USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > The parish of the Advent in the city of Boston, a history of one hundred years, 1844-1944 > Part 2
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
growing in number, and including "some of the best and most influential minds in the Church in the city."
It was but natural that, in a movement like this, much opposition should be encountered. So sudden and so decided a departure from the established modes of worship in Massachusetts must necessarily have led to much comment and not a little feeling. Such as attempted to follow the letter and spirit of the Prayer-book were in those days reproachfully called Puseyites. Ridicule was one of the weapons employed to counteract influences which it was fancied by the uninformed must have emanated from the papal see. But controversy was entirely avoided on the part of the priest and parish, and all went quietly on. The fasts and feasts were observed as they had not before been since the days of Ratcliffe; and during Lent, the rector says in a letter to his father, the services were most solemn and im- pressive. On Good Friday he writes that the altar, as he remembered in his youth in New Haven, "was in black, the music full of pathos, and melted all hearts to tears."
Such was the state of the parish in this early period of its existence. At the close of its six months in Merrimac Street there were about seventy communicants, and all the worshippers had become thoroughly united and at one with the rector in the desire for a more dignified and appropriate ritual. A higher standard of church music seems to have been one aim from the outset. The voluntary choir of gen- tlemen and ladies were much interested in furthering the wishes of the rector. The psalms and canticles were sung to the simple Gregorian melodies so peculiarly adapted for the purpose, the metrical psalms soon giving place to the prose translation of the Prayer-book; and the music became very soon one of the attractive features of the service, rather from its ecclesiastical character than from any espe- cial merit on the part of the singers.
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
On the first day of June, 1845," the parish held its first services in the new hall on the corner of Lowell and Cause- way Streets, which had been expressly arranged for it under the superintendence of the late Dr. Coale, one of its vestry-
GILT HOULDINGS
BA
ON-FAINSTE'N
. MEN
THE CORNER OF LOWELL AND CAUSEWAY STREETS Here the Sunday and daily services of the Church of the Ad- vent were held from 1845 to 1847.
men. The room was commodious, one well adapted to the ritual of the Church, and capable of seating not far from three hundred persons. The altar, which was at the east end of the hall, was plainly draped, and surmounted by a large gilded cross. Upon it were four gilded candlesticks,
3 [The records indicate that as the hall was not ready for occu- pancy on June 1st it was necessary to postpone the first service to Sun- day, June 15th.]
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
whose candles were lighted at the evening services. The chancel, which was small in area, was enclosed by a simple rail, at which the clergy knelt in the prayers. There was no reading-desk, but a plain wooden lectern, at which the lessons were read and the sermons preached. On the south side of the chancel sat the choir. In this small hall, Sunday by Sunday, a large and very respectable congregation as- sembled for worship; and the responses were most hearty, and the services solemn and inspiring.
There seems to have been at this time a growing desire for daily morning and evening prayer. "Many of the parish," says the rector in a letter, "are impatient for the commencement of daily service." "I am not sure," he adds, "that it will not be the first attempt to revive the week-day service in this city since the year 1686, when, at the second meeting of the members of the Church of England, it was 'agreed that the prayers of the Church be said every Wednesday and Friday of the year, in the summer season to begin at seven of the clock in the morning, and in the winter season at nine of the clock in the forenoon.'"
It was on the first day of September, just three months after the parish had removed to its new place of worship, that the daily service was commenced for the first time in Boston; "at the ancient hour of prayer, being the third hour," * as the rector expressed it, "or, according to our present horology, nine o'clock." t "The morning was bright
* All will remember his beautiful lines, which are at once suggested by this remark : -
"O Saviour, I would spend the hours Canonical with Thee,
"At vespers, and at nocturns late, When suns have ceased to shine,
On my devotion's dial-plate
As tolls the clock from yonder towers, At nine, and twelve, and three; Still shed Thy light divine;
At primes, and lauds, and matin bell, And compline, rise and pray,
And tell my blessed rosary At the decline of day.
And, as the holy vigil yields In turn to holy dream, Oh, let my Saviour be through all My glory and my theme."
