Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029459017 Cornell University Library BX5995.H6 S38 Memorial of Bishop Hobart. A. collection olln 3 1924 029 459 017 nXEMORIAL or BIBBOF BOBART. coLLEcSisar^^p. Sermons QK THB DBATB OF THE EIGHT REVEREND JOH^r HEMRY HOBART, D. D. BISHOP OF THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN THE STATE OF NEW-YORK : WITH A MEMOIR OF HIS LIFE AND WRITINGS. PRO ECCLESIA DEI. NEW-YORK: PUBLISHED BY T. AND J. SWORDS. MDCCCXKXI. SouHu/m D'lslrict of New-York, to wit: BE IT REMEMBERED, That on the twenty-second dsy Seal of February, Antio Domini 1831, T. & J. Swords, of the said District, have deposited in this Office the title of a Book, the title of which is in the words following, to wit: " Memorial of Bishop Hohart. — A Collection of Sermons on the Death of the Right Remeretid John Henry Hobart, D. D. Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Chwrch in the State of New-York: tkith a Memoir of Us Life an^ Writings. Pro EccUsia Dei." The right whereof they claim as Proprietors. In confomlily with an Act of Congress, entitled " An Act to amend the several Acts respecting copy-rights." FRED. J. BETTS, CUrk oftht, Soiitherrt District ofNew-Yorh; OnNELL UNlVERSfTY LIBRARY NEW-YORK : ^ PRINTED BY EDWARD J. SWORDS, No. 8 Thames-Street, PREFACE. Sooir after the occurrence of that mournful incident which gave occasion to the following discourses, the first, together with the fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth, and ninth, were printed in a separate form. These, with the remaining seven, have been contributed to the MiMORiAi,, in eompliance with the request of the publishers. Pronounced in various and remote parts of our ecclesiastical union, they give utterance to a general sentiment, in the words of many who enjoyed, some of them for more than twenty years, the most favourable opportunities by which they might "judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment." A successor of the Apostles in his high office, the lamented Bishop of New-York was at the same time a successor of the Apostles in their predicted cares. As it was his consecration-vow to be " ready with all faithful diligence to banish and drive away from the Church all erroneous and strange doetrines contrary to God's word," — with jealous vigilance, and fearless honesty, he was indefatigable in his laborious and often his unpopular work. " All men" did not " speak well" of him. But he persevered unto the end ; he finished his course in faith ; and he now rests from his labours. When the smcient Greeks interred the bodies of their dead,, they buried with them branches of the olive. Expressive funeral-offering of peace. And at the new grave of our spiritual Father, let no disciple of oni* heavenly Lord refuse the pledge of charity. The Memoir which precedes the Sermons, was prepared in compli- ance with the solicitation of the publishers, at the instance of the present Rector of Trinity Church. Ample materials were collected, without delay, from the satisfactory sources mentioned in a Note at the end oC the Memoir. For the prompt kindness with which every facility was iV PREFACE. afforded by all whose names are enumerated in that Note, the best acknowledgments are here most cordially presented. It became the pleasing diity of the writer, to cull from the resources which they furnished, such abrief memento as might agreeably engage the thoughts, if not profitably interest the feelings, of those who wish to precede the perusal of a detailed account of the life arid Labours of Bishop Hobart by a general sketch. Some particulars are here entirely omitted, and others receive a mere cursory notice ; from that " necessity of complying with times and of sparing persons," which, as has been well observed by one of the most able authors in our language, " is the great impedi- ment of biography." To anticipate the scrutiny of those who delight in viewing the mi- nute parts rather than the great dimensions of a character, — ^it may be premised, that the peculiar charm of the most commanding objects, both in nature and in art, must inevitably thus be forfeited. The colos- sal features of an imposing sanctuary of the Lord which exhibits the sublime in architecture, are not to be examined with the microscope. A few of the constituent inferior parts may be unfinished or defective, while the entire edifice may still proclaim, that the genius of a master- spirit, influenced by a j ust apprehension of the grand design, has reared a superstructure to the Holy One, which may not only subserve tha spiritual interests, but command the veneration, of posterity. J. F. SCHROEDER. New-Yokk, February, 1831. CONTENTS. MEMOIR. Chapter L— Pilgriin ancestors — Parentage — The Hobart fa- mily — Religious views of the Bishop's parents — His early education— rHis intellectual, moral, and religious character iiv youth ... ^....^ Chaftea II.: — Enters Princeton College — His interesting char- acter and high standing there— Graduates with the first ho- nours of his class — Is occupied in commercial pursuits at Philadelphia — Becomes a Tutor in the College at Princeton. — Takes a deep interest in religion — Becomes a Candidate for Holy Orders — Studies Theology with Bishop; While, aad is ordained by- him. at Philadelphia .--».,» Chapter IH.: — State of the Protestajit Episcopal Church wheli Mr. Hobart was ordained— He officiates at Trinity Church, Oxford, and AU-Saints' Church, Lower-Dubljn, Philadelphia, county, Pennsylvania — Takes charge of Christ Church, New- Brunswick,, New-Jersey — Is married — Becomes.the Pastor of St. George's Churcji, Hempstead, Long-Island — Dechnes a call to St. Mark's Church, New- York — Is called to Trinity Church, New-Tork-:-His great popularity — Is ordained Pripst — His publications — Ably defends the cause of Epigcopacy-- Is deeply concerned in the welfare of the Chjirch — His genera] reputatioa — Is elected Bishop Page VI CONTENTS. P»g9 Chapter IV. — Origin of the Episcopate in the State of New- York — Biographical sketch of the^rst Bishop of the Diocese, Dr. Frovoost — and of the second Bishop, Dr. Moore — Critical state of the Episbopal succession in America — Dr. Hobart ia consecrated the third Bishop of the Church in New-York — He enters on his duties — His first appearance in the House of Bishops, and his prominence there — On the death of Bishop ProToost and Bishop Moore, he becomes Diocesan of New- York, and Rector of Trinity Church — Pferforms Episcopal offices in New-Jersey, and takes provisional charge of Con- necticut — His interest in theological education — Is a Professor in the General Theological Seminary of the Chiirch — His extensive Episcopal labours — His charges — His other publica- tions, especially his edition of MantandD'Oyly's Commentary on the Bible — His declining health — Voyage to Europe — ^Tour — Return to America — Furst Sermon after his return — He re- news his efforts — His devotion to the Chinrdi — The extent of his infiuence — Summary of his Episcopal acts, and of his labours ..-..-.--- xlis Chapter V. — His personal appearance — Prominent mental qualities — Habit of early rising — Attainments — Character as a writer and a speaker — Principles and polipy — Moral traits — Domestic character — Religious views and feelings — Last words — ^Death— tObseqnies — Conclusion .... civ l^EflMONS. 1. The Rev. Dr. Onderdoiik's Sermop, preached ^t ibp Funeral, on Thursday Evening, the 16th of September, 1B30 - - 1 3. The Rev. Dr. Berrias's Sermon, preached in Trinity Church, and St. Paul's and St. John's Cbapejs, Nevy-York, September, 1830 19 3. The Rev. Dr. Onderdonk's Sermon, pres^ched in Trinity Church, and St. Paul's and St. John's Chapels, New-York, September, 1830 33 00NTENT3. Vll Page 4. The Rev. Mr. Scheoedeb's Sermon, preached in Trinity Church, and St. Paul's and St. John's Chapels, New- York, September, 1830 - - , - 4.5 5. The Rev. Dr. Wainwrioht's Sermon, preached in Grace Church, New-York, September 19, 1830 - - - 71 6. The Rev. Mr. Anthon's Sermon, preached in St. Stephen's Church, New-York, September 19, 1830 - - - - 91 7. The Rev. Dr. Upfold's Sermon, preached in St. Thomas' Church, New-York, September 19, 1830 - - - 107 8. The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon, preached in Christ Church, Poughkeepsie, September 26, 1830 ..... 133 9. The Rev. Dr. Rudd's Sermon, preached in St. Peter's Church, Auburn, September 19, 1830 153 10. The Rev. Mr. Doane's Sermon, preached in Trinity Church, Boston, September 19, 1830 - - - - - 169 11. The Rev. Dr. Wtatt's Sermon, preached in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, September 19, 1830 - - - - 185 12. The Rev. Dr. Wtatt's Sei-mon, preached in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, September 26, 1830 - - - 203 13. The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon, preached in St. Philip's Church, Charleston, South-Carolina, September 26, 1830 - 881 APPENDIX. The last Illness and Death of Bishop Hoeart - - - 237 Further Particulars in the last Illness of Bishop Hoeart, in a Letter from the Rev. Dr. Rudd - .... 243 Resolutions of the Vestry of Trinity Church .... 246 Funeral of Bishop Hobart ....... 247 Letter from Bishop White $50 MEMOIR OP BISHOP HOBART. CHAPTER I. Pilgl'im ancestors — Parentage — The fl^obart family — ^Religions views 6f the Bishop's parents — His early education — His intellectual, moral, and religious character in youth.. The American Champion of Episcopacy owed his origin to Non-conformist ancestors; the illustrious Prelate of New- York decended from a Puritan of Massachusetts. Among the Pilgrim fathers who repaired to our land before the middle of the seventeenth century, was EdmunO HoBART. He came from Hingham, a village" in the county of Norfolk, England, (1633 ;) was one of the founders of Hingham, in Plyiiiputh county, Massachusetts, and for several years represented that town in the state legislature. Both he and his wife, says Cotton Mather, were " eminent for piety, and even from their youth feared God above ihany; wherein their zeal was more conspicuous, by the impiety of the neighbourhood, among whom there were but three or four in the whole town that minded serious re- ligion."* To Edmund, Peter, ThoMAs, and Joshua, the * References, pointing to the source of this and other citations, and ta the authorities for the facts stated, are given in a note at the end of the Memoir. Memoir of Bishop Hohart. four sons, and Rebecca and Sarah, the two daughters, of this Edmund Hobart, a great company of preachers in the new world trace their pedigree. '■p- The Rev. Peter Hobart, the second son, was a very eminent divine among the Non-conformists. " After the most straitest sect of his religion," (Acts xxvi. 5,) he was a Puritan of the Puritans. Educated at the University of Cambridge, England, and ordained by the Bishop of Nor- wich, in the year 1627, he afterward espoused the Puritan interests. In the year 1635, he left the mother country to join his parents in New-England ; and he was accompanied by a member of his congregation, John Otis, the progenitor of the celebrated James Otis, and of the present Harrison Gray Otis, Mayor of Boston. With these words he begins his journal : ' June 8th, 1635. I, with my wife and four children, came safely to New-England ; for ever praised be the God of heaven, my God and King!' Two centuries ago, he was one of the founders, (1635,) and the first mi- nister of Hingham, in Massachusetts ; was much admired for his " well-studied sermons," and distinguished for his intellectual vigour, glowing zeal, indefatigable industry, and various acquirements. ' I have seen,' says the Hon. Solo- mon Lincoln, jun. of Hingham, ' some of his sermons, taken in an abbreviated form by one of his hearers, which exhibit a strong mind, and considerable power of description. They possess more of exhortation than doctrine, and were, like their author, bold and independent.' He was, says Cotton Mather, " a morning student," " a great example of temperance," and " would admire the grace of God in good men, though they were of sentiments contrary to his." When he beheld some, " under pretence of zeal for Church cBscipUne," " pragmatical in controversies, and furiously Memoir of Bishop Hohart. set upon having all things carried their way," and yet " destitute of the life and power of godliness," he would gay, Some\men are all Church, and no Christ. It is also related of him, as his general character, " he was a bold man, and would speak his mind." Of his eight sons, six graduated at Harvard University ; one of these was a physician, and the remaining five were all preachers among the Congregationalists. The mother of the missionary David Brainerd was a daughter of the Ilev. Jeremiah Hoba^vT, who was a son of Peter. The Rev. Noah Hobart, a grandson of Peter, was a very aMe, learned, and conspicuous advocate for Presbyterian ordination. In the year 1732, he was settled as a minister at Fairfield, in Connecticut ; and a few years after, when many persons in the neighbourhood renounced the Congre- gational, and embraced the Episcopal, doctrines and mode ■of worship, he vindicated the validity of his orders, and very powerfully opposed " the prelatic Church," in a ser- mon, ^preached in 1746. The Rev. James Wetmore,,of North-Haven, soon replied to this. An earnest controversy was commenced ; and the Rev. Dr. Samuel Johnson, the Rev. Henry Caner, .(or Canner,) and Mr. William Beach, took part with Mr. Wetmore in the polemic conflict. The Rev. Noah Hobart had " few equals in this country for acuteness of genius and learning," and is commended for sound judgment and a retentive memory, engaging social qualities, scientific acquirements, an extensive knowledge of historical and theologieal subjects, graceful dignity and great solemnity in the public offices of religion, and earnest appeals to the understandings, rather than to the imagina- tions and the'^assionsof his audience. " His character for all the virtues that adorn the Christian life, ^s represented xii Memoir of Bishop Hohart-. to have been not inferior to any one of his order" in the colony (1773.) One of his sons was the late Honourable John Sloss Hobart, a Senator in Congress, Judge of the Supreme Court of the State of New- York, and United States' Judge of the District Court for the State of New- York ; a man of powerful talent, amiable virtues, and un- impeachable integrity. A tablet to his memory, in thfr New- York City Hall, describes him " as a man, firm ; as a citizen, zealous ; as a judge, discriminating ; as a Chris- tian, sincere." Captain JosmiA Hobart, the fourth son of the first Edmund, and a brother of the celebrated Peter, was the forefather of the Bishop. He was a man of great distinc- tion, and extensive influence in civil life ; a deputy from Hingham. to the General Court for many years ; and ia 1674, the Speaker of the House of Deputies. He was also the " Commander of the military corps of Hingham," — at that time (1655) a very honourable distinction, for " by a joint consent and general vote of the town. Captain Joshua Hobart was freed from paying any rates for the public charge of the town" during his office. His name is found recorded also on the roll of the Ancient and Honourable Artillery Company of Boston. Among all the numerous divines and scholars who lo6k back to Edmund Hobart and his gifted sons, as their first American ancestors, there is not one who inherited a larger share of their eminent endowments, or more remarkably revived their distinctive intellectual and moral attributesj than the illustrious subject of this Memoir. But the rare qualities of the forefathers were laboriously and faithfully consecrated by their remote descendant to the cause of the " prelatic Chturch," which they so vigorously opposed ; and * Memoir of Bishop Holart. xjii his successes, in a manner, served to expiate the very in- juries which they inflicted. Edmund Hobart and big family, ardent as they were in their attachment to the peculiarities of the Non-conformists, little thought that in the nineteenth century they would prove to be the progenitors of the most powerful advocate for Episcopacy in the new world. But John Hobart, a son of Captain Joshua, and grandson of the pilgrim, was the grandfather of our eminent restorer of the Church. ' From some disgust with public proceedings in Massachusetts, Mr. John Hobart went to the southerns part of the continent, before Penn's settlement ift Pennsyl-, vania (1681); on his return homfiTj^ard, he married in a Swedish family, where Philadelphia was afterward built ;' and he settled on a spot now called Kensington, a northern suburb of that city. To the national religious views of his wife may be attributed the fact, that he was the- only one of all his family who was an Episcopalian. His son, Captaift Enoch Hobart, was the Bishop's father. As the commander of a merchant ship, Captain Hobart successfully engaged in many profitable entprprises to the West-Indies, where his strict probity of character secured for -him .the .appellation, '■Honest Yankee.' He withdrew from > active life to the domestic circle with a competency. Tall and athletic, his. corporeal frame and stature were not transmitted to his youngest child,. John Henry ; but the distinctive features of his countenance were strikingly preserved. And bis masculine vigour of consti- tution also was very happily perpetuated, to the glory of God, in the energy and labours, of a Prelate, who knew not what it was to tiise. in the. cause of Jesus and his Church.. Captain Hobart did. not live to witness more than the merg. ehildhood of his distinguished son. He died (October 37tl^ aa Memoir of Bishop Hohart. 