USA > New York > Albany County > Albany > St. Peter's Church in the city of Albany : commemoration of its two hundredth anniversary, November, A.D., 1916 > Part 2
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7
Never was there a period or a situation where the church of Christ had such a mission as in our American life, in this year of Christ.
It is a year of tragedy, the most colossal tragedy in history; a year in which men are rediscovering their souls, the faiths and consecrations that give meaning to life. The soul of man is revealing itself today in heroic dedications. All life that is worth living is sacrificial. It gives itself and thus it fulfills itself. Death on the battle front, where God puts a man, this is the law of Christ and the law of life. May the men and women of St. Peter's Church hold them- selves to the law of the sacrificial Christ.
17
Choral Evensong Sunday, November 19th Commemorative Address BY Rt. Rev. RICHARD H. NELSON, D. D. Bishop of Albany
And they shall be My people and I will be their God .- Ezekiel, xi, 20.
There is set before us today a picture in a frame. The frame, as I see it, is the setting of St. Peter's Parish in the civic and the social life of Albany; the picture shows the people of this church in their relation to God and to the divine purpose of life.
Back of the two hundred years last past, back through the dark and enlightened ages, back to the beginning of Christianity, we find the central verities of religion set in contemporary circumstance whereon the artist Time has traced symbols of a secular character. The life that the church has lived in the flesh has a deep human interest, and there could be no adequate treatment of this bicen- tenary if some competent person were not to speak of those outer events through which St. Peter's Church has accomp- lished its voyage, as well as of the public services rendered by those who have worshipped within its walls. During this week we shall examine the picture frame with reverent interest, admiring the classic beauty of its design, and not failing to note those dusty stains which tell us that they who counted this their home in past days were men of like passions with us in whom good was not unmixed with evil.
It does not fall to me to portray this outward relation of St. Peter's to the life of the community, nor shall I ven- ture to speak of the buildings which have framed the life of so many congregations.
18
RT. REV. RICHARD H. NELSON, D. D. Bishop of Albany
The picture which I would hold before you represents the inner life of those who came here to seek from God guidance, truth, mercy, and grace to help in time of need. " They shall be My people and I will be their God."
Let me speak to you of that which has enabled St. Peter's Church to live through two hundred years and which enables it to face the future with enthusiastic faith.
Religion consists fundamentally in this, that we are conscious of relation to God. He is our Father; we are His children, who " feel after Him and find Him, though He be not far from every one of us. For in Him, we live and more and have our being." In all our weakness, despite our lack of faith. notwithstanding our absorption in the pleasures and ambitions of the world, there sounds in the sanctuary of our consciousness a voice of small stillness which claims us as children of the eternally Holy One. For this the church building stands surrounded by other structures which proclaim as their purpose the temporary housing of God's people while they journey to their final home.
Through the two hundred years which we recall today, St. Peter's Church has meant to others what it means to you who worship within its walls today. It is the House of God to which they of past ages came with aspirations and infirmities, with joys and sorrows like your own.
The church stands for a truth, which is set forth in that epitome of God's life in man, and man's life in God which we call the creed. Our God is with us through all human experience and His presence is our glory and our help. This truth, whether fully realized or dimly felt, underlies all else that may be said concerning St. Peter's Church and accounts for its survival through the years wherein ten generations have sought and found a God Who counts nothing human as alien from Himself.
