Gabriel's Church in Hollis (1936-1937), and as assistant (1937-1939) to the Dean of the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City. In 1939 Mr. Esquirol accepted a call as rector of historic Trinity Church in Southport, Connecticut, where he remained until named as Dean of Christ Church Ca- thedral in 1956. In 1952 he became Archdeacon of Fairfield. He rendered many distinguished services to the Diocese as a deputy to the General Convention, and in the executive offices of the Church Mission of Help, the Department of Christian Social Re- lations, the Committee on Evangelism, the Standing Committee, the Youth Conference Board, the Department of Religious Edu- cation, and the Episcopal Development Program. For years he helped to direct the National Church's Youth Service and its com- mission to study the apportionment of diocesan quotas for expenses.
Bishop Esquirol is well known as an authority on canon law, especially through his lectures at the Berkeley Divinity School. He was a member of the diocesan committee on Consti- tution and Canons for a long period, and became its chairman; he served also the committee on Study of the Marriage Canon. His devotion to canon law always has been tempered by a sense of humor. At one Diocesan Convention he submitted a one-sentence report that for once, to everybody's relief, there would be no proposal for a change.
JOSEPH WARREN HUTCHENS (Suffragan Bishop: 1961-)
Following the recommendation of a committee studying Diocesan organization, Bishop Gray gave notice in 1960 that at the 1961 Diocesan Convention he would seek consent for the elec- tion of a second Suffragan Bishop. This consent was unanimously given by the 1961 Diocesan Convention and at a Special Conven- tion held September 12, 1961 the Rev. Joseph Warren Hutchens, Rector of St. John's Church, Bridgeport, was elected. His election
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was confirmed by the 1961 General Convention and he was conse- crated on the Seabury Anniversary, November 14, 1961 in Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford. At the request of the Presiding Bishop, Bishop Gray was the Consecrator, and the Rt. Rev. Oliver L. Loring, Bishop of Maine, and the Rt. Rev. John H. Esquirol, Suffragan Bishop of Connecticut, were Co-consecrators.
Bishop Hutchens was born in Elnora, Indiana, on January 20, 1910, the son of the Reverend Doctor Ezra Lewis Hutchens and Hallie Wyeth Hutchens. The Bishop's father served for forty- nine years as a member of the Indiana Conference of the Methodist Church.
After completion of his preparation in Indiana grammar and secondary schools, Bishop Hutchens entered Indiana University in 1927. After three years at Indiana and after a brief period in the business world, the Bishop entered Evansville College from which institution he was graduated with the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1933. While a graduate student at Northwestern University and the Garrett Biblical Institute, Bishop Hutchens entered the Episco- pal Church and was admitted a Postulant for Holy Orders by the Bishop of Chicago. He was graduated from the General Theo- logical Seminary with the Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree in 1937 and was ordained Deacon and Priest in the same year by the Right Reverend George Craig Stewart, D.D., Bishop of Chicago.
For two years Bishop Hutchens served as Curate and Direc- tor of Christian Education at St. Luke's Pro-Cathedral, Evanston, Illinois. In September, 1939, he became Assistant Minister in St. John's Parish, Bridgeport, Connecticut, and was made Rector of that parish in December, 1940. After twenty-one years as Rector of St. John's, Bishop Hutchens was elected Suffragan Bishop of Connecticut on September 12, 1961.
During his long rectorate at St. John's, Bishop Hutchens served his Diocese and his community in many useful ways. He was for five years a member of the Standing Committee and was president of that body in 1960-1961. He was a Clerical Delegate to the General Convention in 1958 and 1961, a member of the Board of Examining Chaplains, Chairman of the Committee on Constitution and Canons, and secretary of the Committee on Dioce- san Expansion which recommended the expended missionary pro- gram of the diocese in 1958.
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WALTER HENRY GRAY Eighth Bishop of Connecticut 1951- Suffragan Bishop 1940-1945 Bishop Coadjutor 1945-1951
ROBERT MCCONNELL HATCH Suffragan Bishop 1951-1957
JOHN HENRY ESQUIROL Suffragan Bishop 1957-
JOSEPH WARREN HUTCHENS Suffragan Bishop 1961-
In Bridgeport Bishop Hutchens was one of a small group which organized the Bridgeport Council of Churches, which serves more than a hundred Protestant, Episcopal, and Orthodox Churches. Under his leadership the Greater Bridgeport School of Religion was organized, and the Bridgeport Released Time School, which has an enrollment of more than three thousand pupils. He was also a member of the Board of Corporators of the Burroughs Home, a Trustee of the University of Bridgeport, a Director of the Inter-Church Housing Corporation, and served in other similar posts.