1776,) when John Ilenry, the future Bishop of the Church ia the most extensive of the American Dioceses, was but a babe in Ms fourteenth month. : The mother of the infant Prelate was a member of the Pratt family in Philadelphia, connected with the Clay- pooles, the Hoods, and the Dupuys, of that city. But her piety, as it resulted from a heavenly relationship above the kindreds of this world, secured for her a. title which these cannot give. She was a child of God, and a faithful fol- lower of Jesus. Well educated both in useful knowledge and the accomplishments of life, she was esteemed, as well as her sister Deborah, for ' superior understanding ;' and from her brother Matthew, (the father of Henry Pratt, Esq. of Philadelphia,) a limner, and a friend of the renowned artist Benjamin West, she probably acquired her talent for productions of the pen and pencil. A large piece of ornamental writing, on rollers, executed by her hand, is :§till preserved. ' I have been informed,' says one of her nephews, ' that she was a first cousin of her husband ; , whence, it is probable, that her ancestors, as well as his^ were from New-England.' When bereaved of her companion (1776), and a widow with a group of five children around her, -Mrs. Hobart looked up for divine aid, to the ' Father of the fatherless.' Her circumstances were not affluent, yet by the grace of God she was enabled to supply all the necessary means for the intellectual and moral culture of her household. She re- joiced at their prosperity ; and it was her heart's great Relight, to see her youngest son admitted int^holy orders^ and to attend him, for the first five years laf his course, with Jier affectionate solicitudes. His early serious impressions of religion are ascribed to her ; and it is said that he knew Memoir of Bishop Itohavt. xv the Scriptures from his youth, by means of tlie godly counsels , which she faithfully inculcated. Biographies of great and good men in all ages testify, that the Church owes a debt of gratitude to pious mothers. With a vestal watchfulness they have preserved the holy fire of the sanctuary. The Hobart family, children of Captain Enoch, num- bered three sons and six daughters. Three of the daugh- ters and one son died in childhood ; and all, together with their parents, are now in eternity. Robert Enoch was an active, enterprising man, with a well cultivated mind and literary taste. At first a merchant, then an insurance broker, he became, in the year 1811, a resident at Potts- grove, in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. He was allied in marriage to the family on whose estate that town was reared, and from whose name it was denominated; and at the time of his death he had been, for two sessions, a mem- ber of the Pennsylvania legislature. Of the three daugh- ters who reached maturity of life, Rebecca was the only one who married. Nathaniel Potts, a member of the Phi- ladelphia bar, and one of the same domestic circle that resided at Pottsgrove, was her first partner. But he soon died ; and his widow afterward became the wife of Robert 8mith, a highly esteemed merchant of Philadelphia. The cultivated understanding, polished manners, and enlarged benevolence of Mrs. Smith, were the charm of all the social walks in which she moved ; and, in the language of an obituary noj||^ of her by the celebrated Dr. Rush, " A mind ele^Kd by nature, education, and religion, rendered this excellent woman a,^object of uncommou respect and esteem to all who lun^Rsv." For a long term of years, *■» the most kindly ip.tercourse, her husband, Mr. Smith, svi Memoir of Bishop Hohari: [ilia — 1784. was the affectionate and devoted friend of his brother-in- law, John Henry Hobart. The religious views which the parents of the subject o| our Memoir entertained, form a natural inquiry. And it seems peculiarly proper to be distinct upon this point, from, a general supposition that his parents, as well as his remote- ancestors, were not Episcopalians. But it is well ascer- tained, that the family of which he was a member worship- -ped God in the form of sound words which glowed upon the lips of ancient martyrs and reformers. They had laid aside the peculiarities of their Non-conformist predecessors.. It is distinct in the memory of Bishop White, that Captain- Enoch Hobart was ' a habitual attendant in Christ Church, with his wife and with his children.' The venerable Bishop' says, ' I could now point to the very pew which they oc- cupied.' Their youngest child, John Henry, was born at Phila-- delphia, September 14th, 1775, while the Continental Con- gress was at the critical juncture of its session in that city, a few months before they issued the immortal eharter of our liberties. And his strong national prepossessions, his great fearlessness in the defence of truth, and edl- the pro- minent characteristics of his future life, decided him to be a worthy child of tlie Revolutien.. And as it was the first concern of his. devout parents, that all his faculties, what- ever they might be, should be hallowed, — at the font, in. Christ Church, Philadelphia, they dedicated him to the Lord by baptism, when he weis a babe but m^ weeks old. As we follow him in all his steps of life, froi||^fancy to manhood, from the cradle to th^^ave, there is no laby- rinth to be explored, no mazy p,^^ess through the paths, of vice and error. On the contrary^lrtie affords a remar]^^ 1784—1788.] Memoir of Bishop Hohart. xvii able instance of one who, even from his first rising to his splendid culmination, moved steadily onward in that " path of the just," which is " as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." Prov. iv. 18. From his childhood it may be truly said, like his hea- venly Master, he " increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." Luke ii. 52. His Instruction in the first rudiments of education, pre- vious to his ninth yefir, was in the grammar school of Mr. liOslie, who was deservedly esteemed both as a teacher and a man. But as his school-house was remote from his young pupil's residence, and the appointed hours of duty were most rigidly observed, the ardent mind of little Hobart na- turally leji him to hurry from his meals so fast, that at this early period of his youth may be discovered, as he would often say, the cause of the deranged condition of his diges- tive organs, with which he was so painfully afflicted through- out life. When in his ninth year, he was received into the Epis- copal Academy, which was first opened at Philadelphia, in 'the month of April, 1784, and was soon after intrusted to the Rev. Dr. Andrews. Under his judicious care, young Hobart became one of the most prominent pupils in the Latin school. Bishop White, at that time the Rev, Dr. White, who was from the first greatly interested in the success of the Academy, attended with his characteristic faithfulness all the regular quarterly examinations of the school. ' On "tliese occasions,'' says he, ' I could not but remark the industry and the proficiency of young Hobart. There was also manifested that talent for elocution, which has since been so 5*o,ns|lR(liS'ous in the delivery of )iis ser- mons.' xviii Memoir of Bisfiop Hohart. ' [1788— 1796; " ""• - ■ • When the Rev. Dr. Andrews, early in the year 1788, was elected Vice-Provost of the College of Philadelphia, the greater part of his pupils in the Latin school were re- ceived as members of the College. His scholar, who wa« so distinguished for industry, proficiency, and elocution, was now only in his thirteenth year. Until the age of fifteen, he continued to pursue his studies in the College, with an increasing zeal, and an assiduity by no means abated. At this vernal season of his life he already manifested, what he ever after retained, a delight in rural scenery. H? loved to view " The grand diversities of nature's laws," " And trace the wonder-working hand divine/' His mother for some months resided at Pottstown ; and • in this retreat,' says his nephew, ' my uncle indulged his fondness for study, and for the beauties of nature.' •'In his boyhood, his feelings were ardent, and his warmth ef personal attachments was remarkable. In a smcdl manu- script journal which he then kept, one passage touchingly refers to his affectionate parting witli his friend Andrew Hamilton, a descendant of Governor Hamilton of Penn- sylvania, about to sail for Europe. ' From a child,' says one of his nephews, ' his moral cliaracter was without a stain.' What has been said of Dr. Watts in his boyhood, may be applied with great truth to young Hobart : " The date of his spiritual life cannot be ' ascertained ; but the fact was indubitable from a very early period." In his fifteenth year, "he gave evidence of a de- cided interest in religion, and taade a public profession of his faith in Christ. The Diocesan of Pennsylvania, the 1790.] Memoir of Bishop Hohart. xijf Right Kev. Dr. White, appointed March 31st, (1790,) as a stated day for confirmation ; and at this solemn season, among the kneeling group who bowed before him, was his young favourite. It is a pleasing thought, that the Episcopal hands then imposed in confirmation upon that youth, were the same that would afterward (1798) confer upon him holy orders, and in the lapse of years (1811) place upon his head the mitre. Young Hobart was about to enter on a com'se, in which all this, with accompanying ciijpumstances of the most entire self-devotion to the Lord, was to be splendidly ■realized. Si- Memoir of Bishop Hohart. [1791. CHAPTER n. yEtat. 16—23. ■Enters Princeton College — His interesting character and high fftanding there— Graduates with the first honours of his class — Is occupied in conunercial pursuits at Philadelphia — Becomes a Tutor in the Col- lege at Princeton — Takes a deep interest in religion — Becomes a candidate for holy orders — Studies Theology with Bishop Whiter and is erdained by him at Philadelphia. « The College at Princeton, New-Jersey, was now (1791) in great repute. Its President was the learned and able WiTHERSPOoN, and its Vice-President the accomplished and eloquent Samuel Stanhope Smith. Young Hobart repaired to this seat of literature and science, when adorned by these two illustrious scholars and divines ; and it was his happiness very soon to conciliate the esteem of both, and to secure Dr. Smith's warmest personal attachment. As he was qualified by his attainments for a higher class^ he did not enter freshman ; but, admitted junior in the fall of 1791, he spent only two years in College, and in Sep-' tember, 1793, proceeded Bachelor of Arts. During half the time of his happy college residence, he was the room- mate of a senior fellow-student, the present John C. Otto, M. D., of Philadelphia, who cherishes the liveliest recol- lection of him in those halc3ron days. Habitual cheerfulness, great ardour and success in studyj social habits, winning manners, and a peaceful disposition, — a well-balanced mind, prompt and able elocution, native talent, persevering industry, and pure morids, compose the wreath of praise awarded to him when on classic ground. ' He was distinguished,' says Dr. Otto, ' for an unusual 1791 — 1793.] Memoir of Bishop Hobart. xxi gayety of temper, without the least mixture of levity or thoughdessness. His voice was good, and his ear musical ; and he used' occasionally, for his own and our amusement, to sing a song or two early in the morning before we arose. Bis temperament was ardent, and he studied with diligence, both from a love of useful knowledge, and a laudable am- bition to be honourably distinguished. The untiring zeal which he displayed so conspicuously in after life, in the performance of whatever he deemed his duty, was a part of his natural character, and manifested itself at college. He was always esteemed, during the whole period of his studies, at least equal to any member of his class, in scho- lastic acquirements. His habits were very social ; and during those hours which he devoted to recreation, he mixed freely in the company of the most distinguished students, being most intimate, as is usual,, with the members of the literary society to which he belonged. But from the great urbanity of his manners, and his high standing, he was much respected by all. I do not recollect, that, during the whole time we resided together, any incident occurred-, which suspended, for a moment, our friendly feelings toward each other.. He loved peace and harmony; and ■zealously exercised his powerful influence, in composing the differences that occasionally take place, when many youths live together. His strong sense of propriety, and his in- flexible justice, gave him gregit weight on these occasions. There was no one branch of study, as far as my memory serves me, that especially engaged his attention, or to which he showed a decided preference. He was well acquainted with the whole cpurse prescribed. His mind was vigorous tuid well balanced, none of the faculties being in an undue proportion.' h xxii Memoir of Bishof HohaH. [1791—1793. Two rival literary associations at Princeton, the Clioso- phic and the American Whig Societies, were then called by the same names which now distinguish them ; and young Hobart, * an able and ready speaker, took an active and leading part in the transactions of the Whig Society, to "which he belonged.' ' His morals were pure, and his deportment was correct. No person could perform more strictly the various duties enjoined by the laws of the institution.' In native talent and indefatigable industry, young Hobart was not surpassed by any of his fellow-students. To the highest honours of his class he looked forward with a steady purpose ; and he attained unto the first two, to whom these honours were awarded. ' For his scholarship,' says one of the present officers of the institution, John Maclean, A. M. Vice-President and Professor of Languages, ' For his scholarship he was particularly distinguished, having, in the opinion of the faculty, no superior, and but one equalj in a class consisting of twenty- one members. The indi- vidual who shared with him the first honour,, was Mr. Bennet Taylor, of Virginia.' As it was the standing rule at Princeton, that the oration, which is called the Jjatin Salutatory, was to be considered the appropriate reward of the most distinguished scholar in each class ; and as two of the same class were tliis year. judged to be equally entitled to it, the oration was to be assigned to one of them by lot. In the classical manner of seeking fates, by opening Virgil and applying the first seen passage as an oracular response, a decision might have been made, in a manner suited to the delicate refinement of Mr. Hobart's friend, the Professor of Moral Philosophy, Dr. Smith. But Mr. Taylor's friend, the Mathematical Professor Minto,, 1791—1793.] Memoir »f Bishop ttdhart. xXiii instead of the sortes Virgiliana, used a less elegant, but more absolute and summary resolution of the problem. It is related by one of the present trustees of the college, that ' Professor Minto threw up a coin, to the great amusement of the class, exclaiming humourously, head 's for Hobart, tail 's for Taylor.' The coin thus cast conferred the doubtful prize on John Henry Hobart. The desolating ravages of the yellow fever in Philadel- phia, caused at this time (1793J a panic far and wide. 4- great concourse of persons at Princeton, within fifty miles of the infected district, might be dangerous, it was inferred, from a supposed contagion of the fever. The annual college celebration was dispensed with; the degrees and honours of the institution were conferred in private ; and the Latin Salutatory Orator did not appear on the college stage, to receive a public attestation to his esteemed character. But he required no such commendation to urge him on in his career. His germ of greatness had a vigour, that, without any of the vernal sunshine of life, would have expanded before autumn in a rare exuberance, and towered on high with rich foliage and precious fruit. His preceptors and fellow-students could discern clearly, though in miniature, his admirable distinctive traits, — the elements of that great reputation which he was destined to secure. And his fair promise was not false. The academical exercises and successes of the youth, were sur- passed by the achievements of the man in his full strength. Among his friends and his associates, while he pursued his college course, and when he afterward returned to Princeton, there were not a few who became prominent and useful members of society. Peter Efirley and George M. Troup, both Governors of Georgia ; John Sergeant, ■xxiv Memoir of Bishop Ilobart. [1793—1796. William Gaston, Charles Fenton Mercer, Richard Rush (the United States Secretary of the Treasury), John M. Berrien (the United States Attorney General), and many others have attained eminence in civil life ; John Neilson, of New- York, and John C. Otto, Jacob Agnew, and Nicho- las Bayard, of Philadelphia, have adorned the mudical profession ; and in tlie sacred office have been numbered, Henry KoUock, Thomas Y. How, Frederick Beasley^ Matthew L. R. Perrine, John Watson, and a conspicuous company of their once youthful friends at Nassau-Hall. When he left college (1793), Mr. Hobart did not show a preference for that profession in which he became so dis- tinguished in his future life. ' Many of his fellow-students,' says Dr. Otto, ' presumed that he would choose the law, as he was a graceful and fluent extemporary speaker, com- posed well, and had those other qualifications which would have rendered him highly eminent ip that walk of life.' But he took no decided step, in tiie path of any one of the professions, until he had well considered the responsibili- ties incurred by each, and balanced them with his particu- lar qualifications. At first, by a peculiar train of events, his mind was occupied with commercial business, in the mercantile house of his brother-in-law, Mr. Robert Smith, who was then extensively engaged in the importation of dry goods. ' As the yellow fever prevailed in Philadelphia at that time,' says Mr. Smith, ' he resided at my country-house at Frank- ford ; and after the fever subsided, he for a few months assisted me in the city, in my counting-house.' He there soon found, that commercial pursuits were uncongenial with his traits of character, ' He did not,' says Mr. Smith, ' discover any talents for a mercantile life ,' ' he did not 1796 — 1798.J Memoir of JtSisliop Uobarf. xxv regard his situation as permanent ;' his taste and all his views were decidedly literary. An invitation from the Faculty at Princeton soon in- duced him to repair again to classic ground. In the month, of January, 1796, he became a tutor in the college. He was admitted to the second degree in the arts, during the fall of the same year ; and among the numerous inspiriting associations of Nassau-Hall, he studied with great diligence, and laid up a rich store of both useful and ornamental knowledge. The great intensity of his application, it is supposed, increased the natural weakness of his eyesight'. He was compelled to make use of glasses ; and they were soon essential to him in his studies and his ordinary inter- course. ' To the tutors at that time,' sa:ys one of the present faculty of the college, * was confided, almost exclusively, the instruction of the Sophomore and Freshman classes, in' the Greek and Latin languages, English grammar, geogra- phy, and aridimetic ; and also the preservation of order in the college edifice. As an officer of the college, Mr. Ho- bart is said to have been prompt and efficient ; as an in- structor, able and successful.' His fellow-tutors were Henry KoUock, Robert M. Forsyth, Edmund Elmendorf, John W. Smith, and Joseph Caldwell, now the Rev. Dr- Caldwell, President of the University of North-Carolina. ' It was in the year 1796,' observes Dr. Caldwell, ' that Mr. Hobart and myself were colleagues in the tutorship at Princeton. He then taught the Freshman class in Latiu and Greek, but afterward attended that class in the Sopho'^ more year.' * As to his abilities and qualifications as an instructor, he was unquestionably entitled to rank high." He was ardent, industrious, and faithful ; and always aete<^ b 2 ssvi Memoir of Bishop ttooart. [i/yo — i/»o. ■"■■■■^™-"— — ■-■■P— — — I"— wpon principle and conscience in the discharge of his du- ties. He was prompt in action and expression, sometimes vehement, and in danger of a little transport, but ready afterward to admit it, and conceding with a becoming man- liness of spirit. In his tutorship, he maintained himself with a sense of his danger on these accounts, and was con- sidered as interesting, by a union of earnestness with sim- plicity and ingenuousness of feeling.' ' He was then,' says Professor Maclean, ' alike distin- guished for his attachment to the Episcopal cause, and for his liberality toward Christians of other denominations. He now gave evidence of that zeal for his Church, and of that ability to defend her interests, which so remarkably characterized the whole of his ministerial life. I have been told, that on a certain occasion, he and his friend Mr. Kol- lock (afterward the celebrated Dr. KoUock) discussed the subject of Episcopacy, before the Belles Lettres Society, an association consisting of the members of the college faculty and of the resident graduates ; and that they both became so much engaged in the support of their respective views, that the discussion was continued for two or more successive meetings, and was conducted in the most mas- terly manner.' ' On the other hand, he never hesitated to associate with his Presbyterian brethren, when assembled for social or public worship ; but, on the contrary, he often took the lead in their devotions, and was actively engaged in establishing meetings for prayer, both in Princeton and its vicinity.' ' We had prayer-meetings weekly in the vil'^ lage,' says Dr. Caldwell ; * we used to meet often at good aid Mrs. Knox's ; and we prayed in turn, always extem- 'poraneously, and then read some discourse.' Mr. Hobart's views of the Christian Church — its nature^ aimistry,and polity — were never altered; all his reading and reflection served to fortify him in his early sentiments. Fie could with confidence adopt the language that is ascribed to Charles the first, in the " EUav BbotAixh', or Pourtraic- tui-e of his Sacred Majesty in his Solitudes and Sufferings," (sect.. 17, p. 195,) " It is well known I have endeavoured to satisfy myself, in what the chief patrons for other ways can say against this, or for theirs ; and I find they have as fer less of Scripture grounds and of reason ; so for exam- ples and practice of the Church, or testimonies of histories, they are wholly destitute, wherein the whole stream runs so for Episcopacy, that there is not the least rivulet for any others." If he afterward changed his early conduct in regard to * meetings for prayer,' and, in his sermon entitled. " The Christian Bishop," put on record his disapprobation of " those meetings of private Christians, in whichunordained Hien successively engage in extemporaneous prayer arid exhortations," (p. 22,) he adduced for his mature opinion " the testimony of some, who, in the estimation of the ad- vocates of these associations, stand highest in the ranks of evangelical piety," — the Rev. Mr. Wilkes, editor of th& Christian Observer, and the lamented Heber. And adding the accordant sentiments of the Rev. Thomas Scott the commentator, the Rev. John Newton of Olney, and the Rev. Mr, Robinson of Leicester, in opposition to such .meetings, he could unite with them in saying, Haui experti docimus, " We speak that we do know, and tes- tify that we have seen." • His liberality and his condescension to the poor,' says Professor Maclean, ' for which during his ministry he was «D eminently distinguished, were not unknown to the pooK Kxvm Memoir of Bishop Hoiart. [1796^179».