I speak, therefore, of those intimate personal needs which our forbears, in their hungering humanity, sought from God, and of that which God, in His incarnate sympathy, did for them in the secret of their hearts. They came here as those who say " Show Thou me the way that I should walk in, for I lift up my soul unto Thee." Before them a
19
wide gate stood open and a broad path invited them to walk in worldly ways. The longing for ease and enjoyment was keen and insistent. The desire for riches and fame was strong. Temptations to self indulgence were powerful and public opinion did not always rebuke or disown those who followed after evil. There were sinners in the early days, even as there were saints. Who but God Himself can know how many young minds, bewildered by a consciousness of antagonism between the enticements of the world and the inner voice of duty, directed their steps to the doors of God's house and thought on their knees of One Who, seeing "all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them," turned from this to a higher vision of purity and truth, of helpfulness and love, seeing, beyond the shadows, of sef- sacrifice, the glories of the risen life ? Some of those whom we remember here today rose to great heights of public honor, rendered true service to their city and their country, were high examples of domestic and civic virtue, and found it in their hearts to heed the cry of the poor. Are we justified in assuming that their virtues were attained with- out struggle against temptations, or that they who rose to heights never were tempted to descend into depths ? Is it not more consonant with our knowledge of human nature to believe that the very best men and women of past days may have found here a parting of the ways and with it grace to choose the better ? May we not believe that, under- neath a decorous conformity to respectable habits of church- going, there ran a life-long struggle to resist the flesh and to follow the promptings of the spirit ? May we not think of them as seeking help from God to live those lives which made them honorable and worthy to be remembered ?
Highly educated, thoughtful men and women have wor- shipped God in this place, even as they worship Him here today. Such persons demand a philosophy of life, a theory of things, and it requires but little play of the imagination to picture some such minds as entering here upon
" That blessed mood, In which the burden of the mystery, In which the heavy and the weary weight Of all this unintelligible world Is lightened."
20
Let us picture to ourselves some one sitting here in the olden days and thinking along such lines as this: It can- not be other than a reasonable world; else were reason but a process toward insanity. There must be some adequate explanation of the hardship and the pain of life, and it is not to be found within the narrow bounds of measurable things. Nature is as merciless as fate. But what if I, who reason about these things, shall find that, moving bravely through darkness as well as light, through sorrow as well as joy, through pain as well as ease, I grow toward a better self, and acquire a truer sense of sympathetic relation to my fellow men? What if this shall prove to be the pur- pose of all life ? Not merely to own and to enjoy things, but to be trained and disciplined until I shall become that which I should gladly be for ever ?
Thus musing in the church, there comes the thought of One who entering into human life became perfect through the things that He suffered. Not for Himself alone, but that others in the School of this world's life might find purpose and inspiration in their tasks, together with the comfort of companionship. "The Lord thy God is with thee, whithersoever thou goest." The purpose of life is not discovered in its circumstance, but in its achievement, and "the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."
It was along this line that one whose experiences are described in a recent work of English fiction found a solu- tion of life's problem as it came to him in war time, and was enabled to "see it through." St. Peter's Church has stood through all the wars which our country has waged, and through two centuries of strife in human souls.
When we consider the number of those who, with the Captain of their Salvation, have approached perfection through the things that they have suffered, may not we on whose hearts the burden of a world war presses, find greater faith in humanity as we see it pass through the furnace of affliction and come forth with the splendor of refined gold ?
Down the long river of years come the pilgrims who seek forgiveness in the House of God. Many of those who have worshipped here were drawn by the thought that the
21
1
throne of God is also His Mercy seat. They had been taught to know Him as one who was willing to be " num- bered with the transgressors," "to be guest with a man that is a sinner " and who came " not to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." Of those who fall, He says, as well as of those who stand, " They shall be My people and I will be their God." God's mercy to the penitent has been proclaimed in this Church through all the years of its history and has brought a gospel of life to many who sought release from the prison chains of sin.
Thus far I have touched upon such matters only as are of an intimate and personal nature, but I do not forget that association with others is helpful in religion as well as in other affairs of our life.
It belongs to the historian to trace the growth of the many guilds and societies which represent the varied activ- ities of this Parish. I wish merely to point out how such organizations promote friendship in the family of God, and so contribute indirectly to the growth of personal religion. Cordial relations between those who work together in the church help them to realize their membership, one with another, when they come here for prayer or praise, and most of all, when they come to partake of that Sacred Feast which is "a sign of the love that Christians ought to have among themselves." Through all the years of which we think today, association in helpful service must have fostered the spirit of true devotion before the Altar of God where the friendships of today are joined to a larger fellowship in the Communion of Saints.