+ When the rector was asked at a vestry meeting, "what time he proposed for morning and evening service," he replied, "The hours of nine and six, being canonical hours."
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
and auspicious, and there was an encouraging attendance." The rector seems to have had little doubt of his having ample strength, with the occasional assistance of other clergy, to carry on these additional services. He writes, a few weeks later, that the "daily service goes on quietly through sunshine and storm alike, and with little deviation in the attendance." To aid in the more frequent services of the parish, the Rev. F. W. I. Pollard, formerly of Nan- tucket, was appointed the assistant minister of the parish; and everything seemed to betoken a prosperous future.
An incident soon occurred, however, that led to much bitterness of feeling, and to an interruption of the pleasant relations that had hitherto existed between the parish and the bishop.4 There had been from the first a consciousness on the part of the rector that the bishop was not heartily in sympathy with him in his work. On the presentation of his letters dimissory from Bishop DeLancey, he seems to have been treated with bare courtesy. "He is civil," wrote Mr. Croswell, "and I ask and expect nothing more." Brought up in the Presbyterian faith and not having changed his views since his boyhood, as he said to a brother bishop not very long before his death, it is not strange that Bishop Eastburn should have looked with a doubtful eye upon the new church enterprise, especially as the lay control of the parish was in the hands of a close corporation, the church being without pews, and hence individual ownership being impossible. But no decided expression or action on the part of the bishop was manifested until his first visita- tion, which took place on the evening of the Sunday before
4 [Bishop Griswold, whose see (The Eastern Diocese) in 1843
included the dioceses of Massachusetts, Maine, and Rhode Island, died Feb. 15, 1843. After the death of Bishop Griswold, Maine and Rhode Island became independent dioceses. In 1842 the Rev. Manton Eastburn, Rector of Trinity Church in Boston, had been consecrated Coadjutor Bishop of Massachusetts ; upon the death of Bishop Gris- ยท wold he succeeded to the see, remaining rector of Trinity Church, however, until 1868.]
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
Advent, 1845. In a letter of the rector dated November 25 he writes: "Our place of worship was thronged, the music was delightful, the congregation manifesting that engaged- ness in the worship which is so contagious, and distinguishes us from any congregation in the city.". Seventeen candi- dates were confirmed. The bishop's address was good, but contained nothing distinctive, and no recognition of what was characteristic in the rite. The bishop was noticed to be extremely nervous during the service, and, as soon as it was concluded, returned to the sacristy with the other clergy in a somewhat excited state, and at once proceeded, as the rector described the scene, to deal with him and his assist- ant "in the spirit of one who was about to lay his hands- I had almost said violent hands-on his antagonist, and in a manner neither creditable nor convincing." The bishop's main objections to the service related to the use of the word "Saint" except as applied to the apostles, to the fact that the clergy knelt with their faces to the altar instead of kneeling into their chairs, and to certain other things which appeared to him to savor of superstition. The conversation which ensued, though brief, had, to use Dr. Croswell's words, "turned our joy into heaviness."
The scene was one never to be forgotten, and seems to have been the first step in a series of measures hostile to the interests of the new parish and its rector. The imputa- tions of the diocesan were, however, respectfully and stead- ily repelled; and nothing else was heard from him until a few days later, when a pastoral letter appeared in his official organ, the Christian Witness, containing a direct attack upon the rector of the Church of the Advent, and on his mode of conducting divine service. The bishop alluded es- pecially to the form of the communion table, "fitted up," as he expressed it, "like a Romish altar," the golden candle- sticks, the large wooden cross that surmounted the altar and the postures assumed by the officiating clergy in the services
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
of the Church. He expressed his unqualified condemnation of certain practices, which he regarded as puerile and dan- gerous to the souls of those who witnessed them, and as bringing contempt and ridicule "from all sensible and en- lightened persons of other Christian bodies."
This unjust and uncalled-for aspersion upon the character of one of his own clergy naturally caused much excitement and feeling in the parish and in the community at large, it seeming like an appeal to the public for the purpose of creating hostility to the new enterprise.