- of Princeton.' From his boyhood, this was his character- istic trait. Having continued in his tutorship for more than twe years, Mr. Hobart resigned his office in March, ITQS.' ^ During this time,' says his room-mate, ' he became very deeply impressed with religious feelings.' Theology was the designation of his heart. ' He chose the ministry for his profession ; to this his studies were directed ; and there can be no question that his conversation and exanrple de-* cidedly influenced several others in the same choice.' " There was a class of us,' says Dr. Caldwell, ' whe were studying theology at that time under Dr. Smith. Mr. Hobart, one of our number, was known to be decidedly' Episcopal in his views. He was Arminian in his senti- ments ; the rest of us were -Calvinistic. He was alwafys" strenuous, in every thing which he deemed a peculiarity of •pinion distinguishing him from others, whenever circum- stances evolved it into view ; but we were in habits of the utmost forbearance and good feeling. If at any moment a spark appeared, struck out in discussion in consequence of peculiarity in Church or doctrine, it seemed instantly un* derstood, that it was to be permitted to drop and disapi- pear.' ' The business of the class occupied much of his time ; and no small portion of it was given to the prepa- ration on Dr. Smith's lectures, which we had to write, and to study closely. We had also to prepare experimental discourses, on such texts as we selected for ourselves. I cannot doubt, that his books were selected from Episcopal shelves principally ; and I remember, that his references often indicated this, and that we all considered it so.' ' Hist feelings, as I have said, were apt to kindle quickly on every subject. This gave eloquence to his effusions. He had a ITge — 1798.] Memoir of BisKop HoharL ^ XXUK ready utterance, indicating copiousness both in thought and pertinent expression. We did not estimate him as pro- found, but always interesting, and generally very amiable.' In the year 1796, he conducted a special correspondence with the Right Rev. Dr. White, in regard to entering into holy orders. ' I possess,' says the Bishop, ' fifteen of his letters on this subject; and, considering his subsequent celebrity, it is curious to notice the difficulties he met with on a point of mere form. He was too well known, for difficulty from any other cause. It was owing to his having been resident in a vicinity, in whfMi there was no Episcopal congregation or members to testify to known truth. Such was then the state of the Canon, which has since been modified.' ' Between this time and his ardination,' says Bishop White, ' I had frequent intercourse with hjm, and oppor- tunities of counselling him concerning his studies. Although his signal proficiency was the fruit of his own talents and induslry, I have ever since pleased myself with the hope, that he derived some little aid from what it occurred to me to suggest to him. To this satisfaction I have given vent, in mjf printed sermon preached nefirly twenty years ago, at his consecration to the Episcopacy ; ar(d I have reason to believe that he has occasionally given expression to sen- timents to the same efiect.' Having resigned his tutorship at Princeton, Mr. Hobart immediately repaired to Philadelphia. Until the season when he was admitted into holy orders, he had constant intercourse with Bishop White ; and in the person of his re- vered preceptor, he enjoyed the blessing of a faithful friend. The pure piety and sound learning of the first Diocesan of Pennsylvania so concili^ited the esteem and love of his dc- XXX Memoir of Bishop Hohart. [1798.' voted pupil, as to produce the warmest personal attachment. To the meek prelate's holy counsels and judicious views, his ardently devoted son in the faith would often say, with deep emotion, he was unspeakably indebted. Mr. Hobart, longing to be a " man of God," " tho- roughly furnished unto all good works," (2 Tim. iii. 17,) completed, under his Episcopal, father's special direction 5 the preparatory studies which he began to prosecute at Princeton. His reasoning powers acute, his memory re- tentive, his mind in all its faculties well disciplined, his assiduity untiring, and hi^heological views as sound as his moral character was pure and his religious feelings fer- vent, — ^he was fitted for his examinations, and was pro- nounced " apt and meet for his learning and godly conver- sation, to exercise the ministry duly, to the honour of God and the edifying of his Church." On the third day of June, 1798, amid the associations of his earliest years, the imposition of his spiritual father's hands conferred on him " authority to execute the office of a Deacon in the Church of God." His fond, pious mother, his only brother, and his only sister then surviving, Mrs. Rebecca Smith, were all present at the solemn ceremonial ef his dedication to the cause of Christ. He entered forthwith on the active duties of the minis* try. His first sermon was on the words of the wise man, who says of spiritual wisdom, in Prov. iii. 17, " Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and ail her paths are peace." It was a clear, attractive exposition, and a powerful ap- peal. The speaker's earnestness and energy could not fail to interest and engage the minds of all who heard him; and to suggest the confident anticipation, that his well known traits of character, associated with such eh-= 1798.] Memoir of Bishop HoharU xxxi quence, would secure to him a great and salutary influence m the Church, and place- him in the highest ministerial preferment. It was an ardent, glowing expectation ; but it was sooh Answered, by a series of interesting events* xxsM Memme of Bishop Hobart. [1798. CHAPTER III. jEtat. 23—36. State of the Protestant Episcopal Church when Mr. Hobait was taj' ddned~He officiates at Trinity Church, Oxford, and All-Saints' Church, liOwer-Dnblin, Philadelphia county, Pennsylvania— Takes charge of Christ Church, New-Brunswick, New-Jersey— Is married • — Becomes the Pastor of St. George's Church, Hempstead, Long- Island— Declines a call to St. Mark's Church, New-York— Is called to Trinity Church, New-York — His great popularity — Is ordained Priest — His pubUcations — AMy defends the cause of Episcopacy- Is deeply concerned in the welfare of the Church — His general repu- tation — Is elected Bishop. When the Rev. Mr. Hobart was admitted into orders (1798,) it might be emphatically said of all the ministry ia the Protestant Episcopal Church, as it is written of the ancient people when they received the lot of their inherit- ance, the happiest of lauds, — " they were but a few men in number." In Massachusetts, New-Hampshire, Rhode- Island, Connecticut, New- York, New-Jersey, Delaware^ {ind Pennsylvania, — over a wide field, containing all the dioceses north of Maryland, there were scattered ninety Gospel heralds, who ministered " the doctrines and sacra- ments, and the discipline of Christ, as the Lord hath com- manded, and as this Church hath received the same." In the diocese of New- York there were no more than twenty ^ and in Pennsylvania only seventeen, of these few and dispersed pastors of God's people. The Church, in her low estate, offered no temporal allurement, by which men of corrupt Ihinds might be made clerical adventurers. She was to be wooed, without the espectation of a dowry. The " sacramental host" of the 1799.] Mmffii" of Bishop Hobart. xxxiii Lord and of his Christ were the self-rdenying, who were willing to spend and to be spent, .that they might " serve God, for the promoting of his glory, and the edifying of his people." This noble principle Bishop White beheld with joy, among the characteristics of his affectionate son in the faith, on whom he had so recently laid his hands in ordina- tion. ' At that time,' observes the Bishop, ,' it was very near to my heart, that he shotdd be settled so near to me, as easily to be transferred to any vaca,ncy which might happen, in the ministry of the 'Churches of which I am Rector ; or to add to our number, in the event of the build- ing of a new church, which was then in contemplation. With this view I interested myself in the settling of him in the two churches of Trinity, Oxford, and All-Saints', Perkioraen, within from ten to thirteen miles' of the city ; knowing their inability, at that time, to make permanent provision for a minister.' In this first ministerial cure, he officiated from the period of his ordination until the spring of the next year. His successor, who now occupies the parishes, the Rev. George Sheets, says, ' His salary was small, and paid with diffi- culty. It was not his lot, as to his accommodations, to fare sumptuously every day. But his congregations were crowded, his pulpit talents greatly admired, and his person much beloved. I have conversed with several old parishi- oners, who have a perfect recollection of him, and I find them unanimous in their statement respecting his accom- plishments. They all loved him much, and greatly ad- mired his preaching.'* But the future Bishop of New- York was soon led to withdraw from his first spiritual charge, and accept a call x'xxiv Memoii' of Bishop Hobart. [1799; to Christ Church, New-BrunSwkk. He was actuatedi ia this change, by motives that were indeed worthy of his character. In a letter, written July 15th, 1799, a few months after his removal to New-Brunswick, he says, ' On my first introduction there, I stated to individuals, and I believe it was generally understood, that the cause of my removal from the churches in the vicinity of Philadelphia, for which I was first ordained, was, that I could not look on them as a permanent residence, and that I wished, for some time longer, to pursue my studies at Princeton, where X enjoyed peculiar advantages of books, of retirement, and of society. It was in the pursuit of this plan, that I pro- posed the temporary supply of the Church here ; and the manner in which the vestry met my views was entirely satisfactory, and the engagement took place, for a supply of one year.' Much of his time, according to this arrangement, was now spent amid his college recollections, and among, his associates in Princeton, which was sixteen miles from his parish church. A valuable library to store his mind, an animating intercourse with ardent and aspiring young men, and the refined converse and wholesome counsel of mature and finished scholars ;— -these were his rare privileges, at a period when all his intellectual faculties were vigorously occupied, in gathering into his treasure " things new and old." He had been three months in his scholastic retirement, whien he received a call to take charge of the Church at Hempstead. Long-Island. His views and wishes on this subject were at once communicated to his vestry. His letter opens with his words just cited, and he thea «,dds, ' It was not expected by me, that any permanent t799.] Memoir of Bisheji) Hohart. xxxar ^^■—""■i"""— iii«^™^™^iiii™im™^i™im»»ii™ii»""s»iHPW«f»i^ settlement would offer, in the course of the year, under such peculiar- circumstances as would be incompatible with the fulfilment of my engagement. About six weeks ago, I was urged to preach at the church at Hempstead, where I accordingly officiated, and spent some days, about the end of last month. Meetings of the vestry afterward took place ; and last week, Mr. John Moore, one of them, waited on me with the enclosed papers, and expressed bis wish, and that of the vestry, to know by his return my probable determination. Was I not connected by an absolute en- gagement with your Church, respect for it, and sensibility to the kindness and attention I have received from its members, would lead me to consult them. Under these circumstances,- I wish to state, that I think I could be im- mediately settled in the Church at Hempstead, with such peculiar advantages, as to render it my duty to accept the call. The congregation is large and respectable, supposed to consist of near a thousand persons, one hundred of whom are communicants ; and the discharge of ministerial duty among them is connected with peculiar circumstances ©f usefulness and satisfaction. Their situation enables them to secure the immediate services of several clergymen, on some of whom their choice, they state, will immediately fall, unless it will be in my power to commence my services with them, in the course of a few months. Thus circum- stanced, I have thought it my duty to state to the vestry here, my desire that they would release me from my tem-» porary engagement with them for the last six months, to enable me to accept a permanent settlement, which as Mly meets my particular views as I can have any reason to expect. I think it proper to mention, what I suppose, however, would not be doubted, that it is my deterrainatioB xxxvJ! Mfimoir of Bishop Hohart. [1799. and my wish to fulfil, to the best of my abilities, my en- gagement with the Church here, unless regularly released therefrom. Mr. Moore will be waiting in New-York the determination of the vestry on this subject, and it is there- fore my wish to convey it to him as soon as possible.' The frankness, zeal, and promptitude which character- ize this letter, are surpassed by the acute moral sensibility which distinguishes another, written to one of the vestry- men the next day. ' My business with your vestry,' says he, ' has been the subject of my serious reflections since I left you; and I have come to a determination, which, as it will render all further proceeding unnecessary, I am anxious to communicate as soon as possible. I think I shall not be- satisfied, in existing circumstances, to receive a release froim my engagement with your Church, and I must there- fore beg leave to withdraw my request for it. I shall ac- cordingly answer the call of the Church at Hempstead, by informing them, that my immediate acceptance of it is in- compatible with my engagements and duty to the Church at Brunswick. I would not wish it to be understood, that my determination has arisen from, any view to a permanent settlement at Brunswick, or there in union with any other place, but from a desire to secure the ease of my own mind, and to prevent any cause of censure, by the complete dis- charge of my engagement with your Church. And so fully have I made up my mind, that I would not receive a re- lease from my engagement, were it to be offered to me. Please to communicate the contents of this letter to the vestry. I feel myself bound to apologize to them for the trouble I have given them, and to you, for what you have voluntarily undertaken.' His purpose was resolute ; he fulfilled bis whole annua) 1799-^1800.] Memoir of Bishop Hobarf. xxxviT term. ' ' He commenced,' says the present Rector of thft parish, the Right Rev. John Croes, D. D., Diocesan of New-Jersey, ' he commenced his ministerial services May 4th, K799, and terminated them on the fourth day of the same month, 1800. He officiated the first three Sundays in each lunar month ; on the first Sunday, twice, on the other two, only once.' During his residence in New-Jersey, he became very intimate with the relict and family of a distinguished cler- gyman, whose praise is in all the churches of our land., By every sincere friend of the Episcopal cause, the me- mory and the name of Chandler may well be revered. A native of Woodstock, Connecticut, and a graduate of Yale College, Dr. Chandler was ordained in England (1751,) and, on his return to America, he laboured with success for forty years, as Rector of St. John's Church, Elizabeth- town, New- Jersey. When again in Eoglaud, in the year 1784, he received a flattering proffer of the Bishopric of Noya-Scotia, which peculiar personal considerations led him to decline. The Rev. Dr. Inglis of New- York, whom he recommended in his stead, was soon after promoted to that dignity. For his learning. Dr. Chandler received the degree of D. D. from the University of Oxford, and for his admirable efforts in the good cause of the Church, he was honoured, in terms of very warm approbation, by the celebrated Bishop of Lohdonj author of the Lectures on the Sacred Poetry of the Hebrews. Alluding to the " Ap- peal," " The Appeal Defended," and " The Appeal far- ther Defended," the Bight Rev. Dr. Lowth observes, in a letter to Dr. Chandler, " The nation in general is obliged to you for your three pamphlets, which, I am sure, if plain reason and good sense, strongly and forcibly urged, •c2 xxKviii Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [1800. / and placed in the clearest light, can meet with any atten- tion, must have had a great effect, as indeed I hear they have ; and I hope so essential a service will not be for- gotten." '■■ ' In the spring of the year 1800, just as his engagement at New-Brunswick ceased, Mr. Hobart formed a matrimo- nial connexion, with the youngest daughter of this eminent divine. Well instructed in the doctrines of primitive Epis- copacy, and illustrating by her virtues the benign influence of her faith, Mary Goodwin Chandler became the wife of the future prelate. United to him when he was yet a Dea- con in the Church, she continued, for the space of thirty years, his faithful and affectionate companion. And now, to adopt the words of the venerable Bishop White, ' her depth of sorrow can admit no mitigation, except in the consolations of religion, and in the knowledge of the honour in which the memory of her deceased husband is at present and will still be held, by his surviving friends, by the whole body of the Church throughout the United States, and by the community in genera:!.' As she sits solitary in her widowhood, supported by the arm of her Saviour and her God, her three sons and foar 'daughters comfort her, by the recollection of their father's virtues and his honoured name. Invited, in May, 1800, to the charge of St. George's Church, at Hempstead, Long-Island, Mr. Hobart at once there entered on his official labours. But it became his duty, only a few months after, to exchange thiS' scene, for that, in which he was for a long time to pursue, and at last terminate his ministry. Soon after he commenced his ser- vices on Long-Island, he had an offer of the Rectorship of St. Mark's Church, New- York, which he declined. An- 1800.] Memoir af Bishop Ilobart,- xxsis other and a more extended sphere of usefulness was in re- version for liim : it was the largest spiritual cure in out^ country, comprising three associated congregations in the city of New-York. The most ancient parish in America, it included Trinity Church, founded in 1696, and rebuilt in 1788, St. George's Chapel, (now St. George's Church), first erected in 1752, and St. Paul's Chapel, reared in 1766 ; — all venerable, and all consecrated by the most inspiriting associations. The Right Rev.