It is good for us to be here, and to consider for a while how others like us have used this House of God, so that from the retrospect we may return to our duties in the church and in the world, resolved to consecrate ourselves to high ideals, to move upward through hard things of life to seek God's pardon for our faults and to work together as we pray together for the advance of Christ's Kingdom in the world.
22
THE SECOND ST. PETER'S CHURCH-1802-1859
The Reception of Monday Eurning
The Rector, Wardens and Vestrymen of St. Peter's Church tendered a Reception on Monday evening, November 20th, at the Albany Institute and Historical and Art Society, to the members of this and other parishes, to the Delegates to the Diocesan Convention and citizens of Albany.
The formal reception was followed by brief addresses. Justice William P. Rudd, of St. Peter's Vestry, presided, introducing the speakers.
THE CHAIRMAN: Ladies and gentlemen-In behalf of those who have official responsibility in connection with the Parish of St. Peter's, I have been asked to extend a greeting to you and a welcome at this phase of the cele- bration of the second centenary of that parish.
It is an interesting episode in the history of the life of the city, and it was so beautifully presented in the picture which was drawn yesterday from the pulpit of St. Peter's by our dear Rector Emeritus that, of course, I can not add a word, and I hardly think anyone could. There are, however, phases of the celebration which appeal to us particularly, and we are especially gratified that those not connected with our parish, people who stand for the Church in other organizations, join with the people of St. Peter's in a word of congratulation after the second centenary of St. Peter's life has passed. We have with us tonight a distinguished group of men who lead in the spiritual life of different churches, and in other relations in our city, and they are expected to say a word to you from their viewpoint, looking, I hope, towards St. Peter's, and think- ing of St. Peter's.
The first of those who will speak is the man who stands responsible for the work of this church in this diocese. He needs no introduction to this audience, and I have the pleasure of presenting the Bishop. (Applause.)
23
Rt. Rev. RICHARD H. NELSON: I have a feeling that I have been in training for this bicentenary all the years of my public ministry. I was looking over the facts in the case the other day, and discovered that I had been in holy orders for twenty-one years when I came to Albany, and that eighteen of those years had been passed in parishes which have histories. The youngest of them all was St. Peter's Church in Philadelphia, which was established in 1760. Two other parishes in which I served were consider- ably older than that.
As I walked up to this meeting I tried to recall some incident which should illustrate what I have in mind on this general subject. I remember that one day the Rev- erend Dr. Henry R. Percival, who at the time was a man somewhat over sixty, came into old St. Peter's Church with a smile on his face and led me around the corner into one of the slips, as they were called to distinguish them from the square pews. He showed me initials which had been cut on the back of the slip, indicating a boy's work, and said his grandfather did that when he was a little boy. (Laughter.)
I refer to this incident in order to show you that the interest which I feel in this bicentenary is not merely official, and it certainly is not assumed for the occasion. I have been in training to enter with the fullest and the most appreciative sympathy into the feelings of all those who are associated with St. Peter's Church, and I should like to say also that I am coming more and more to regard the accumulation of sacred associations in a community as one of the very valuable assets in its life.
There is so much in our present day mode of thought that tends to make us skim lightly over things, that it is worth while to have something that carries us back into the past, and makes us think about the things which are capable of enduring for two hundred years.
I give my very hearty congratulations to the Rectors of St. Peter's Church, to all the members of the Congre- gation, and to the City of Albany-perhaps I may say to the Diocese of Albany also. (Applause.)