A meeting of the wardens and vestry was at once called, at which resolutions were passed expressive of surprise and regret at the course pursued by the bishop, and vindicating the rector and the parish in all that related to the arrange- ment of the chapel and its modes of worship." They also
'[December 5, 1845. At a second meeting held three days later, further resolutions were passed, which so well express the sentiment of the Parish and the loyalty to its rector that they should here be recorded :
"Resolved, That we regard Episcopal visitation for confirmation and other purposes as one of the chief characteristics of the Christian Church, a right valuable both to the Rector and to the People, and intended to be secured by the legislation of our Church-That we learn with regret the determination of the Bishop to withhold the privilege from us on account of the arrangements of our Chapel and the mode of conducting worship there.
"Resolved, That we have examined the Bishop's circular letter of December 5th, 1845, as well as his late letter to our Rector, and have carefully considered the arrangements of our Chapel and can discover nothing in which we violated any established laws or any uniform, recognized and obligatory usage of the Church. That we have endeav- ored with such light as we could obtain, to carry out the spirit and letter of the Ritual in a manner plain, simple, and suited to the size and character of our place of worship. And wherever these arrange- ments vary from such as we suppose the Bishop would give prefer- ence to, it is on points where there is no established rule, but an ac- knowledged diversity of opinion and practice in the Church, and in which we have the example of numerous parishes, supported by the highest authorities. We, therefore, under the circumstances, protest against the resort to public censure and cutting off from privileges intended to be secured to us by the Church.
"Resolved, That, although so much of the Bishop's letter as re-
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
recorded a solemn protest against the public manner in which the rector had been denounced as "perilling the souls of his people," and "exposing the Church to ridicule and contempt," adverting to his many excellences, his untiring and self-sacrificing efforts in behalf of the poor, and his dignity and simplicity in conducting divine service. Cordial sympathy was also expressed with him in his efforts "towards presenting the Church in its entireness before the community" by the establishment of daily service, the observance of holy days, the regular offertory, the use of free sittings, the introduction of simple and ancient music, and by the frequent celebration of the sacraments, ordi- nances and offices.6
lates to the mode of conducting Divine Worship does not require our consideration, yet we take this opportunity to assure our Rector of our concurrence with him as to the course he has taken in relation thereto, explained by his letter to the Bishop of this date, which he has kindly laid before us. And we renew the expression of our conviction that the whole congregation regard with increasing interest and at- tachment the modes of worship which have been followed in the Par- ish from the beginning.
"Resolved, that a copy of these resolutions be placed at the disposal of the Rector, to be sent, if he thinks proper, to the Bishop."] 6 ["The Parish of the Advent was founded in 1844, and was in- tended from the beginning to be a mission church, with free sittings, daily services and the full use of the prayer book. It was something of a novelty in those days to bring out the full teachings of what is commonly called the Episcopal Church, and when Dr. William Cros- well, the first rector of the Parish, whose saintly life made a deep impression on Boston people, and whose poems are found in every choice collection of religious poetry, restored, coeval with the first service of the new parish, held at no. 13 Merrimac Street, on Advent Sunday, Dec. 1, 1844, the old church system of free sittings, the weekly offertory, the daily service, frequent communions, the choral renderings of the offices, the preaching in the surplice, the eastward position of the priest at the celebration, and the cross and lights as symbolical ornaments of the altar, many people beside Bishop East- burn made the mistake of saying that this new parochial organization was intended for something more than the full restoration of what belonged to the Prayer Book service. It has happened partly for this reason and partly from the fact that the Church of the Advent was the first parish in New England to insist that the Episcopalian services
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