- Samuel Provoost, the first Bishop of New- York, was then; the Rector of the parish;, and the ReV; Benjamin Moore, D. D., (afterward Bishop and Rector), the Rev. Abraham Beach, D. D., and the Rev, John Bisset, were Assistant Ministers in the year 1799. According to ■an established routine, these four pastors had performed the duties of the congregations. But the Rector resigned his office, Sept. 8th, 1800 ; and one of the Assistant Minisf- ters, the Rev. Mr. Bisset, had resigned, in March of the same year. To supply one of the vacancies occasioned by these resignations, Mr. Hobart was called, September 8tb, 1800, and, a few days after, he met the invitation with a prompt acceptance. ' The best evidence that I can give of my feelings,' says he, in his letter to the vestry, ' will be an endeavour to act in all cases with fidelity and independence, governed only by a sincere regard to the sacred dictates of conscience and duty. The station would require the judgment and expe- rience of more advanced years, I shall have, therefore, a peculiar claim on the friendship and counsel of the vestry, on the candour and support of the congregations, and on the affectionate advice and aid of my superiors, and brethren in the ministry. Thus strengthened aod supported, while id Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [1800—1804. I eadeavour faithfully to discharge my duty, I trust that I may hope for the presence and blessing of Almighty God.' The preceding January, he had visited New- York, with an introductory letter to the Rev. Dr. Beach from BisKdp* White, in which the Bishop speaks of him, as ' a y68»g gentleman, who has lately entered into orders in our Church, with the general expectation of all who know him, that he will be eminently useful in it.' The bright promise was fulfilled. Mr. Hobart was soon hailed, in the city, with a peculiar satisfaction. His hallowed fervour, in pronouncing the impressive language of the Liturgy, his commanding utter- ance in reading the holy Oracles of Truth, and his attrac- tive energy in proclaiming all the counsel of God, were witnessed, week after week, by large assemblies, who an- ticipated with anxiety his appearance in the Lord's lioly place. They saw in him " The legate of the skies ; liis theme divine. His office sacred, his credentials clear." And he reciprocated their best tributes of regard, by hh undeviating assiduity. The hallowed fervour, the com- manding utterance, and the attractive energy, which were Ms charm in public life, he emulated by the interest of his private conversation. ' His earnest and energetic style of preaching,' says one of iiis devoted parishioners, ' attracted crowds wherever he officiated. And the zeal and industry with which he engaged in active pastoral duties, were an earnest of his advancement. At that time he was distin-* guished for the affability and cheerfulness, which formed, in after life, so conspicuous a feature in his character.' Soon a&er he commeneed hia duties in the city, he was 1804—1805.] Memoir of BisTiop Hohavt. xli. ordained a Priest, by the Right Rev. Dr. Provoost, ia Tiinity Church. .The promotion added a new zest to his ministerial work. His whole life was more than ever de- dicated to the sacred office. He soon attracted the admi- ratipn of the Church at large ; he was favoured by the most ample testimonials of public confidence ; and he was cheerfully afforded, by his brethren of the clergy and laity, the most favourable opportunities to indulge his ardent emulation and laborious zeal. While yet in Deacons' orders he was appointed Seci'e- tary to the House of Bishops, at their meeting in Philadel- phia, June 3d, 1799. When in the ministry but three years, and in the diocese of New-York but a few months,. he was chosen Secretary to the Convention of the diocese, and elected one of the deputies to the General Convention, which met at Trenton, September, 1801. At the next General Convention, in 1804, he was again a representative from New- York in the House of Clerical and Lay Depu- ties, and was chosen Secretary to the House. The same distinction was again conferred on him, in the year 1808. And in promptly rendering at all times his full share of toil, both as Secretary and as a member of committees, it may be truly said, that on no representative in the Conv'en- tionc devolved, as numerous engagements, and not one was to be found 'more active and efficient in the transactions of the general councils of the Church. As a Presbyter in the diocese of New- York, he was par- ticularly devoted to the sacred cause which he espoused. Among his early labours in this cause, he compiled and published several manuals for Churchmen. The " Companion for the Altar" first appeared in May, 1804. It explains, in the compass of 200 pages duodecimal xia Memoir of Bishop Hobaft. [1806, the nature of the Lord's Supper, and adds approp^ate meditations and prayers for every morning and evening, tiiroughout the week that precedes the solemn ordinamce. In the compDation of this work, the author had recourse to the " New Week's Preparation ;" he selected also 'from Bishop Gibson's Tract on the Holy Communion, and Bishop Seabury's Sermon on the Lord's Supper; and " when he quoted their sentiments, he thought it proper to Use nearly theu- language." Preface. Some of the devo- tions are extracted; but the meditations and prayers are entirely original. The " Companion for the Festivals and Fasts," in 337 pages duodecimo, gives an account of all the holy-days, which are designated in the Book of Common Prayer, and recommended by the Church to be observed. It is prefaced with a brief view of the evidences of Christianity, and pre- linunary instructions on the nature of the Church-; and it contains, in a short appendix, select devotions for eack festival and fast in the ecclesiastical calendar. This pub- Ucation appeared in 1805, and was compiled from a work entitled " Companion for the FestivsJs and Fasts of the Church of England," by a learned and pious layman of that Church, Mr. Robert Nelson. A Welsh translation of Mr. Nelson's Companion was printed at London, in the year 1712. The " Companion to the Book of Common Prayer," &st published at the close of the year 1805, contains, in 108 pages duodecimo, a brief but satisfactory explanation of the Chmch service. " In collecting materials for this short explanation of the service, recourse was had to the writings of die most approved commentators on the Book of Com- mon Prayer ; and free use made of their remarks, and 18G6.3 Mtmoir of Eiahep Hehart. xliii frequently of their language." Preface. This very Tax- able compilation has. been wid^ely circulected by the New- York Protestant Epbcopal Tract Society, to whom the copy-right was presented by the author some time before his death. The " Clergyman's Companion" first appeared in the year 1806. It contaihsthe occasional forms of the Ghnrch, as used by the olecgy in their parochial services; and ap- propriate extracts from Ac writings; of distinguished divines, on the qualifications and duties of the sacred office. A new ^nd greatly enlarged edition of this work was issued during the year 1828. These four works, submitted to the public eye in quick succession, are commended to all Protestant Episcopalians, by the knowledge which they communicate, and the devout sentiments which they inspire. It was the generous ambi- tion of'.their author, to " build up believers in their most holy faith ;" to enable them, when asked the " reason of their hope," to be " ready always to give an answer to every man ;" and to furnish them with powerful motives to " hold fast the form of sound words which they heard of" him. He was alert also, in discovering the insidious snares, exposing the deceptive fallacies, and resisting the rude en- croachments of " false doctrine, heresy, and schism," which he sought, in fulfilment of his ordination vow, " ipith all faithful diligence to banish and drive away from' the Church." A series of Essays, entitled " Miscellanies," appeared, during the summer of the year 180S, in a newspaper at Albany, and contained severe strictures on Episcopal Church (jrOve>rnment. Certain friends of Episcopacy deemed it xliv Memoir of Bishop Hobarf. [1807. right and proper to defend their cause. The field|Was occupied ; and a long contest began. The author of 'Mis- icellanies was the Rev. Dr. Linn ; most of. the essays in be- half of the Church were written by the Rev. Mr. Be^sley and Thomas Y. How, Esq. ; and the ■ communications signed " Detector" and " Vindex" were by the Rev. Mr. Hobart, whose Companion for the Altar and Companion for the Festivals and Fasts had incurred the unqualified condemnation of the author of Miscellanies. The subject was agitated, until " the printers became at length ex- tremely averse to publishing on the subject." The contest ceased. And when the other controvertists had laid aside their arms and withdrawn from the arena, Mr. Hobart gathered all their weapons both of attack and defence, that it might be manifest, whose sword and shield had best sus- tained the shock of the polemic conflict. He published, in February, 1806, a "Collection of Essays on the Subject of Episcopacy," exhibiting the con- troversial efforts which had been made on both sides, so that "the arguments ./or and against Episcopacy are pre- sented to the reader." The essays, with the editor's notes and remarks, comprising 210 pages octavo, beside a preface to which he subscribed his name, were sent forth to the world, with all the consciousness of triumphant truth, as a convincing plea for the Church in its apostolic purity and dignity. But the boast of Non-Episcopalians, the Rev. Dr. John M. Mason, who was then towering in his loftiest height of fame for genius, learning, and eloquence, could not look on this state of things with the least composure. A long contemplated periodical, of which he was to be proprietor and editor, with the pledge of all the talent of the leading 1807.] Memoir of Bishop Hobart. xlv NcJnrEpiscopalians in New-York, was at last published. The., appearance of this " Christian's Magazine" had been ad^ijBipated, with all the anxious solicitude that waited for " a'Gertain season" at Bethesdai And it did indeed cause a " moving of the water." But the " great multitude of ilfipotent folk" wh» lay waiting for the co-operation of a superior spirit, that they might be " made whole," were very soon convinced, that the water now disturbed was not troubled by an " angel." The whole subject of the Episcopal discussion was vio- lently agitated. The " Collection of Essays" was reviewed ; the opinions of its editor were unceremoniously seized with the nervous grasp of a giant, held up to public odium, and called " positions of such deep-toned- horrour as may well make our hair stand up, " like quills upon the fretful porcu- pine ;" and freeze the warm blood at its fountain." Vol. I. p. 96. Although it was not declared who, among the " so- ciety of gentlemen" that were contributors to the Magazine, was the assailant, the reviewer's curtain could not for a moment hide him. It was none other than the magnus Apollo himself. He was at once betpayed by the very SQunding of his shafts. " — — sseva sonoribas arma.'* The first aspect of the Christian's Magazine was a frown upon the Church, and a loud and severe reprehension of its distinctive principles. With no resort but a vindication, Mr. Hobart soon proved that he was not unequal to the task. He published, in the spring of the year 1807, his "Apology for Apostolic Order and its Advocates," in a series of letters to the Rev. John M. Mason, D. D., com- prising 373 pages octavo. The volume opened with an acute d Jjlvi Memoir of Bisliop Hohart. [1807. pungency of recrimination ; and set forth, with greawta- lent', the author's views of the nature, ministry, and pwtjr of the Church. " My topinions on the subject of Episcopacy," he;^b- serves with all the force of truth. Letter V. p. 31, " caMot be ranked among the prejudices of education. I bless God tiiat I was baptized, in infancy, in the Episcopal Church. That part of my life, however, during which my religious principles became a subject of my anxious investigation j was passed at a Presbyterian college. Respect and venera- tion for my instructors and guides in the path of science, — esteem and affection for many valued friends, to whom I knew certain opinions on the subject of Episcopacy would be obnoxious, excited in my bosom a painful struggle be- tween the most amiable impulses of feeling and the strong demands of duty. But when, after as honest and faithful examination as I was able to make, I became fully satis- fied that it was •" evident from Scripture and ancient au- thors, that there have been from the apostles' times three orders of ministers. Bishops, Priests, and Deacons, in Christ's Church ;" and that the Episcopal Church consi- dered no man as " a lawful Bishop, Priest, or Deacon, who hath not had Episcopal consecratiori or ordination,''' (Preface to the Ordination Services), it surely became my dutyi to maintain and inculcate what the Church had thus solemnly declare^. Perhaps also I had cause to apprehend, that Episcopalians in many places were losing sight of these important truths^ that many of them made no distinction as to authority between ministers Episcopally ordained, nvhom the Episcopal Church considers as alone " lawful ministers," and those who had not received Episcopal or^ dination ; and through the want of correct information I 1807^1811.] Memoir of Bishop Hohart. xlvii BJ^elf bad been led, in some cases, to violate the prin- ciij^'es of my Church. It surely cannot, therefore, be a Jter of surprise, that I should feel a solicitude to arrest, ^g»&y efforts, however humble, the progress of an indiffer- ^and laxity of opinion, which threatened destruction to distinctive principles of the Episcopal Church." The Apology for Apostolic Order was soon reprinted - m England ; and, on both sides of the Atlantic, it won for its author a rare meed of praise. ^ Now in his thirty-second year, and in the full tide of his popularity, he was honoured with the degree of D. D., by Union College. As an eloquent preacher and an able champion of Episcopacy, the Rev.^Dr. Hobart stood before the world with a commanding aspect. Throughout the dioceses of the American Church, the mere mention of his name excited interest. The public eye was fixed upon him. And he did not disappoint the public hope. lie soon ascended to the highest ministerial elevation, and became Diocesan of the Church in New- York. The Right Rev. Dr. Mo.ore, disabled by a paralysis in February, 1811, felt himself no longer qualified for the performance of his official duties. He called a Special Convention, which held its meeting, in the city of New- York, the following May ; and the explicit object of this meeting was the election of an Assistant Bishop of the diocese, the ill health of the diocesan imperiously requir- ing such an act. All eyes were now fixed on Dr. Hobart. He had no competitor ; . yet he had some resolute oppotients. There were agitating controversies, which at tins crisis burst the bond of peace, and they will painfully obtrude on the nar- ration of these incidents. But a discreet reserve forbids xlviii Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [1811. more than the mere passing notice of the fact, at a time when the agitation of the conflicting elements has sc^ce subsided^ The testimony that Dr. Hobart was indeed.'lhe choice of the diocese, appeared in the very large majority of votes, which called him to the Episcopate. He 'was elected Assistant Bishop, to succeed the Right Rev. Dr. Moore on his demise. An animating prospect of great usefulness was how dis- covered to his view ; and he soon entered on an Episcopal career that was full of interest. 1630 — .] Afemoir of Bishop Ilohari. ^ ,^xlix" '^^"■^■"■■■■"^■^■■^^"^^■■"^"■"^^■""■■"■■■"'^^*^ CHAPTER IV. .Stat. 36—55. Origin of the Episcopate in the State of New-York — Biographical slieteli of the ^rst Bisliop of the Diocese, Dr. Provoost — and of thesecoJirf. Bishop, Dr. Moore — Critical state of the Episcopal succession in AmeiioiS — Dr. Hobart is consecrated the Hard Bishop of the Church in New-York — He enters on his duties — His first appearance in the House of Bishops, and his prominence there — On the death of Bishop. Provoost and Bishop Moore, he becomes Diocesan of New-York, and Rector of Trinity Church — Performs Episcopal offices in New-Jersey, ajid takes provisional charge of Connecticut — His interest in theolo- gical education — Is a Professor in the Generat Theological Seminary of the Church — His extensive Episcopal labovirs — 'His charges — His other publications, especially his edition of Mant and D'Oyly's Com- mentary on the Bible — His declining health — Voyage to Europe — Tour — Return to America — First Sermon after his return^ — He re- news his efforts — His devotion to the Church — The extent of his influence — Summary of his Episcopal acts, and of his labours. The origin of the Episcopate in the State of New-York fs a prominent fact in our ecclesiastical annals. At the period of the American Revolution, the Cliurch of England in this country had, for more than a hundred and fifty years, been considered a portion of the spiritual charge intrusted to the Lords Bishops of London. But, even at that time, no prelate of the Church had ever trodden on our soil. They had jurisdiction over a vast realm, on which their eyes had never rested. All their spiritual children who Tvere born here, grew up without the valued benefit of con- firmation. Not one edifice for public worship was here consecrated- Our clergy and our parishes were destitute of that superintendence, which is the very life of our Church government. Every candidate upon our shores, da 1 Memoir of Bishop HobSt [1672—1714. who would be admitted into orders, was compelled to re- pair with that view to the far-distant mother-country. »- A great gulf lay between ; an ocean ©f three thousand miles. No less than a fifth part of all our young men who were destined for the Lord's service in the sanctuary, — ^being exposed to various " perils in the sea," — paid with their precious lives the cost of the severe ecclesiastical requisi- tion. Roman Catholics in North-America had a bishop, Francis Laval, as early as 1659, — and the Moravians had four bishops previous to the year 1750 ; but, for the Church of England here, there was not provided one spiritual father to take " the oversight thereof." Well might the members of the Church throughout the colonies, most anxiously desire a different state of things, and again and again petition the throne for a redress of what they felt to be a grievance without parallel. The Bishops of London were, for many years, themselves very favourable to the object. A resolution was taken by King Cbari.es the second, in 1673 or 1673, to " send a bishop to Virginia ;" the Rev. Dr. Alexander Murray was nomi- nated