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THE BISHOP'S FUND AND RESIDENCES
The first American diocese of the Anglican Church at first seemed to be in no hurry to provide for the support of its bishops. Even the gentle Doctor Samuel Hart once caustically remarked that "the pains taken by the Churchmen of Connecticut to secure a Bishop at the earliest possible moment after the establishment of diocesan independence could only be equalled by their indifference to the support of their bishop after they had one."25
Bishop Seabury had no episcopal salary and depended upon his stipend as rector in New London, and his pension as a British Army chaplain. The sum furnished by the Diocese during his episcopate did not equal the interest on his private fortune, spent while he was seeking consecration. In 1792 the Convention re- quested the General Assembly to incorporate the Trustees for Re- ceiving Donations for the Support of the Bishop. After "much exertion and delay," a charter was obtained in 1799, and was con- firmed in 1803. The corporation later became known as the "Bishop's Fund," and the charter was amended in 1853 and 1919 to increase the income and require reports to the Diocesan Convention.
Throughout Bishop Jarvis's episcopate the trustees seldom met. Failure attended the sporadic efforts to support the bishop by annual parish assessments and appeals for donations. The Con- vention adopted a canon directing every clergyman to preach an annual sermon to "lay before the people the propriety and neces- sity of supporting the Episcopal office with becoming dignity."26 In 1812 Bishop Jarvis sternly urged "early and efficient measures"
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and added that the matter had been "regarded with languor" - which was a charitable expression.27
The next year marked a turn for the better, when the trus- tees appointed Charles Sigourney as their treasurer. He was a Hartford merchant and the clerk of Christ Church parish, and later became a director and president of the Phoenix Bank. He re- ceived a discouragingly small capital, but under his administra- tion of over forty years the fund grew to respectable size. "There can be," he once said, "but one sentiment in the Church, in re- lation to the Episcopal office. All will admit its incumbent should be, if they desire the Church should flourish, a man of superior virtues and talents ... Such a man is not to be obtained without an adequate support .
The Diocese learned the truth of his judgment the hard way, when it went without a bishop for about six years (1813- 1819), partly because there was no adequate episcopal salary. Bishop Brownell had to claim the right to seek income from other sources, until the fund could provide enough to support him and his family. The situation was far from creditable to the Diocese, and provoked the righteous wrath of the devoted Mr. Sigourney. He said frankly that many parishes were still failing to take the matter seriously. In 1832 the Convention voted annual parish con- tributions, and within a few years the fund could pay the Bishop more than his salary. In 1853 the debt to him was paid off, together with his salary and that of Assistant Bishop Williams.
Aroused at last, the Convention made determined efforts to increase the capital. It secured, in 1853, an amendment empower- ing it to elect the trustees, appointed a standing committee to supervise all business, and continued the parochial assessments. In 1880 the Diocese united to realize the trustees' plan for a great in- crease of the Fund. Success would "mark the close of a century since the establishment of the American Episcopate, and give to the primal Diocese in our land the honor of coming to its Centen- nial, with ample provision for the support of its Bishop . . . "29
Doctor Eben E. Beardsley, the diocesan historian, took charge of the appeal; he requested the parochial clergy to raise special collections and approached wealthy laymen for personal contributions. With renewed resolutions and appeals, the campaign continued until 1887. A final burst of zeal put it over the goal of
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$50,000, with only eight parishes delinquent. Since that time there have been repeated appeals to increase the Fund, especially in 1894 and 1905, by personal subscriptions and parochial collections. By such means and by legacies the Fund has grown until it can support three bishops and provide means for other purposes.
THE EPISCOPAL RESIDENCES
Provision of an official home for the Bishop waited even longer than an adequate fund for his support. Seabury occupied the rectory in New London, Jarvis had his own homes in Cheshire and New Haven, Brownell owned a residence in Hartford, and Williams occupied rooms at the Berkeley Divinity School. In 1904 the Convention appointed a committee to consider purchasing a residence, but delayed seven years before empowering a commit- tee to make financial plans, and to collect an assessment on every parish and mission.
Before the committee had settled the matter, Doctor James J. Goodwin presented the house on Woodland Street in Hartford, in which Bishop Brewster lived until his death in 1941. He stipu- lated that the sum already raised should be increased to provide a maintenance fund. The Convention accepted the offer "with deepest gratitude," and within a year the necessary amount had been obtained.