Of course, so gross and public an attack upon one every- where held in the highest esteem could not pass unnoticed ; and most reluctantly did the rector enter upon his own defence. In his reply to his diocesan he remarked upon the great injustice done him, dwelling at some length upon the solemn character of the work he had undertaken, the zeal of those interested in the enterprise, the simplicity of the arrangement in the chapel, and of the general order of divine worship. "We have knelt," he said, "devoutly before and with our people towards God's most holy place, that they also might learn to kneel after our example. The effect has been all that we hoped for. The flame has spread from heart to heart. The cold silence and wandering looks, the carelessness and apathy, which are subjects of complaint in so many places of worship, have disappeared before it. Many who have come without religious sympathy we have reason to know have been joined together with us in a new bond of Christian union. I venture to say that the expres- sion of 'ridicule and contempt' to which you allude has not been known among us, though doubtless some 'who came to scoff have remained to pray.'" In allusion to the cross, which the bishop refers to in his letter, as one of "the offensive innovations" that gave him "inexpressible grief and pain," Mr. Croswell said: "I cannot bring myself to say one word in answer to your objection. I am happy to confess that I am 'childish and puerile' enough to love and rejoice to have that precious symbol presented to the eye in all holy places,-of all symbols the most speaking and most touching, proclaiming Christ crucified, the Alpha and
should be represented in their proper character, that this parish has always had an important part to play within the Episcopal body, hardly less so in Bishop Eastburn's day than in our own. In the days of church party, it stood as distinctly on one side of the ecclesiastical fence as the evangelical bishop did on the other. . . . " (From an ar- ticle in the Boston Herald, Jan. 29, 1881, possibly written by Mr. Erving Winslow.) ]
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
Omega of the Church's existence." He added that "there is not one of our churches in the city which is not open to censure on similar ground," and instanced Trinity Church, the bishop's own church, where, as he pointedly said, "We miss the cross, indeed, but the mitre is not excluded." He alluded to the painting of the Transfiguration in St. Paul's Church, and in Grace Church to the cross in bold relief on the shaft of the baptismal font, intercepting the eye between the porch and the altar. He expressed extreme regret that he was compelled to a public defence of himself, but no other course seemed open to him. He had been held up by his bishop, through the public press, as a presbyter unfaithful to his vows, one who had not hesitated to sacri- fice to an inclination towards idolatrous usages and super- stitious puerilities the character of the Church and the souls of his people; and a sense of justice, as well as his own self-respect, required that his vindication should be equally public.
This reply to the attack upon himself and the parish was written in an admirable spirit. Pointed in style, yet free from all bitterness, it elicited much comment, and, together with the bishop's letter, aroused the deepest interest in every portion of the country. Letters poured in on him from all directions. In a letter to his father he writes, "I could not have anticipated such a burst of enthusiasm." Edition after edition of the correspondence was called for, until thousands had been disposed of ; and many were the testi- monials of approbation and expressions of sympathy on every side. The religious and secular press also became involved in the controversy, the latter, as was natural, gen- erally defending the bishop's course,-the Puritan party, both within and without the Church, inveighing as of old against rites and ceremonies. But the rector was constantly cheered by letters and messages complimenting him on the spirit and manner of his reply. One of his correspondents
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
wrote, "I am delighted with the manner in which you have treated the subject,-calm, dignified, and consistent with your character as a man and minister of God's Holy Church, and at the same time conclusive in argument and forcible in appeal." Many others expressed the same sentiment, while all cordially approved the course pursued by the rector and the vestry.
That the attitude of hostility assumed by the bishop was not due to any sudden impulse, but rather to a profound dislike, fostered by his early training and association, to the broad Catholic principles that underlay the formation of the new parish soon became more than ever apparent. An incident occurred about this time that showed conclu- sively the bishop's feeling. A young clergyman had been invited to preach at Trinity Church on the afternoon of a certain Sunday by the assistant minister of that parish. Having officiated at the Church of the Advent at the morn- ing service, he went to Trinity Church to fulfil his engage- ment there. The bishop asked him in the sacristy where he had officiated in the morning. He replied at the Church of the Advent. The bishop at once said that he could not preach at Trinity Church, and the reverend gentleman immediately withdrew .*
As the time approached for another confirmation, the rector made a formal request that the bishop would appoint
* It was probably with reference to this act that very soon after the vestry of Trinity Church passed two resolutions bearing on the conduct of the diocesan towards his clergy. The second of these reso- lutions contains the following clause : "The proprietors of this church do not recognize nor admit, as a just and appropriate means of ad- vancing the cause of true religion, the principle of exclusion from the altar or the pulpit of clergymen of regular standing in the Protestant Episcopal Church, and otherwise well approved for piety, learning, and a blameless life, and conforming to the settled usages and forms of worship in this Church, for the cause of theological views or opin- ions, not involving a case of ecclesiastical censure on the score of non- conformity to the doctrines of the Church of which they profess to be members."