for that purpose ; and although " a sudden change in the ministry prevented the execution of the scheme," it was repeatedly cOramended by the Society for the Propa- gation of the Gospel, which has ever included the bisliops and not a few of the most valued laymen in the Church. They declared, in 1703, the devout wishes of the colonies, to be supplied with " a suffragan, to visit the several churches ; ordain some, confirm others, and bless all." SoOn after the year 1710, the Society actually " fixed upon, and purchased, a seat for the residence of a bishop at Burlington, in New-Jersey, by way of preparation for a floffragan." Queen Anne, in 1714, was propitious to the 1714—1771.] Memoir of Bishop Hohart. li design ; and but for her lamented death it " would soon, have been accomplished." The first George also ap- peared favourable. But a dangerous rebellion concentrated all 'his thoughts and feelings on another object, — the pre- servation of his crown and sceptre ; and then " it was not a time to attend to the subject of American bishops." Hope had now long been deferred. Yet, in an anniversary discourse to the Propagation Society, the whole subject was most vividly portrayed by Dr. Sbgker in 1740, and afterward very earnestly pursued by him, when Archbishop of Canterbury, and by his mitred brethren. Bishops But- ler and Sherlock. But men of influence, who were opposed to the very name of " the hierarchy," and jealous of the temporal privileges which appertained to it in Eng- land, had frustrated the long-cherished scheme, until the period of the American Revolution. It was also a fruitful source of controversy, on this side of the Atlantic. Previous to the year 1766, it was agitated •by the Rev. Mr. Apthorp, one of the Church missionaries^ at Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the Rev. Dr. Mayhew, a Congregationalist at Boston ; and Archbishop Seeker, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Johnson, and the Rev. Mr. paner, took a part in the discussion at that time. When the Rev, Dr. Chauncy, of Boston, eind William Livingston, Esq. of New-York, two years after, wrote in opposition to the proposed American Episcopate, its propriety was set forth with great talent, in a publication at New- York, by the Rev. Mr. Iwglis, who was afterward the Bishop of Nova- Scotia. The whole argument was again presented, by the Rev. Dr. Chandler, who in 1767 issued his Appeal to the public in behalf of the Church of England in America, — in 1769 and 1771 defended and further defended it, in re- lii Memoir of Bishop Holart. [17' ply to the objections of Dr. Chauncy. and of anonymous writers in public journals at Boston, Philadelphia, and New- York. The Rev. Dr. William Smith, of Philadel- phia, plead the same cause with great ability. But their views met with disapprobation from some of their Episco- pal brethren in Virginia, who were opposed to the intro- duction of American bishops, at a time when political ani- mosities threatened a rebellion against the mother-country. An " Address from the Clergy of New- York and New- Jersey to the Episcopalians of Virginia," written in 1771 by'' Dr. Chandler, and signed by him, and by the Rev. Drs. Auchmuty, Cooper, and Ogilvie, and the Rev. Messrs: Charlton, Seabury, Inglis, and Beach, was soon answered, in behalf of the Episcopalians of Virginia, by the Rev. Mr. GwATKiN. Here the controversy rested until our national liberty gave it a new form. It was several years after our civil independence that the plan of a General American Church, with an independent American Episcopate, was formed. Incipient measures for the organization of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States were first adopted by the Church in Pennsyl- vania. The earliest general meeting, called expressly on this subject, was at New-York, in October, 1784; when clerical and lay deputies, from the States of Massachusetts, Rhode- Island , Connecticut, New- York, New- Jersey , Pennsylvania., Delaware, and Maryland, first took counsel together on the peculiar exigencies of the Church. A more numerous con- vention of the deputies from several states, held at Philadel- phia in September of the next year, (1785,) prepared an address to the Archbishops and Bishops of the Church of England, requesting them to confer the Episcopal character on such persons as might be recommended by the Church in 1573—1766.] Memoir of Bishop Hobart. liii thettJnited States. The consent oif the Archbishops and Bishops was obtained in 1786. Without delay, the Rev. Dr. White, bishop elect of Pennsylvania, and the Rev. Dr. Provoost, bishop elect of New- York, set sail for England. Dr. Provoost was a man of cultivated mind and manners. His deep interest, and numerous acts of selff denial, in pi'omoting the good cause of our civil libertiee, and his prominent agency in organizing the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States, may well preserve his name and perpetuate his memory. The motto of l^s ancient family escutcheon "pro Ubertate," declared at once the sentiments of his Huguenot forefathers, and the feelings which they had transmitted to him, through five generations, from the middle of the sixteenth century to the year 1742, when he was born at New- York. Among the refugees to Holland at the time of the cruel massacre on St. Bartholomew's day, in the reign of the NINTH Charles of France, — was William Provoost His grandson David, who migrated from Holland to the New- Netherlands in 1624, and became an officer in the Dutch military service, was the bishop's first American progenitor; and both he and the three succeeding generations — David, Samuel, and John, a respectable and wealthy merchant, (who was the bishop's father) — were in communion with the Church of Holland in America. In his infancy, Samuel Provoost was baptized in the Dutch Church ; and in his early youth he was taught the creed of Calvinism. But it was his good fortune to be educated in an English Univer- sity. Having been previpusly a member of King's College, in New-York, he repaired to Cambridge in his nineteenth year, became a graduate of St. Peter's College, embraeed liv Memoir of Bishop Hohart. [1766 — 1768. Episcopacy, chose the Church for his profession, was or- dained a deacon by the Bishop of London, at Westminster, in February, 1766, — and in March of the same year was admitted into priest's orders, at Whitehall, by the Bishop of Chester. He married at Cambridge within a few monthsi returned without delay to New- York, and was there elected Assistant Minister in Trinity Church, of which the Rev. Dr. Auchmuty was then the Rector. Well read in the Latin and Greek classics, acquainted' also with, the Hebrew lan- guage, and a polite scholar in French and Italian, the Rev, Mr. Provoost added to his engaging personal appearance,, and conciliating deportment, a great variety of useful and ornamental literature. But it was his fate to live in troublous times. At the period of his return to America, the elements of the Revo- lution were severely agitated. Most of the Episcopal clergy, then pensioners of the Society for Propagating the Gospel, regulated by this fact their political opinions. A great part of the members of the Church in New- York, at that time tories in politics, and enthusiasts in religion, were dissatisfied with the Whig principles, and what they called the ' moral preaching' of their Assistant Minister. Writing to Dr. John Jebb, who had been his private tutor at Cam* bridge, and became very conspicuous as a warm advocate for universal suffrage .and for the cause of America, Mr. Provoost complains of the religious ' enthusiasm' which prevailed in New-York, and says, ' I made it a point to preach the doctrines of morality, in the manner I found them enforced by the most eminent divines of the Church of England. This brought an accusation against me by the people, that I was endeavouring to sap tlie foundations of Christianity, which they imagined to consist in the 1768—1793.] MeiiiQir At that time, he had resolved to devote himself to the sacred Service of the sanctuary. And with the religious prepossessions which he had derived from his parents, who professed the creed set forth by the national Church of their English forefathers^— Mr. Moore, in the retirement of his native village,^on the ground^ and among the rural associations of his ancestors,'^-begaB to read theolo^. His guide in studies was the Rev. Dr.- Auchmuty, Rector of Trinity Church, New* York. When at college, and while he lingered in liis calm retreat, the ancient classics had a peculiar chartii for him. ' His ac-" quirements in Gi'eek,' observes his son, 'were not so exten- sive as in Latin; and with Hebrew and modern languages lie was unacquainted.' But even ' in Ms youth, he spoke and wrote Latin with great facility, and had a keen relish for the beauties ef the best Authors in that language.' The 1774 — 1784.] Memoir qf Bishop Hohart. liS; re&ned taste, whieh appeared in all his compositions, was imbibed at the pure classic founti Thus diversified, his preparatory theological course was pursued with grea.t zest and diligence. The American Episcopate had not yet been obtained, when Mr. Moore was qualified to be received into the ministry.' He went to England for his ordination in May, 1774, — and was admitted a deacon m the Church, June 24tb, and s^priest^ June 29th, in the chapel of the Epis^ copal palace at Fulham, by the Bishop of London, Dr, Richard Terrick. On his return from the mother-country, during the same year, he officiated in the Episcopal parish at New- York, which then included Trinity Church, and St. George's and St. Paul's Chapels. The Rev. Dr. Auchmuty was the Rector, the Rev. Dr. Inglis the Assistant Rector, and the Rev, Messrs. Bowden and Moore, the twa Assistant Ministers. The venerable edifice of Trinity Church, built in 1696, was destroyed by fire, during the war of the Revolution, in 1776, two years after Mr. Moore commenced his duties. And as it was not rebuilt until 1788, an interval of twelve years occurred, during which', the only pljices of religious worship for the Episcopal resi- dents in the city of New- York, were St. George's and St. Paul's Chapels. The mother-church long lay in ruins: Amid the agitating convulsions of the day it was not " a time to build." •■ But the spirit of liberty, which was renovating every thing in civil government, at this time acted with a powerful influence upon the Church. The Rector of Trinity parish, unable to control, or acquiesce in, the prevailing sentiments, retired from office; and the Rev; Mr. Provoost, who had been, from 1766 to 1770, an Assistant Minister, was, in. Ix Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [1784—18^: 1784, by a unanimous vote, elected Rector. Yet Mr. Moore, whose duties in the parish were at this time for a while suspended, — although well known to be a loyalist, was soon called to occupy the place of an Assistant Minister i» the Church. And he partook largely of the esteem of his contemporaries, and of the literary and ; the eeclesiasticE^ honom-s in their gift. Appointed, in 1784, to the chair of Rhetoric and Logic in Columbia College, he fulfilled, for three years, the duties which were required by that profes- sorship. The trustees conferred on him, in 1789, the degree of doctor of divinity. In 1800, he was inducted into the Rectorship of Trinity Church, a few weeks after Dr. Pro- voost withdrew. Called to preside over Columbia College, in December, 1801, he continued in his presidency- for the space of ten years ; and three months before this literary elevation, he was raised to th& highest ecclesiastical pie- ferment. It has been well observed, by one who was long near him, and afterward became his successor in the Episcopate, " He rose to public confidence and respect, and to general esteem, solely by the force of talents and worth. In the retirement of a country village, the place of his nativity, he commenced his literary career j and he prosecuted it, . . . until he became the finished scholar and the well furnished! divine." " Ilis love for the Church was the paramount principle that animated him. He entered on her service in the time of trouble. Steady in his principles, yet mild and prudent in advocating them, he never sacrificed con- sistency, — he never provoked resentment. In proportion as adversity pressed upon the Church, was the firmness of the afiection with which he , clung to her. And he lived until he saw her, in no inconsiderable degree by his cpunsel 1891—1811.] Memoir of Bishop Hoiari. Iw and exertions, raised from the dust, and putting on the gar- ments of glory and beauty. It was this affection for the Church which animated his Episcopal labours ; which led him to leave that family whom lie so tenderly loved, and that retirement which was so dear to him, and where be found while he conferred enjoyment, and to seek in remote parts of the diocese for the sheep of Christ's fold." He was elected Bishop, September 5th, and consecrated at Trenton, New-Jersey, September 11th, 1801. The Right Rev. Dr. White officiated as Presiding Bishop, and Bishops Clagget and Jarvis aided him in the performance of the primitive solemnity. The Right Rev. Dr. Moore was now Diocesan of New- York ; but enfeebled, and disqualified for duty by a paralysis, in 1811 he suggested to the Coni- vention the propriety and necessity of an Assistant Bishop. " The severe affliction," he observed, " with which it hath pleased Almighty God to visit me, has affected my state of health in such a manner, that it will be impossible for me, without assistance, to perform the duties of the Episcopal office." " A variety of considerations, affecting the most important interests of our holy Church, appear to me to render this measure indispensable." " I feel persuaded of the utter improbability of my ever being again able to per- form my Episcopal functions." A Special Convention of the Clergy and Laity was assembled ; and they made choice of an Assistant Bishop. It was a crisis of tlie deepest interest to the American Church. From the origin of our Episcopate, there had« been ten consecrations. But Bishops Seabury, Smith, Bass, and Parker, were all now deceased. Bishop Cla6« GET, of Maryland, overcome by a severe indisposition, had undertaken a journey to New-York, but " after proceeding e^ Ixii Memoir of Bishop Hohart. {1811. a few mil^, found himself under the necessity of return- ing." Bishop Madison, of Virginia, the President of Wil- liam and Mary College, was restrained : there by. duties, " made the more imperative by the solemnity of an oatli," and was not at liberty to take part in the proposed offices- Bishop MooRE, disabled by the effects of a paralysis, could not join in a consecration, " unless in his chamber; which was contemplated as a last resort." Bishops White, Pro- voosT, and Jarvis were the only other prelates of the Church in the United States ; and of these three. Bishop Provoost, who had long ceased all public ministmtious, and had performed no Episcopal duty since the year 1801, — being now under the palsying influence of a paralytic stroke, and just recovering from a jaundice, — could only promise, " if possible, to assist in a consecration, if it should be held in the city of New- York." In the two weeks' in- terval, between the election and the consecration of Dr. Hobart, Bishop Provoost suffered a relapse. But he " finally found himself strong enough to give his attendance ;" and Dr. White, as Presiding Bishop, with Drs. Provoost and Jarvis, as his assistants in the ceremonial, met in Trinity Church, New- York, and there consecrated, at the same time. Dr. Hobart, bishop elect of New-York, and Mr. Griswold, bishop elect of the Eastern Diocese. " In regard to the occasion on which we are assembled," said Bishop White, " your preacher takes a more than common interest in it ; because of the crisis to which we have been reduced : there having occurred considerable danger of losing that succession, tiie obtaining of which had been so long and so fruitlessly the object of our desire ; but which, from the decease of sundry of the Bishops, and from the bodily indisposition of others of them, seems haiS- 1811—.] Memoir of Bishop Hobart. Ixiii been in no small danger of beingUost to us." The Bishop then expressed "peculiar satisfaction in the admission of a Brother, known in his infancy, in his boyhood, in his youth, and in his past labours in the ministry." " There are not likely to. be any within these walls," added the revered prelate, " who have had such ample opportunity of judging of the reverend person now referred to, as to real character and disposition. And his ordainer can with truth declare, that he shall discharge the duty on which he is soon to enter, with the most sanguine prospects as to the issue. This is said, without the remotest idea of a com- parison with any other ; but merely on account of a longer and more intimate acquaintance. And perhaps, what is now announced, may not be altogether without a reference to self; although — it is trusted — not operating in a faulty line. For whether it be the infirmity of an advance in years, or, as it is rather hoped, an interest taken in the future prosperity of the Church ; there is cherished a satis- faction, in the recollection of counsels formerly given to one who is in future to be a colleague ; who may, in the common course of affairs, be expected to survive ; and through whom, there may accordingly be hoped to be some small measure of usefulness, when he who gave those coun- sels shall be no more." The Right Rev. Dr. Hobart was scarce invested with the lawn of office, when he began vigorously to exercise ^e functions of an Episcopate, which iSiWithout any parallel in our day. Although entitled an Assistant Bishop, he was, from the very moment of his consecration, virtually the Diocesan of New- York, Bishop Provoost had long ceased the exercise of his Episcopate ; Bishop Moore was almost entirely disqualified for any of his duties ; and. the hut Memoir of Bishop Hobari, [1811— < young Assistant Prelate, in the thirty-sixth year of his agCi was required to enter on the charge of a vast diocese, almost co-equal, in extent of territory, with all the five- and-tweiity bishoprics of England, — an arena, of no less than six-and-forty thousand square miles. He was not dis- couraged at the thought. Having resolved at his consecra- tion to be faithful, " the Lord being" his "helper," — " by the help of God" he traversed his extensive field of labour with an untiring assiduity ; built up the waste places ; and ©very where, with a glad mind, he ordained some, con* firmed others, and blessed all. In the House of Bishops, from the time of the Jirsi meeting that occurred after his consecration, he was pe- culiarly prominent. Bishop Clagget was that year (1814) expected to preach the Convention Sermon. But as h6 was absent on account of sickness. Dr. Hobart cheer- fully consented to assume the duty of " preparing, at a very short notice, to supply his place," and to adapt bis sermon to the consecration of the bishop elect of V-irginia, the Rev. Richard Channing Moore. His iii« teresting topic of discourse was the " Origin, General Character, and Present Situation of the Protestant Epi»> copal Church in our Country." And in range of thought, clear views, enlightened zeal, and hallowed fervour, the. new Prelate, as he just entered on his bright course, was " not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles." 2 Cor. xi. 5. He attended every meeting of the House of Bishops, from this date until his offico ceased, excepting only the General Convention of 1823, when he was prevented by sickness from being present; and he ever manifested, among his Episcopal associates, a heartfelt interest in the good cause of the Church, and a sensitive precaution, and