Bishop Acheson lived in his own spacious home on Wash- ington Street in Middletown, and the Diocese leased a house for Bishop Budlong. Before the lease expired in 1937, the Convention authorized the trustees of the Bishops' Fund to purchase a house, and they acquired one on Scarborough Street in Hartford as a per- manent episcopal residence. Bishop Budlong was delighted that a perennial problem had finally been solved. To the Convention he said: "I am grateful to the Trustees and to the Diocese for provid- ing such a lovely home in which to live and in which to receive you frequently, I hope, and for the assurance that I shall not have to move again."30
The Diocese owned another episcopal residence on North Whitney Street, which was the home of Bishop Gray for many years. He now occupies one on Westerly Terrace. The residence on Scarborough Street has sheltered the former and present suf- fragan bishops, Robert M. Hatch and John H. Esquirol. A new residence in West Hartford was purchased for Bishop Hutchens.
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APPENDIX TWO BIBLIOGRAPHY
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CHAPTER ONE EPISCOPALIANS IN A PURITAN STATE
Andrews, Charles McLean. The Beginnings of Connecticut, 1632-1662. (New Haven, Pub. for the Tercentenary Commission, 1934; Tercentenary Pam- phlets, XXXII).
The Rise and Fall of the New Haven Colony. (New Haven, 1936; Tercentenary Pamphlets, XLVIII).
Archibald, Warren Seymour. Thomas Hooker. (New Haven, 1933; Tercen- tenary Pamphlets, IV).
Bacon, Leonard. Thirteen Historical Discourses, on the Completion of Two Hundred Years, from the Beginning of the First Church in New Haven. (New Haven, 1839).
Connecticut (Colony). The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut (1636-1776). Vols. I (1636-1665); III (1678-1689); V (1706-1716); XII 1762-1767).
Charters. The Charter of Connecticut, 1662. (New Haven, 1933; Tercentenary Pamphlets, III). By Albert C. Bates and Charles M. Andrews.
Hinman, Royal R. Letters from the English Kings and Queens ... to the Governors of the Colony of Connecticut, together with the Answers thereto, from 1635 to 1749. (Hartford, 1836).
Hopkins, Samuel. The Puritans and Queen Elizabeth: or, The Church, Court and Parliament of England, from the Reign of Edward VI to the Death of the Queen. (New York, 1875, 3v.).
Kingsley, James Luce. A Historical Discourse, Delivered by Request before the Citizens of New Haven, April 25, 1838, the Two Hundredth Anni- versary of the First Settlement of the Town and Colony. (New Haven, 1838).
Miller, Perry. Review of Isabel M. Calder, The New Haven Colony, New England Quarterly, v. 8, no. 4 (Dec. 1935), pp. 582-584.
Neal, Daniel. The History of the Puritans, or Protestant Nonconformists; from the Reformation in 1517, to the Revolution of 1688. (New York, 1856, 2 v.). Vol. I.
New Haven (Colony). Records of the Colony and Plantation of New Haven, from 1638 to 1649. Transcribed and edited . .. by Charles J. Hoadly. ( Hartford, 1857).
Platner, John Winthrop [and others]. The Religious History of New Eng- land; King's Chapel Lectures. (Cambridge, Mass., 1917).
Schneider, Herbert Wallace. The Puritan Mind. (New York, 1930).
Trumbull, Benjamin. A Complete History of Connecticut, Civil and Ecclesi- astical, from the Emigration of its First Planters, from England, in the Year 1630, to the Year 1764. (New Haven, 1818, 2v.). Vol. I.
Uhden, Hermann Ferdinand. The New England Theocracy. A History of the Congregationalists in New England to the Revivals of 1740. Trans- lated from the second German edition, by H. C. Conant. ( Boston, New York, 1859).
Walker, Williston. A History of the Congregational Churches in the United States. (New York, 1894).
Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson. The Puritan Oligarchy; the founding of American Civilization. (New York, 1947).
Winthrop, John. The History of New England from 1630 to 1649 ... From his Original Manuscripts ... (Boston, 1853, 2 v.). Vol. I.
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CHAPTER TWO
BREACHING THE PURITAN STRONGHOLD
Beardsley, Eben Edwards. The History of the Episcopal Church in Connecti- cut from the Settlement of the Colony to the Death of Bishop Seabury. (New York, 1866). Vol. I.
Bolton, Robert. History of the Protestant Episcopal Church, in the County of Westchester, from its Foundation, A. D. 1693, to A. D. 1853. (New York, 1855).
Bray, Thomas. Apostolick Charity, its Nature and Excellence Considered . . . To which is prefixt, A General View of the English Colonies in America, with respect to Religion; in Order to shew what Provision is Wanting for the Propagation of Christianity in those Parts. ( London, 1700).
A Memorial Representing the Present State of Religion on the Continent of North America. (London, 1700). Reprinted for the Thomas Bray Club. n. p., 1916.