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
a time for the administration of that rite. The bishop promptly declined to visit the parish unless permanent alter- ations were made in the arrangement of the chapel and in the mode of conducting divine service. Against this arbitrary act the rector could only protest, at the same time declining to conform to the bishop's suggestions. To aban- don privately the observances for which he had been publicly censured would be regarded as an admission of the char- acter imputed to them, as well as of the legality of the act of censure. The bishop having declined to visit the church, the confirmation took place at Trinity Church on the 17th of January, 1847 .*
It was toward the close of the year 1846 that a move- ment was made for procuring a more permanent place of worship. The present hall had become too small to accom- modate the congregations, and the street had become so noisy as to cause a serious interruption to the daily services. The subject came up at a meeting of the parish, held in November, 1846, when it was voted that a committee be appointed to consider the whole subject, and take steps to raise a fund for the purpose of obtaining a permanent House of Prayer for the parish. Later, in order to secure the more safe and convenient management of such fund, it was voted that this fund be vested in the hands of three trustees under covenant with the corporation, by whom they were to be elected. These trustees were to so invest all moneys contributed for this purpose that they might accumulate until they reached the sum of twenty thousand dollars, in addition to the cost of a suitable lot of land. The fund might then be used for building a church under the direction of the corporation, which, when finished, should be conveyed to the parish, "upon such conditions as shall forever secure it to be free, and open to the public
* A full account of the controversy is given in the Memoir of Wil- liam Croswell, by his father, published in 1853.
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THE PARISH OF THE ADVENT
service of Almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, according to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of that portion of the Holy Catholic Church known as the Protestant Episcopal Church, in the United States of America." The above indenture was signed on the first day of February, 1847.7
THE GREEN STREET CHURCH IN 1847
A favorable opportunity very soon occurred for securing a building far better suited to the needs of the parish than the hall in Causeway Street. A meeting-house situated in Green Street,8 in which the late Dr. Jenks had for many
7 [The three trustees elected were William Foster Otis, Frederick H. Stimpson, and Edmund T. Dana.]
'[Called the Green Street Church, of which the Rev. William Jenks, D.D. was pastor from 1826 to 1844. In the latter year the con- gregation united with the Garden Street Society, to form the Messiah Church. Before the purchase of the chapel in Green Street was de- cided upon, consideration had been given to chapels in Chardon Street and Phillips Place.]
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THE YEARS 1844-1851
years officiated, having become vacant, was offered for sale; and, as the funds already in the hands of the trustees were sufficient for the purpose, they were enabled to secure it by purchase. It was a substantial structure of brick, far from ecclesiastical in appearance, but, after undergoing the needed alterations, not ill-adapted to the requirements of the parish, being capable of holding not far from six hun- dred persons.
Of course, much time was required to make the neces- sary changes in the new chapel to fit it for church wor- ship;' and it was not until late in the autumn that they were completed. In allusion to the slow progress of these alterations Mr. Croswell, in one of his letters, says: "But what they accomplish is very satisfactory; and I think we shall have as churchlike arrangements of the altar and furniture as are to be found in the city, though this is not saying much. There will be a hundred pews, or, rather, open seats, on the floor; for we have discarded the doors and cut down the ends to a scroll elbow piece,-a vast improvement in the appearance of the building, and settling an important principle. How strange the spectacle would be in our eyes, if we were not accustomed to it,-this but- toning in of families on the floor of the sacred edifice, each in their separate pens!"
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