imcompro» -^1816.] Memoir of Bishop Hohart. Ixv mising zeal, to preserve her venerable institutions in their integrity. At every consecration to the Episcopate, (ex- ee'pt that of the lamented Ravenscropt in 1823,)' he was present, and took part in the imposing services. Two of the nine brethren, on whom it was his satisfaction to unite in " laying on of hands," went before him to the spiritual world ; and seven now await the solemn call, to meet him there among the heavenly hierarchy. In the fifth year of his prelacy, both his precursors in the diocese of New- York joined the spirits of the dead ; — * Bishop Provoost, in September, 1815, and Bishop Moore, in the ensuing February. > At the annual meeting of the Convention, only a few weeks after the former of the two events. Bishop Hobart, in his anniversary Address, said of the departed, " To the benevolence and urbanity that marked all his intercourse ■with his clergy, and indeed every social relation, there is strong and universal testimony." And added then the words of Bishop White, in regard to his official and per- sonal intimacy with the first Bishop of New-York, — calling it a sacred relation " between two persons, who, under the appointment of a Christian Church, had been successfully engaged together in obtaining for it the succes- sion to the apostolic office of the Episcopacy ; who, in the subsequent exercise of that Episcopacy, had jointly laboured in all the ecclesiastical business which has occurred among us ! who, through the whole of it, never knew a word, ■ or even a sensation, tending to personal dissatisfaction or dis" union." When the decease of the first bishop occurred. Dr. Ho- bart was on his usual visitation of the diocese. But he wai in the city when the second was called away into the spi- ixvi Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [1816. ritual world. And it became his duty to pronounce a funeral discourse, at the interment of that revered parent of his people. The obsequies were solemnized in Trinity Church. A crowded congregation filled the whole area and the galle- ries of the spacious edifice. And the preacher, under the influence of intense feeling, pronounced before the " people of the congregation," a discourse on the state of the de^- parted, and, in a touching peroration, alluded to the two absent prelates,— »tbe " venerable Father," for whom the last solemn offices had been performed but a few weeks before,-r-and the recently departed apostle, of meek and holy life, to whose remains in the church aisle he eloquently pointed. His subject was attractive. He set forth tiie doctrine, that " departed saints do not enter on the full fruition of bliss immediately on their release from the body ;" — ^that the immortal spirit, separated from its fleshl}' tabernacle, is in a state of joy or misery; but this joy or misery will not be consummate until the soul and body shall be re> united, and inherit everlasting punishment oi life eternal, at the great day of doom. The " Funeral Address," with an *' Appendix" containing an elaborate dissertation " On the State of Departed Spirits and the Descent of Christ into Hell," comprises 72 pages octavo, and manifests more critical research than appears in any other of the Bishop's numerous publications. He shows clesu-ly, that the doc- trine which he taught, is " a doctrine of the Church of England and of the Protestant Episcopal Church ;" that it is approved by " a series of Protestant Divines, of various denominations, to the Apostolic age ;" and that it is " re- vealed clear and strong in the sacred writings." To the t€lt5.] Memoir of Bishop Hobart. Ixvii modern authorities which he quotes may be added the clear testimony of 'Barrow, Sherlock^ Sir Matthew Hale, Beveridge, Jortin, Butler, Wa*ts, and Calvin. The last named writer, when speaking of the intermediate state, (status intermedius,) in the third book of his Institutes, cap. XXV. § 6, says, The «ouls of pious men, " after finish- ing their laborious warfare, depart into a state of blessed rest, where they wait with joy and pleasure for the fruition of the promised glory ; and so all things remain in suspense Until Christ the Redeemer shaiU appear. And there is no doubt that the condition of the reprobate is the same that Jude assigns to the devils, who are confined and bound in chains, until they shall be brought forth to the punishment to which they are doomed." The Right Rev. Dr. Hobart, on the <3eath of Bishop Moore, became Diocesan of New-Yoi'k. At the close of the year 1812, when the Rev. Dr. Beach, Assistant Rectoi' of Trinity -Church, resigned his office, the Assistant Bishop was immediately called to fill his place ; and he was inducted Rector only a few days after Bishop Moore's decease. He had now an ample range for all his talents, over a diocese more than three hundred' miles in its extent from east to west, — a leading voice, in appropriating the in- come of the immense Church property of the Episcopalians in New-York)— and an official station, which commanded a deference for his opinions and his feelings, that wag afforded to no other individual in the community. A scene of action more enlarged j and a sway of public sentiment more powerful, have seldom fallen to the lot of any one, ■who has been clad in the robes and has borne the symbols iSf the prelacy. And his exertions wete not confined to the Church in Ixviii Memoir ef Bishop Hobart. [1816. his own state. In the diocese of New- Jersey, until J the year 1815, when its first bishop, the Right Rev. John Croes, D. D., was consecrated, — ^the Assistant Bishop of New- York had performed many of the appropriate ttflSces of the Episcopate.' While the Church in the State of Connecticut, after the death of the Right Rev. Dr. Jarvis, in 1813, was for several years without an Apostolic Pastor of its fold, — the New- York Diocesan, in 1816, complied with a request to extend his Episcopal jurisdicition to that see. Having fulfilled the responsibilities which he thus Incurred, he resigned his provisional charge, in the year 1819, at the consecration of the Right Rev. Dr. Brownell. The official relation of Bishop Hobart to the Church in Connecticut, had been not merely nominal. Withiii the short space of twenty days, from the time ■ that he first entered on his duties in the diocese, he performed thirteen visitations, admitted two of the clergy into Priests' orders, consecrated two churches, and administered confirmation to no less a number of candidates for that apostolic ordin- ance, than a thousand one hundred and fifty-three. And in the same short interval, while thus engaged, he visited " some congregations in the State of New- York." Me- morials of his success are to be found also in other parts of the Lord's vineyard ; but the ample monument of his labours is reared within the precincts of his own diocesan jurisdiction. To build up the Church of Christ, in her ministry, her ordinances, and her most holy faith, — ^this was the great object, which awakened his solicitude, and called forth his incessant and untiring efforts. The proper education of the clergy was among his favourite themes. For many years before the establishment F^814— 1819.] Memoir of Bishop HolarU Ixiy 'iolt^jceneral Theological Seminary was proposed, ke had eopemplated such an institution. In the year 1814, he, i^JLad issued proposals for a " t^rammar School and Theo- 'Wgical Seminary," and was willing to consider himself responsible for its faithful management. In the School,- under his own superinteiadence, were to be taught " the various branches of an English and classical education." Jjarge- buildings were proposed, with a separate compart-, meat for each, pupil ; every fifteen scholars were to be provided with an appropriate instructor ; and all the mem- bers of tl^e institute were to reside in the projected edifice. The proposed annual fee was three hundred dollars ; and the aspils, after every necessary expense should be liquid-^ ated<, were to be religiously applied to the endowment of a "^Theological Seminary." Instruction was to be here given, according to the Canons of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The Bishops were to be trustees of the Seminary, and to nominate, as their associates in the management of its concerns, an equal number of clergymen and laymen ; and their great object was " to establish the young mea destined for holy orders, in the spirit of evangelical piety, in habits of close thinking and accurate research, in theo> logical attainments, in the proper mode of celebrating holy offices, in pulpit eloquence, and in the important practical qualifications which constitute a faithful, laborious, an^ zealous parish minister." A theological library for the students was contemplated ; and frequent and minute in- structions, religious-discipline, and devotionalexercises,- — to " guard and exalt their piety, increase their affection for the ministry, and fit them practically for its duties." None were to be admitted' to the sacred school, but " pious and itmiable" Churchmen, with qualifications to render them f Ixx Memoir ef Bishop Hohart. [1814— 1819f4f " apt and meet to exercise the ministry to the glory of :&ftl, aa4 the edifying of the Church." Theological " schol^j ships" were gratuitously to furnish education to young meHj*^ who might he destitute of pecuniary resources. The eye of the General Convention was to scrutinize, and its wis- dom to control all this, in its details. A central situation in a retired neighbou;:hood was se- lected. "" The spirit of the ministryi," it was observed, " such as it was in the primitive times, and^uch the Ghurch now requires, must be formed in retirement, by stud^ me? ditation, and prayer." A grant of ten acres of land,.eighte,en miles from the city of New- York,, and near the villageiof Springfield, New-Jersgy, had been procured by,pr. Hor bart, "at an early period of his ministry," th^t Jie.. might there devote, to the pursuit tif his long cherished object, '* as soon as a favourable opportunity should oiSer, what- ever talents or zeal he might possess." He now pointed to this site, where he wishe,d to rear his institution. And receiving an adequate salary from other sources, , he deter- mined to accept, for his duties in the school and seminary, po pecuniary compensation,,-r-willing to make any sacrifice of time and labour to a cause which he deemed " essential to the prosperity of the Protestant Episcopal Church." This brief absti'act of a prospectus, containing twelve pages octavo, illustrates the Bishop's fei'vent zeal, active enterpi'ise, and noble gfeneroslty ; but, above all, it exhibits his deep interest in the education of the clergy, and his estimate of the qualificationSj-^intellectual, moral, and re- ligious, — by which the matt of God should be " thoroughly furnished" unto all good works. At a time when our country was unprovided with aa Episcopal college on the plan suggested, and the Church i823.] Memoir of Bishop Bobart, l^t I'ithout any school of the prophets for her ministry, — 'mere proposal of the offered scheme was singularly fe'riterious. It was in truth the foundation of the Church's General Seminary, which has sent forth so many labourers into the harvest, and now enumerates a goodly compatty of preachers, who, with " the Spirit of the Lord God -upon" them, have' been anointed to " publish salvation." ' This ' GSngrat Theological Seminary, first located at New-Y(SE ra'the year 1819, was risriioved to New-Haven in September, 1820. But even during the time that it con- tinued at Ne'H'-Haveh, there was in existence at New- York a local sSriifeary, under the ^fe and the immediate auspices of the Diocesan '; and an incorporation of this local with the General Seminary, resulting, in the year 1821, from the prudent counsels of' a Special General Convention of the Church, the niBwly organized ihstitutioa was located at New-York. Bishop Hobart was appointed by the trustees to the chair of Pastoral Theology and Pulpit Eloqiiehce ; and he delivered an " Introductory Address," at the re-openirig of the Seminary in the year 1822, '"'The objects, principles, results,' and means of the institution, were his'fourfold sub' ject, — presented in a manner, af once methodical and per- spicuous, attractive and animating. In the discharge of all the duties which devolved upon him in his professorship, he most seriously inculcated the momentous responsibilities which rest upon the man of God, and his absolute need of personal piety, and of a spiritual change, — none other than the sanctifying operation of the Holy Ghost. , . Addressing his students of theology, and alluding to " the agency of the Divine Spirit," he observes, ". Unless this spirit%ial change has been effected, I need scarcely IxiSi Memoir of Bislion Hohart. [1823. say, you have no claim to the privileges of Christiiai?i — ^you have no ,busiaess with that sacred office, the objefcj of which is to rescue men from that spiritual bondage b^ the fetters of which you are still bound." " The vigor- ous and devoted pursuit of knowledge," he adds, " evea theological knowledge, purifying as is its divine .influence, may graduaUy encroach on the time that shcnild be de- votied to the exercises of practical, piety, and iiltimately weaken the fervour with ■n;hich, the soul cherishes the great, truths of her redemption, and communes with Jjejr God and Saviour." . -" 1 trust," says hp., " that some time is daily 4evotpd to the reading of the sacfg^ volume, not onil(yr as scholars) and as a°ities, to settle doubtful construc- tions, to unravel difficulties, to illustrate beauties and ex- cellencies, but in all humility and solicitude as sintierSt to find there the li^t,that is to lighten your spiritual dark- ness, thg mercy th,at is Xo appease your guilty consciences^ the grace -that is to renew your disordered souls, the divine) promis.es- which are to refresh the path of your pilgrimage, and to conduct you to the fulness of joy.in the heavenly mansions^ of your God." , Extending his hands^ as he stood in the -chapel pulpit of the Seminary, he exclaimed, " Sa- cred be this mansion." " Placid and. benign as divine wisdom be the spirit that reigns here .; blessing the sacred hours of devotion and study ; uniting all'its inmates in the fellowship of love and peace ; making it the emblem of that abode where truth shines forth in unclouded lustre, and love and peace dispens^e unmingled, ineffable, and eternal joy." The Bishop's theological professorship required criticisms on the. composition and delivery of sermons and on the ■ reading of the liturgy, together with a course of instruction 1822.] Memoir of Htshop itooart, Ixxiii oa. the qualifications and duties of the pasforal office. Thai his-'smdents set a value on his labours in their behalf, is • .A ... recorded in a series of resolutions, adopted and pubhshed % them, which eloquently express their "warmest sympa- thies," and their gi:atitude for " his able instruction and fatherly counsel." As President of the Theological Fa- culty, and Bishop of tte diocese in which their sacred school was situated, he felt a responsibility, which weighed on him alone in the Episcopal brotherhood. But it was not his cliaracter to shrink from toil, or to be discotiraged at the thought of care. From the very " day of his shew-' ing unto Israel," he proved, that, " by the help of the Lord" who strengtheneth, he could realize with the chief apostle, " I can do all things." Phil. iv. IS. He boldly encountered every difficulty in his path, with this encou- raging and invigoreiting assurance. His apostleship demanded the unceasing use of his re-- sources, — moral, intellectual, and corporeal. It was his busy occupation to traverse, in an extensive circuit, the vast territory occupied by his spiritual household, — from the boundary of Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, to the western la;kes, and from Pennsylvania and New- Jersey to the Ganadas. Within this his ecclesiastical realm, he had " the care of all the churches." For several years, before he was compelled to intermit his labours, he re- corded, in his anniversary addresses, seldom less than thirty^ and soraetimes more than forty visitations of parishes widely separated. In his annual " journeyings often," with his chai-acteristlc moral and physical energy, he would pass, by a rapid transition, from the city of his residence to the re- motest confines of the state,— ordaining, confirming, con- secrating,— Instructing " the people committed to" h^ f2 Ixxiv Memoir oj'jiunop aoitart. [isil— isscj. " charge," — lien beholding congregations organized-, , and ihext chiirches reared, — the pastor Qfthis flock, all-devoted to his labour of love ; and the incnutibent of that living, secularizpd,— rin one spot, a devout admiration of the Church in her. beautiful liturgic garment of praise and prayer ; and -in unpther, " false doe^ine, heresy, and schism" mutilat- ing and rending the " clothing of wrought gold." Upoa ^11 this he looked with deep emotion. 