24
THE CHAIRMAN: At a dinner two or three years ago given by those interested in the First Presbyterian Church of this city I was introduced by the toastmaster of the occasion-he happens to be here this evening-as one who lived in the shadow of the First Presbyterian Church. (Laughter.) Of course, the answer to that was that the First Presbyterian Church casts no shadow. It has, on the other hand, thrown a light into this community for many, many years. It came into our city life in 1761. It has constantly grown in grace, and today, under the pastorate of Dr. Hopkins, it has, in its mature and ripened age, strengthened and developed markedly. This virile growth is a subject of favorable comment in the city, and it is particularly gratifying tonight that we have with us the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, the Reverend Dr. Hopkins. (Applause.)
The Rev. Dr. WM. HERMAN HOPKINS: The First Presby- terian Church, Mr. Chairman and friends, suffers tonight from the embarrassment of youth. It was only a few years ago that we were talking very bravely of our hun- dred and fifty years. They did not seem quite empty to us, and we came to the end of them, as we thought, with eye undimmed and with natural force unabated. But now we are looking up to St. Peter's, half a century older than we, and we feel so very young that we think we should be seen and not heard (Laughter), and should “ behave mannerly at table, at least so far as we are able." (Laughter.)
But it is altogether mannerly in us, "at least so far as we are able," to felicitate you on the goal of these two hundred years,-the race so well run and so well won. They are years which speak of permanent things. And there is so much that is shifting in the life we live, so much that is shaken not to be rebuilt, that it is reassuring to find that which abides.
We are alert, as we trust, all of us, to new occasions, and to new and necessary emphasis, methods and instruments. But, frankly, we are of those who "always reverence a gray-headed truth," and it is good, therefore, to recall at the end of two hundred years, that there are some things
25
that do not change. The wheat grows as it used to grow, though reapers and binders are new. The stars shine as they used to shine, though lenses are stronger. And while in our present Christian vocabularies and ventures there may be a good deal of which our forefathers were ignorant, there remains "the Gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation," that Gospel which Thomas Barclay, stand- ing (may we say?) in the middle of the street, preached in 1716. We felicitate St. Peter's that through two hundred years she has " kept the faith once delivered to the saints."
But we congratulate her even more that only a beginning has been made. When a rural native was asked by a city traveller whether he had lived in that village all his life, he answered, " Well, not yet." (Laughter.) The more in- spiring thought of these great anniversary days of yours will be, not of the years that have been, but of the years that are to be-years whose opportunities you, with your historic background, your strategic location, your choicer architec- ture, your far-famed song, your able and sympathetic rector, your representative people, are so competent to improve.
What you will do, a Presbyterian is not so foolish as to advise. (Laughter.) A convert fresh from the fervor of the evangelistic series stood up in his quiet prayer-meeting and with all zeal affirmed, " I am ready to do anything the Lord asks of me so long as it is honorable." (Laughter.) Let it so stand. Surely no more is to be asked of us in Heaven or on earth !
But, though I am outside your immediate circle, I am confident (for I am aware of the temper of your mind and the warmth of your heart) of this,-that in these new years just opening their inviting doors to you, you will do the things that are really great, and that you will do them in the spirit of good-will.
Things that are really great: Among the limericks of renown there is this:
" The centipede was happy quite Until the toad for fun Said, 'Pray which leg comes after which? ' This worked her mind to such a pitch She lay distracted in a ditch Considering how to run." (Laughter.)
26
The pity of it, if in these days of the bloody upheaval of civilization, in these days of gravest uncertainty whether the world can well recover from the fearful and sustained shock, we should be so concerned about mint, anise and cummin as to forget the weightier matters of the law and the Gospel; the pity of it, if, in the figure which the lime- rick gives, we should be so absorbed in watching our step that we make no progress at all.
This will not be St. Peter's way. We know that in the priceless years to be, your prayer will have power, your message will be rich in light, and your life will not lack in consistency and consecration. For less than this, in Christ's company in these disordered times, would be folly and crime. You will deal with great fundamentals, and again and again you will lift your eyes to those heights beyond the hills whence cometh our help. So will you make large contribution to the establishment among us of that new earth in which dwelleth righteousness.