Brewster, Chauncey B., Bp. of Connecticut [and others] to the Archbishop of Canterbury, President, and the S. P. G. June 12, 1900. Engrossed and signed. Diocesan Archives. Address on the Society's 4th Jubilee, from the Diocesan Convention. The Historiographer, no. 6 (Dec. 1953), p. 3. Connecticut (Colony). The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut. Vols. I (1636-1665); III (1678-1689); V (1706-1716); VI (1717-1725). Documentary History of the State of New York. ( Albany, 1850-1851, 4 v. ). Vols. III, IV.
Fox, Dixon Ryan. Caleb Heathcote, Gentleman Colonist; the Story of a Career in the Province of New York, 1692-1721. (New York, 1926).
Great Britain. Laws, Statutes, etc., 1694-1702 (William III). Charter Granted to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, the 16th of June, 1701. (London, 1702).
Greene, Evarts B. "The Anglican Outlook on the American Colonies in the Early Eighteenth Century." American Historical Review, v. 20, no. 1 (Oct. 1914), pp. 64-65.
Hooper, Joseph. "The Church in Connecticut in the Eighteenth Century." Connecticut Churchman, v. 1, no. 4 (June 21, 1907), pp. 29-35.
Humphreys, David. An Historical Account of the Incorporated Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts . . . to the Year 1728. ( London, 1730).
Jarvis, Lucy Cushing, ed. Sketches of Church Life in Colonial Connecticut ... (New Haven, 1902).
Keith, George. A Journal of Travels from New Hampshire to Caratuck, on the Continent of North America. ( London, 1706).
Kirby, Ethyn (Williams). George Keith, 1638-1716. (New York, London, 1942).
Klingberg, Frank J. "Contributions of the S. P. G. to the American Way of Life." Hist. Mag., v. 12, no. 3 (Sept. 1943), pp. 215-224.
"The Expansion of the Anglican Church in the Eight-
eenth Century." Hist. Mag., v. 16, no. 3 (Sept. 1947), pp. 292-301.
Lippincott, Horace Mather. "The Keithian Separation." Friends' Historical Association, Bulletin, v. 16, no. 2 (1927), pp. 49-58.
Lydekker, John Wolfe. "Thomas Bray (1658-1730), Founder of Missionary Enterprise." Hist. Mag., v. 12, no. 3 (Sept. 1943), pp. 187-214.
Mather, Increase. Some Remarks on a Late Sermon, Preached at Boston in
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New-England, by George Keith, M.A., Shewing that his Pretended Good Rules in Divinity, are not Built on the Foundation of the Apostles & Prophets. (Boston, 1702).
Marischal College and University of Aberdeen. Fasti Academiae Mariscal- lanae Aberdonensis. Selections from the Records of the Marischal College and University MDXCIII-MDCCCLX, edited by Peter John Anderson . . (Aberdeen, 1889-98, 3 v.), Vol. II.
McCulloch, Samuel Clyde. "The Foundation and Early Work of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge." Hist. Mag., v. 18, no. 1 (Mar. 1949), pp. 3-22.
"The Foundation and Early Work of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." Hist. Mag., v. 20, no. 2 (June 1951), pp. 121-135.
Muller, James Arthur. "George Keith." Hist. Mag., v. 13, no. 2 (June 1944), pp. 94-106.
New Haven (Colony). Records of the Colony or Jurisdiction of New Haven, from May, 1653, to the Union. Together with the New Haven Code of 1656. Transcribed and edited ... by Charles J. Hoadly. (Hartford, 1858 ).
Newcombe, Alfred W. "The Appointment and Instruction of S. P. G. Mis- sionaries." Church History, v. 5, no. 4 (Dec. 1936), pp. 340-358. O'Neil, Maud. "A Struggle for Religious Liberty. An Analysis of the Work of the S. P. G. in Connecticut." Hist. Mag., v. 20, no. 2 (June 1951), pp. 173-189.
Pascoe, Charles Frederick, comp. Classified Digest of the Records of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, 1701-1892. (London, 1893).
Two Hundred Years of the S. P. G .: an Historical Account of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, 1701-1900. Based on a Digest of the Society's Records. ( London, 1901, 2 v.). Vol. I.
Pennington, Edgar Legare. Apostle of New Jersey, John Talbot, 1645-1727. ( Philadelphia, 1938).
Church of England Beginnings in Connecticut and Black Monday at Yale. ( Hartford, 1938).
"Keith the Quaker and Keith the Anglican." Hist. Mag.,
v. 20, no. 4 (Dec. 1951), pp. 346-362.
Perry, William Stevens. The History of the American Episcopal Church, 1587-1883. ( Boston, 1885, 2 v.). Vol. I, "The Planting and Growth of the American Colonial Church, 1587-1783."
Pigot, George, to [Parish at Stratford]. New York, Apr. 27, 1722. On his appointment as missionary. Diocesan Archives. Reproduced in The Historiographer, no. 2 (Nov. 1952), p. 5.
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