4'nd while he fed " the flock of God," " taking the oversight thengof," " not by constraint, but \^i)lingly," " not for filthy lucre, hut loi ' a ready mind,"r^h^ gave ^nipelf wlioUy to his work of £iith. He watched, with a searching eye, the eh9,ugesi that were exhibited throughout his . diocese ; detected and ex- posed the causes .of, factitious piety ; declared the Gospel means of " pure and undefiled religion before God ;" built up the waste places of the Church ; and with a peculiarly ardent enterprise, ambitious to send forth, into every " de- sert .place" of bis ecclesiastical province, a herald of sal- vation, — himself a missionary, his heart rejoiced to behold the many missionaries, whom he ordained and sent forth, °* preaching in the wilderness." V,My Clerical and Lay, Brethren," said he, "I should enjoy little satisfaction in congratulating you on the in- creasing attachment to the distinctive principles- of our Church,, and veneration of her institutions, if I could not ^Iso congratulate you on the increase of that evangelical piety which theSe principles and institutions, when faith- fully observed and practised, ' are calculated to produce. He indeed must entertain very inferior and erroneous no- tions of the nature and design of the ordinances of -die Church, and of the high objects of the ministerial calling, £who doc$ not extend their influence to the excitement and 1811 — 1833. j Memoir of Bishop Hohart. kxV preservation of' the power of godliness; of that vital aftd ^aductive faith. which, through the agency of the Divine Spirit, renewing the soul, and conforming the life to the holy standard of Christian morals, can alone authorize th& elevated hope, that we are the subjects of God's favour, and in a state of preparation for his kingdom of glory." And the Charges which he dtelivered to the clergy of his diocese^ present, in glowing terms, his views of the " Na- ture of the Christian Ministry," the " Corruptions of the Chtirch of Rome contrasied^ with certain Protestant Er- rors," the " Principles of the Churchman," the " High Ohurohsnan," and the " Duty of the Clfefgy with respect to inGulcatimg the Doctrine Of the Trinity." Fraught with the characteristics of his mind and heart, these five charges witness his great talent, fervent zeal, and Unfeigned piety. " Among all the wOrks which I could mention as likely to be useful to a student," says one of the Bishop's ardent friends in England, " 1 hardly know one which taskes so forcible yet so succinct a view of the subject, and whi^hi afterward so earnestly presses on the younger clergy the awful nature of the duties they have undertaken, as a . ehairge delivered to the clergy of New- York in 1815, by their admirable and invaluable Bishop. In a subsequent charge, in 1818, entitled, " The Corruptions of the Church of Rome contrasted with certain Protestant Errors," he has entered on the same subject in some parts as I have done ; and I only wish that I were able to urge these topics with his force of argument and of language." Engaged as he was; in the incessant toils of his high office, he still found time to prepare and issue from the press several valuable publications. The " Christian's Manual of Faith and Devotionj" in Ixryi' Memoir of Bishop Hobart, [1814 — ISa^K,' 510 pages octodecimo, appeared in 1814. It contains " dia- logues and prayers suited to the various exercises of the' Giiristian Mfe, and an exhortation to ejaculatory prayer,- with forms of ejaculatory and other prayers." The dia- logues are selected and altered from a work entitled " Thf* Village Manual," and give a picture of the Christian lifey, with a view to impress the leading doctrines of the Gospel* The exhortation and the forms of prayer were altered from' a treatise that is commended by Bishop Home, and by thei Rev. WiUiam Jones, of Nayland. The " Candidate for Confirmation instructed," another useful work, published in the year 1316, explains and en- foroesr ^' the nature of this holy rke, and the important trulbs and duties connected with it, and way be used wkh advantage by all those who are preparing to be confirmed^ It has passed through several large editions, and is now issued m th& form of a tract, comprising 60 page* duode- cimo, by the New-York Protestant Episcopal Tract So- ciety, to which the copy-right was generously transferred by the author. He was employed, from the year 1818 to 1823, in edit- ing his largest publication, and that on which he bestowed his continued attention for- five years. It was the American edition of " Mant and D'Oyly's Bible^ with notes," which- is the Family Bible of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. ' More than a third part of the notes in this- edition,' say the publishers, ' are the result of his untiring, labour.' After a condemnatory review of the orginal work^ the editors of the Christian Observer say, vol.. xxvi. p. 619, " Speaking with the utmost sincerity, and not abating one particlOjOf the strictures which we have had occasion to pass upon the Bible of Bishop Mant and Dr. D'Oyly, we ,_„ 18B3— 1835.] Meikoir cf Bishop Hoharl. Ixxvii still think that it contains a copious mass of interesting and valuable extracts, from the writings of emfaient divines, well worthy of publication and re-publication, for the be- nefit of every attentive reader of holy Scripture ; and with Bishop Hohart's general views of Christian doctrine and ecclesiastical ritual, we do not know in whait' manner he could *tflori*'cdlis'cientiously have consulted the benefit of his c6iintryni6n than by presenting' to them this collection of annotation^." But his various and extensive efforts were too great to be eiidiire'd eveii' by his'^i^bmis frame. His heklth declined; his enfefgydf body was enfeebled ; a seai^'dyage- was deemed neic^SsSi^; and he made preparation to depart for Europe. The siiiiple fact of his departure would have produced i. general sensation in the Church, but the painful cause by which it was induced, awakened every where the most anxious solicitude. At the hour of his embarcation, he received abundant testimonies that his painful' absence would be "smcerely mourned. It was not his family' alone, nor his immediate friends, who then gave prbof of their affection and their confidence. He shared a general sym- pathy. "At the appointed hour," says one of the many puTilic journals that took notice of the event, " the wharf from which the steam-boat was to take the passengers on board "the packet, was thronged with a large, number of onr most respectable citizens, who had come to take leave of this distinguished Prelate." Numerous clergymen and lay- men accompanied him to the ship. The Episcopal clergy gave him a written pledge of their attachment' to his person, and of their sincere desire to prevent the Church's " de- clining from that degree of unity, prosperity, and*purity, to which your admi«istration," said they, " has, thj^bu^ Ixxviu Memoir of Bishop Hobart. [182S— lfe2| the Divine blessing, been so largely instruhi^ntal m raising it." Delegates appointed by the Auxiliary New-York Bible ' and Common Prayer Book Society, united in the expr6s-' sion of similar sentiments. The trustees of the Jewish-'dta- gregation " Shearith Israel,'' in testimony of thdir kind reeard, furnished a letter of introduction to the Ref; Div Solomon Herschel, of London, a Grand RabbfWthe Jew's. Every demonstration of esteem was offered, that could give -Utterance to the prevailing sentiment. On the morning of September 24th, 1823, the Biihdp set sail for Liverpool in the packet-ship' Meteor J and it soon disappeared in the remote horizdn. But wheh on the great deep, it was a delightful thought on which he loved to dwell, that he was accompanied by tender syiiipathiesy and by the fervent prayers of those who were the friends »fGod. On the first day of November he reached Liverpool, wiA improved health and recreated energies. He stood upon the soil of England. Soon, in the metropolis of the empire, he was walking amotig her " gorgeous palaces and solemn temples." Her ecclesiastical and civil institutions met his eye. He conversed with her distinguished men in church and state. He viewed her natural seenery, tod the moral picture of " the people of the land." ; In England, Wales, and Scotland, — and in France, Switzerland, and Italy, — he made an interesting tour of, two years. Associations of the olden time, reminiscences of great and good men departed, and classical recollections were continually hovering around his path. His active tlioughts were every moment on the alert; and his faithful memory retained what his acute eye observed. He was twjce on the continent. During his first visit. 1^18^5.^ Msmfiin of ^Bishop Hohart. Sl^ mijiii.nm i i , ui i u- I JM . 1 --n ■- ^ HijiPthepSpringof 1824, when he journeyed through France^ (p>*^aly as far as Naples, his health did not admit of his epotemplating with satisfaction the moral scenery in his ccijjfse, or of even viewing with pleasure the multiplied attractions of the classic realm. He returned to London 4^- July. i. But in the autumn of the same year he renewed his xisit to ^e continent. The capital and the country of France h^d less to engage his mind than, he anticipated in the Italian metropolis and scenery. He hastened onward. In November, he passed through .Switzerland, and was in Italy. five months. He reached Rome a few days before the high festival of the Nativity; and until after Passion- Tfeek, hi8 spent most of his time at the central point of papal power and magnificence. A free citizen of the United Slates ■ in the land of sovereignty the most absolute, — a Protestant Bishop in the ecclesiastical territory of the Rpujan Pontiff,-~his mind was far more occupied with the prevailing thoughts and feelings of the people^ than with the, numberless curiosities by which he was surrounded. But he was not without a lively zest for these. He visited the gates and arches, squares and fountains, galleries and gar- dens, aqueducts and bridges, obelisks, and monuments, and mausoleumSj^^the; palaces, the castles, the churches, and Ihe august cathedral. He was often in the Vatican, among itStrare treasures of science, literature, and the arts. He was with th^ multitudes at the public places of conccJUrse for the, living, and among the relics of the' dead within the sombre catacombs ; — ^by moonlight contemplating the Co- llsean remains of the ancient city of the Caesars, — and frpquently at sunrise ascending an eminence of the Pinciaa hill, near his lodging in the Piazza di Spagna, to survey Kl^, modern city, an4 the Campagna di Roma, its wide Wfl Mt^^ of Biihap Mohmt. [18S3-^1S^^ g. ' ' ; ' ■"" \ _ . - - ^ ^$ p^ffl-cMng solitude. Bat a^L.]^j'eeUDg& of admiration an,^ ^Steinnity yielded to more paweicful emotions than those arising from a view of tbe imperia;! capital, " adorned with goodly stones and gifts." To see so many of tiitoi^Bat wukitude around him 'i wholly given to" their idLes. cere^ monies ; to see " the pcophets prophesy falsely,^ and the psiests bear rule by .their means, and the pe^e^love. to have it so;" to seethe simple doctrines of our faitU-jVitiltted by the corruptions, decked' in the gorgeous apparel, and moving in the pageantry of this world, — an eye-witness of the spectacle, " his spirit was stirred in him." Acts xvii. J6. The United States' Consul made known to him a desire which had been expressed, that he shisuld be introduced' to the Pope on an occEisisn when two other American citizens were to be presented. * But he promptly declined any in- terview, as the usual act of obeisance on his part might so readily give rise to misapprehension. In the suburbs of the papal residence, and near the Gate of the People, (P®rtadel Popolo,) is a room used as a place of worship, in which the service of the Church of England is «tatedlp performed. In hismiildness. Pope Pius VII. allowed Protestants to meet for public prayer within the walls ; but Leo XII. who could not tolerate the in&usion, commanded that it should be ■ permitted only out of the gates. Bishop Hobart preached in this ejected chapel three times. It was on the last of these occasions that he maile-one of the annual appeals in behajlf of the persecuted and depressed Waldenses in the valleys of Piedmont. A clergyman of the Church of England read the service; and 'the Bishop's ser- mon,' says one of his audience, ' met the high approbation of all present.' Although, many ofithe. Protestant strangers had 1S23— 1825.] Memoir of^m^mp Hobart. Ixxifi left Rome, ' a hundred and twenty doUstj;?. were collectedi' " It is a remarkable and interesting trait in their- history," said the Bishop, speaking of the Waldenses, that while the " Christian world had grossly and lamentably deviated from the purity of the Christian faith, polity, and worship, these people retained their faith, polity, and worship, in their primitive simplicity and integrity. Christian truth, almost extinguished in the darkness which for centuries overspread Christendom, was preserved pure and bright in the seques- tered valleys of Piedmont ; and here was lighted that torch .wMah dispelled the superstitions and corruptions that rested on the Church, and restored her in many countries to her primitive purity and brightness." The discourse, which is entitled " Christian Sympathy," was soon pub«- ■lished at London, and re-published at New-York. From Rome the Bishop made many excursions, — espc^ -' tive pages in the mission-history of the new world. The Rev. Mr. Williams, in company with his " red brethren," migrated to Green-Bay, and a new catechist and instructor was appointed to succeed him. In tlie year 1839, the tribe was again visited by their " Right Reverend 1811—1630,] Memoir xtf Bishop Hohart. ci Father in God," — dieir catechist and instructor was then admitted into order$, — and services replete with interest were again performed. " On my first visit to them a num- ber of years before," said the Bishop, " I had confirmed nearly the same number, (ninety-seven,) and at subsequent visits others were confirmed. It could not but excite the most gratifying emotions to find them still advancing in Christian knowledge, and in attachment to our Church, ia whose liturgy they joined with aflecting simplicity and de- votion." The Chiefs, in council, recfuested his " advice as to some particulars in relation to their spiritual interests," und he afterward described the scene. " An ancient but- ternut grove, from time immemorial their council ground, was the place where their chiefs and warriors assembled, and arranged themselves in circles, within which the clergy and myself were seated. Groups of young men, and women and children, were scattered around the assemblage, regard- ing with evident attention and interest what was said and done. The address to me of one of the Chiefs, to which I replied J tlie speech of another to the natives ; and the final address of the orator of the nation to me, to which there was a reply from me, were marked by great good sense, and by simple and commanding eloquence. It is the strong dictate of Christian sympathy and duty, to che- rish this mission among the Oneidas, who are so favourably disposed to our Church, and who are advancing in the arts and comforts ef civilized life." It was not merely in the halls of refinement at the rae- ti'opolis, but in the social circles of the infant hamlet, and amid the group of Indian Chiefs, and warriors and natives, th?tt the indefatigable " Shepherd of souls" was continually watching, {is one that was to give account. And for th*-. cii Memoir of Bishop Hohart. [1811 — i830. great object of his ministry, he cheerfully encountered every personal sacrifice. With the royal patriot, to whoste auspices we are indebted for our translation of the Word of God, and under whose protecting care the Church in old time was so peculiarly blessed, the faithful Bishop of New- York could well exclaim, I " prefer the weal of the public" " to any particular and private ends of mine ; thinking ever the wealth and weal of the commonwealth to be my greatest weal and worldly felicity." And if we walk about his spiritual Zion and go round about her, if we mark well her bulwarks and tell the towers thereof, we shall readily discern, that here are numerous and imperishable monu- ments of his success, which, as with a voice crying in the elty, and a voice crying in the wilderness, will " tell to the generation following" his exemplary self-devotion in the cause of Jesus and the Church. And hb care was not limited by the artificial boundary of a single diocese. He was in spirit and in truth a Bishop of the Church in the United States. Although he might be concealed from observation, as if by the fabled magic ring of Gyges, his powerful influence was felt and owned in almost every ecclesiastical movement that awakened gene- ral interest. The time would fail to tell of his frequent ministrations, in Pennsylvania, in New-Jersey, in Dela- ware, in Connecticut, — ^in Massachusetts and other portions of the Eastern Diocese, — ^sometimes at the south in Mary- land, sometimes at the north in Upper-Canada, — every where, by his deep interest in whatever contributed to the extension of the Gospel, and by his active efforts in all the general institutions fostered by our ecclesiastical confede* racy, obtaining among men a good report. His " praise" was " in all the churches." 1830.] ■ Memoir of Bishop Hobart. ciii When nineteen annual revolutions of the earth had mea- sured the whole period of his prdacy, he had issued from ^e press, beside his larger works, numerous sermons, Ig.amphlets, catechisms, and tracts, with frequent communi- cations to religious and other periodicals, — ^he had ordained more than a hundred servants of Christ to the first order, •and more than ninety to the second order of the ministry ; consecrated seventy sanctuaries of the Lord; had taken part in conferring the Episcopal character on nine successors of. the Apostles; confirmed not less than twelve thousand children of God and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven, — and thus in bold relief set his seal to that comprehensive record of St. Augustine, The office of a Bishop in the Church of Christ is not merely the dignified leisure of ^ non-resident, " Episcopatus non est artificium transigendae vitsE." What is briefly comprised in the aggregates which have just been mentioned, could be accon^plished only by rare corporeal energies, and by moral and mental faculties of a high order. Among the most illustrious names recorded on the ample volume of Church history, will appear in bright capitals John Henry HoBAaT. ■ His distinctive traits of character, — >personal, intellectual, moral, and religious, — must be, to his spiritual family, a theme of interesting contemplation. ci^' Mimtlt of Bis%op Hohart. CHAPTER V. His pengenal ai^earance— Prominent mental ^alities— Habit of 4^^ nsing — ^Attainments— Character aa a writer and a speaker — ^iik< «iples and policy — Moral traits — Domestic character — Religious i^Ws and feeliBgs — Last words— D'eath^-^ObsequieS'^-ConcIusioiir' ' ^ The characteristics of Bishop- Hobart's perso» were ex- pressive. He was all life and, energy. Although short in stature, he was muscular and well proportioned. By his activity, for which he was distiiiigaished from hia boyhood,^ he gave a due developement to every rausele of his frame. He was formed for action ; and in all his movements he was prompt. From this trait his whole deportment to(^ Its character. He had a rapid step, an animated gesture, and a fleet glance. When excited to express disapproba*- tion or rebake,J]is.saddiei)Lturnx.and. hun-Ied utterance were startling. Btit on the othe-r hand, alive to every social courtesy, his cheerM air could in an eminent degree con' ciliate. In private, he had nothing of that stateliness whick fancy is so apt to throw around the apostolic dignity. His quick and abrupt movements were incompatible with grace- ful ease ; and his. frequent verbal iterations and rapidity of speech, differed widely from that measured articidation, which is in general associated with the manner of the Right Reverend Father in God. It was in the sanctuary that he exhibited his best aspect. There his gait was grave, his mien was dignified, and his enunciation was deliberate, deep-tonedj and impressive. The features of his countenance were strongly marked. When the muscles were relaxed, his expression was very like that given in the print with which this volume is ac« Mevioir of Bishoj) Hohaxt. companied. But in his animated conversation, in his in- tensity of thought, and in his glow of feeling, there was a life and soul which art, in its perfection, cannot communi- cate to dots arid lines. ^ As a restless exuberance of animal spirits wg.s one of his distinctive personal traits, so he exhibited, in thought, a corresponding exuberance. He was a stranger to that men- tal sluggishness, in which some doze away their being. In all the operations of his mind there was despatch. And his thoughts were eminently practical; — comprehensive, to discover at a glance the whole dimensions of a subject, — sagacious to discern, quick to decide, bold to resolve, de- termined to undertake, and persevering to accomplish^' His memory was faithful in an eminent degree. His ima- gination, lively as it was, yielded to the full sway of his controlling judgment. All his intellectual faculties were consecrated to his great theme ; and he thus afforded an illustration of what the English moralist h^ defined the " true genius," — "a mind of large general powers, acci- dentally determined to some particular direction." Throughout life, like one of his great forefathers men- tioned in a preceding page, (pw x.) he was " a morning student." He rose to his duties with the first dawn of day. While others were yet merged in sleep, " ■ m dead oblivion, losing half The fleeting momenta of too short a life," he was already " up and doing." And to his morning stu-- dies ■ he attributed, with Baxter, Paley, Wesley, and DoDDiMDGE, the most valuable treasures and the best pro- ductions of his mind. And with the Jewels and the Kens, the Tayloks and^he Burnets, by whose active prelacy Memoir of Bishop Hohart. the Church gi'ew in grace and knowledge, he is a conspi- cuous example of the good results which are the fruit of early rising. From boyhood, it was his characteristic " to wake the morn." And this is the key by which the myi- tery'oi many of his astonishing intellectual efforts may be disclosed. In that subject which was the Resignation of his vigorous mind, he made attainments that were rare and valuable. Before the period of his entrance into the ministry, and from that time until his cares of office wholly occupied his thoughts, he was industrious iii exploring the wide field of theological literature. Church' Polity, Polemic Theology, and Pulpit Eloquence, were his favourite themes ; and in these he was " thoroughly furnished unto all good works." Among the " chief of the fathers of the mighty men" with whom he loved to hold communion. Were Hooker, Bar- row, Peakson, Bull, and Horsley. Instead of pro- found or curious learning, he sought those attainments that • might best serve him in the exigencies of his busy life. • It Las been 'well observed, " As gold which he cannot spend will make' no man rich, so knowledge which he cannot ap- ply will make no man wise." Bishop Hobart's fmid could all be readily converted into current coin. And his style of composition was of the same popular character. To refine with elegant precision was not his study. He was no slave' of words ; they were his ready messengers to do his will. But without regard to a pre- vailing nicety of verbal adaptation, or a rhetorical accuracy in the adjustment of his periods, the productions of his pen were distinguished by a natural, and sometimes glowing eloquence. His great rapidity of thought was associated with a great rapidity of composition. When in that reduced Memoir of Bishop Hohart. mmmmmmi^'^mmifi^wisis^'''''''''''''^''''^. .state. of health which. 