And that which you do you will do in the spirit of good- will. The middle wall of partition was long since broken down. Lesser walls are falling. The night is far spent, a night of darkness, sometimes of gross darkness it has been, the night in which differences that separate have over- shadowed the unities that bind. The night is far spent, the day is at hand, the day in which and to the end, I think, some of the things that distinguish us will remain, but the day in which the Name that is above every name shall shine unclouded by the smoke of our little camp- fires, the day in which we shall be silent each before the other's errors, the day in which we shall be patient each with the other's weaknesses, the day in which we shall seek each only the best in the other, the day in which we shall give God thanks each for the other's victories, the day in which we shall rejoice in that faith and hope and baptism that make us one, the day in which we shall count ourselves unanointed if we lack the baptism of that love which is greater than faith and hope. It is the day of good-will.
We are coming swiftly again to those crisp December days, with their fragrant cedars, and nights of clear stars,
27
days in whose air there is the song, grown dearer with each repetition, the song " I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people,"-the tidings of good-will.
The Nativity is still prophetic. The day is still at hand. St. Peter's, as we all know, hails the dawn of it with gladness, and will give herself to the extension of its sway and in doing so she will summon more distinctly than by doctrinal statement or ecclesiastical enactment the com- ing of that time when the whole world shall " give back the song which now the angels sing." (Applause.)
THE CHAIRMAN: When St. Peter's stood in the middle of the street, there was just to the south of State Street, in what was then known as the pasture, a building which was used by the Lutherans; that building was reached by the lane which is now South Pearl Street. In 1714, two years before the day which we here celebrate, the Lutherans accommodated the Episcopalians in their house that the Episcopalians might offer worship. From that day to this the Lutheran Church has been the next-door neighbor of St. Peter's, because as you go along Lodge Street northerly from St. Peter's Church, you come first to the site of the first Masonic Lodge which stood upon the American con- tinent, now occupied by the Masonic Building, and then to the First Lutheran Church. Across the way is the First Roman Catholic Church, and in the immediate vicinity, that plot of ground which was used as the first reservoir of the city when the people all lived below Eagle Street, a locality thereabouts interesting as the beginning of things after the people of our city came from along the river front and began to climb the hill toward the west.
The Lutheran Church is there today, the first Lutheran Church, one of the earliest, if not the earliest, of Lutheran organizations, as I understand, upon our continent, and it is particularly gratifying to us that the pastor of that church, the Reverend Dr. Leitzell, will speak to us. (Applause.)
The Rev. CHARLES W. LEITZELL: Ladies and gentle- men-An Episcopal rector was spending his vacation in Indiana, and he met an old farmer. In the course of the
28
conversation the farmer said to him, "I am an Episco- palian," and the rector said, "To what parish do you belong ? " The farmer answered, "I don't know nothing about any parish." "Well," said the rector, "to what diocese then?" "There is nothing of that kind around here," was the reply. "Well, by whom were you con- firmed ?" The farmer answered, " I have never been con- firmed." "Then how do you claim that you are an Epis- copalian ? " " Well," said he, " It happened like this: I was on a visit to Arkansas one time and I happened to go into a church and they called it Episcopal, and while I was in the church I heard them saying, 'We have done the things we ought not to have done, and we have left undone the things we ought to have done,' and I said to myself, that's my case exactly, and ever since that time I felt that I was an Episcopalian." (Laughter.)
We are all Episcopalians tonight. We have forgotten our differences, if we have any, and we are here to offer our congratulations and to bring our greetings to the mem- bers of the Parish of St. Peter's, and I am certain that it is a very great pleasure for me as the Pastor of the First Lutheran Church to add my tribute.
Judge Rudd has told you somewhat of our history, and taken somewhat of my thunder, but I am happy to bring you the greetings, as the Pastor of the First Lutheran Church, because of the fact that in the early days of St. Peter's, we were able to render some little assistance in affording a place of shelter, in allowing the members of St. Peter's to worship in our church.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.