'fequired his voyage to Europe, — on • the very eve ,of his departure, ' he issued from the press,' say his publishers, ' a hundred . closely printed pages in the octavo form, .the greater part of wh^ch was written in his bed, just eight days after the appearance of a pamphlet, to the arguments and reasonings of which he made a spi- rited and conclusive reply.' As a speaker, he was celebrated from his very boyhood. At the grammar school, at college, and in the Lord's Holy ,Pla,cej there was jn, his characteristic ardour an animation to arrest, an earnestness to fix, and a sincerity to control, the feelings of hi? audience. It was not the lively fancy of a Taylor, nor the nervous vigour of a South, nor the pointed antitheses of the ^English Seneca, the sententious .Hall, that gave him power in the pulpit ; but an eloquence, commended . rather by its natural flow and its persuasive .energy of words, the waymth of its ejaculations, the surprise of its.parentlieses, and the directness of its appeals. When he first entered on the duties of his ministerial work, his discoiirses were committed to memory with great care, and , thus acquired that peculiar charm, which is inevitably for- feited by reading. He was compelled afterward to adopt a different manner, by his increased engagements ; but he was,a,lways ranked among the first of preachers in the ■American .Church. In England, he did not take part in the performance of , any public services of the sanctuary. ' The act by which our bench.were epipowered to consecrate bishops for Ame- rica,', says a prominent clergyman of the English Church, ,' introduced a prohibition of the persons deriving their ministry under Jts provisions, from. either being beneficed, or even officiating in this country ; and very heavy penal- cviii Memoir of Bishop Hobart, ties are enacted against any English clergyman permitting them to do so.' Before the Christian world, this interdic- tion so unqualified cannot but seem severe. Our honoured •prelate had not the privilege in England to exercise any of hi^ sacerdotal functions, and was ^absolutely enjoined silence by the mother^church ; but, with the approbation, and at the request of Bishop SKiNNEK,in Scotland, he was .led more than once to lift up his voice beyond the Tweed. Before assembled crowds, he there preached the everlasting Gospel, to the honour of his country, the magnifying of his jofBoe, and the glory of God. Wherever he officiated, it may be truly said, his " epistle of commendation" bore a signature which all could read who were called by that name, "which is above every name." His principles were the result <^ impartial inves- tigation and deep conviction, after " diligently reading Holy Scripture and ancient authors." In the language of a writer already quoted, (p. Ixxxviii.) . he might indeed, froQt-his practical religious views, be called an '' evange- lical Bisliop." And his views of the Constitution of the Christian Church should by no means divest him of bb claim to that superscription. " Episcopacy, in its strict sense,", said he, " denoting the three orders ©f bishops, priests, ^nd deacons, with theif respective functions, is the same in all Episcopal churches. These- orders, with their appropriate powers, are unchangeable ; resting on " scrip- tural institution ;" and have accordingly " subsisted from the beginning ;" as our Church declares, " from the Apos- tles' times." As this is the sentiment of the Episcopal Church ; as in common with their Presbyterian brethren. Episcopalians maintain the necessity of an external corn- mission, derived by succession from the Head of the Church-, Memoir ef Bishop Hobart. the " being. called of God, as was Aaron," in order to con- stitute a lawful ministry; and as the offices of ordinalion .declare that God,- " by his divine providence and Holy Spirit, appointed: divers orders of ministers in his Church," among whom are bishops with their appropriate power of ordination, of conveying the ministerial commission ; is there not a further reason, than that of consistency for bur inter- dieting all other but an Episcopal ministry within our bounds ^ There is a certainty that such a ministry has a lawful com- mission. Can there be certainty as to any other 1" In his PRINCIPLES a Churchman, he regulated by these principles his course of policy. " One would think it ob- vious," he observed, " that -it is the duty of Episcopalians consistently and zealously to bend all their efforts to the advancement of their own Church, and to avoid all admix- ture of administrations, and of exertions in what concerns the^ faith,, the warship, and the ministry of the Church." ," From my official station I have so many opportunities of observing the powerful claims of destitute congregations upon the zealous exertions and liberal contributions of their brethren, and their wants so often press upon my feelings, that I cannot cease to lament, that so large a portion of the bounty of'Episcopalians flows in a channel over which their own Church has no control, and from which it derives no iihmediate advantage." In an age when, under the win- ning aspect of a heavenly spirit, — the Spirit of Christian Unity ,^^unnumbered popular schemes are started, in "which the followers of Jesus, of all denominations, were invited to take part in the convfersion of the world, — Bishop Ho- bart steadily -maintained his course, resisting every entice- ment on the one hand, and encountering on the other every reproach. He honestly regarded, all these schemes, hov/ ox Memoir of Bishop Hohart. plausible soever, as ia effect so many various modes by which the predominant sect would eventually prevail, by ada,ptiiig «very other to the dimensions which it might pre- scribe, — a^d in this particular at' least, illustrating the story of Procrustes. He opposed all compromi^ng ofprineiple% as unwarrantable by the singleness and the hoiiesty » imitation also of the strong man's magtianimous reserve, lite often achieved rare exploits^ and even to his nearest friends " tdd'iiot whatiie bad done." Judges xiv. ©. It was never from himsdf that his own family or his most intimat« associates first learned the commendation of his good works. And among his moral qualities in private life which are recorded in the sequel, the {predominating was his peculiar relish for retirement. ' Bfe often d4selared,' says one wh» ■was ever near to him, ' that retirement from the walks of public life would have been most agreeable to his feelings, and in consonance with his disposition and inclination.' Withdrawing from the city and its disquietudes, he would frequently repair to his secluded summer residence at the Short-Hills, in New-Jersey, — a farm in Essex county, near Springfield, .where, in the cultivation of his gardes and his grouRds, he delighted to give himself up to the un- restrained indulgence of some of the most kindly sympa- thies of our nature. An eminent statesman has denomi- nated rural enjoyments " The inclination of kings, the choice of philosophers ;" and this sentiment is sanctioned by ihe judgment of one lof the most exalted minds that beamed -in the seventeenth, century,— ^the immortal author of the Novum Organum. " A garden," are Lord Bacon'-s words, " is the purest of all human pleasures." Ajid Bishop Hobart cherished from his early youth,- not only an interest in the charms of horticulture, but, as has akeady been ob- served, (p. xviii.) a love of natural scenery.. Some remark* able illustrations of this strong habitual feeling were afforded at the Short-Hills ; and it accompanied him in his remotest foreign travels. When in extremely feeble health draring his first *asit to Italy, fee was overcome by sickness on his c»i Memoir of Bishop Hohar't. way from Florehce to Rome. It was at the village, of Ra,dico&ni, near the bleak summit of a lofty mount. Coh- fined there to his -bed for several daiys by a severe illness,— without medical attendance,— without the .conversation of a friend or a companion,— rand from his debility unable even to enjoy, the solace of a book, — it was his calm re-- creation, to be gently raised in bed and moved near to one of .the windows in his apartment, from which he could contemplate the expanded prospect afforded by. his eleva- tion of three thousand feet, and wjitch the. setting sun's mild rays, as they gradually disappeared in the soft sky ojf an Italian landscape. i> With a taste for natural scenery, it has been observed by moralists, are generally united -the kindliest emotions X)f the human heart. Bishop Hobart, in his social inter- course, was an illustration of this truth. His. friendships were peculiarly warm. A short time before he set saU for Europe, being, visited at his house in New.-Yorkby an early college associate,-^-' on their first meeting,' says one who was - present at the affecting interview^ ' they seemed entirely overcome by their, feelings, and remained in a back room together, lacked in each others arms, ap- pearing scarcely able- to speak.' And the source of this ardent friendship was not a selfish, b»t a benevolent prin- ciple. A theological student^ ' owing to the death 6f his. patron, lost the means of sastaining himself, aiid oppressed with despondency, retired secretly from the Seniinary to obscure lodgings. On learning this.fact, the Bishop sought him out, relieved him from his embarrassments, placed in his hands the means of prosecuting his studies, and con-. tinned this bounty until he was preparedUo receive orders..' The .grateful benegciary, ?rfterward a clergyman, ' aeveK Memoir of Sishop Hobar3. cxiii told the stdry without a gush of tears.' The heart which gave cause for this glowing gratitude, was susceptible also even of the passing attentions of a stranger in a foreign land. Two citizens of New-York, when at Zug, in Switzerland, several years~ after the time of the Bishop's tour in that country, were agi-eeably surprised by the master of a hotel, ■^an intelligent man, well acquainted with the English language, — who made particular inquiries concerning his former most agreea-We American guest,- and manifested a ' great interest in hearing of him.' ' He told us,' says one of the travellers, ' that when thie Hishop passed through Switzerland he staid at his house, and after his return to the United States, «ent him a beautiful American Atlas, as a token of his kind recollection, upon which he set great value.' They were these fcind endearing sympathies that made the soul which iJherished them susceptible of the purest pleasures in dornestic life. Emphatic truth commends the abaervation of a distinguished writer, " It is at home, that pvery man must be known by those who would make a jnst estimate either of his virtues or his feilicity." And in his hours of relaxation, — his robes of office kid aside, and his cares of office for a while intermitted, — ^Bishop Hobart in- dulged sensibilities and partook of enjoyments, to which one who knew him well ", for more than seven-and-twenty years," gives, in one of the following pages, this attesta- tion ; " His amiable and engaging manners in social and f rivate life, his affectionate and tender deportment in al! ihe relations of friendship, and of blood and kindredj formed, after all, the prevailing charm of his character; Those onfy can truly appreciate him, who have seen him when, released in some iheasnre from the cares which cxiv Memoir of Bishop Hohart. ^"^•^ •• "" • r ' •-' Trini III. almost incessantly preyed upon him; he gave himself up' to the enjoyment of the society of those he loved. In such hours there was a child-like simplicity, an ardour and ten- derness which many who knew him best will never forget." To his beloved home he was bound by associations that pervaded the whole texture of his life. A few hours after he set sail for Europe, — when a friend accompanied' him for a few miles and did not leave the ship until she put to sea, — his last words at parting, pronounced with a touch- ing emphasis, were, ' Tell my family that you have seen me safe thus far ; O my family, I feel that I am every thing to my family!' And upon those hearts which at home once beat in unison with his, responding every sentiment of joy . or sorrow, his name is written in such lines of love as caa never be eifaced. It was in the bosom of his family also that his most en- gaging religious sympathies were indulged. There, giving vent to all his feelitags, — ^in his devotions at the domestic altar, in his free interchange of spiritual sehtiment, and in his ardent,' graphic delineations of the ' things which are unseen,' — ^he evinced a heartfelt conviction of the moment- ous 'doct^iiies of our holy faith, and a full reliance on its transporting promises. " That genuine faith,"- said he; '* which will lead the soul to Christ; as her only refuge, must be founded on a lively conviction of our guilt and misery." " The faith which will vitally unite thee, O my soul, to thy Redeemer, and prove effectuEil to thy salvation, founded on a dedp sense of thy guilt and misery, must lead thee cordially, supremely, and joyfully to rely on the all- sufficient merits of Christ for pardon ; and on his all- poioerful grace for. complete redemption.''* " Almighty Redeemer, purchased by thy blood, to thee I wholly sur- Blemoir of Bishop Hohart. cxv render myself. All the powers of my soul, all its desires and hopes, shall be engaged in thy service, and centre in thy love !" Upon the great leading doctrines of the atone- ment and the three-fold relation which God sustains to man, as our Father, our Redeemer,, and our SaiSctifier, — he would often dwell with a peculiar earnestness. He experienced also the powerful influence of his faith, in his repeated solemn calls to be prepared for his depar- ture. ' While with him at New-York, as early as the year 1802,' one of his nephews observes, "he faltered, and repeated a clause, in the family evening-prayer, — then stopped, and fell suddenly in . a fainting-fit, from which he was recovered with some difficulty.' The immediate cause of such alarming symptoms, was that derangement of his digestive organs, which was induced at the early pe- riod of his boyhood, and increased in its effects as he ad- vanced in life. During his annual tour of visitation in the year 1826, when alone at evening in his chamber, he was heard suddenly to fail; and when his room was entered, he was found " lying on his face, faint and convulsed." If in one of his Charges to his Clergy, speaking of " vanity of vanities," " stamped upon all objects and all motives not sanctioned by the grace and hopes of the Gospel of Christ," he specially alluded to " serious monitions of" his " un- certain hold on life,"— ^it was because this truth exerted at that time a most solemn and salutary control of his affec- tions. . By the appointment of the great Arbiter of life and death, the very chamber where so impressive a monition had been given in the year 1836, was, in the year 1830, to be a chamber of the most dread solemnities. The Bishop was again engaged in travelling on his annual tour. He cxvi Meniovfi of Bishop Hobart^ had made oflicial appoifttrapnts witifci reftiotcs western pa- rishes, ^t was, unexpectedly induced to change his courser and visit Auburn. It was an event of peculiarly aflfecting interest ; it was his final visitation. At Auburn he admi^ nistered confirmation for the last time. It was the closing act of his Episcopate. His sermon was ; the concluding Sermon of his ministry ; and, by a striking coincidence, as his first tfa^me in, the pulpit was divine wisdom, " Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are pfeace,"- — so was his last theme, " The fear of the Lord, that i& WISDOM." At the parsonage, a few. hours after public service, an eppression at his stomach was the symptom of his last ill- ness. He repaired to rest, — in the very chamber where^ four years previous, and at the same time in the same- month, he had been warned of bis mortality. On the se-i a>nd day of September his last sickness commenced ; and on the twelfth it terminated. The interval of ten days was solemn. All that the assi- duities of friendship could supply was anxiously and affecr^ tionately furnished. All . that prompt medical treatment could administer, was yielded with the most soetWng soli^ citude. But the disease became more and more alarming to the attendants ; and on the oighth day it premonished of approaching death. The man of God, however, was not surprised by this annunciation. He had often said, during the first seven days of his sickness, that this was his third attatck, and one such, he tihou^t, would at last prove fatal : " Perhaps," said he, " this may be that one." He had been much in prayer ; bad united in .the devotit)ns used at the visitation of the sick; had frequently requested that some portions of Bishop Andrews' Litany might be read Memoir of Bishop HoharL cxvii ta him ; and had often conversed on the sinner's only HOPE. The minute details of his last illness, given in the fallowing Sermons and in the Appendix to this volume, are an ample record, exhibiting his submission under the most EigoniziBg '.pains, — his assurances of gratitude to all who gave him the least comfort, temporal or spiritual,— his de- vout and touching mention of his wife and children, — his affejdting interview with his eldest son, who was the only memtier of his family at his death-bed, — his allusion to the divine promises concerning the preservation and perpetuity pf the Church, — his memorable exhortation to a faithful preaching of " the doctrines of the cross," — his eiitireiOLe- nunciation of all merit of his own, with a full reliance on the efficacy of the atonement, and an unhesitating depen- dence on .his Redeemer, hi& Sanctifier, his God, and his Judge, — bis solemn participation of the symbols of his Sa- viour's dying love, — and his firm faith, lively hope, enlarged charity, and triumphant assurance of eternal joy. Some of his distinctive traits of character were very strikingly evinced. Two days before he looked for the last time upon the scenes of this World,-^as the setting sun's last beams shed a golden light into his apartment, the mild radiance attracted his particular attention, and suggested a devout thought of that Sun of Righteousness, in whose light we shall see light. In his intense concern for the absent members of his family, who were more than three hundred miles away from him, he desired to be raised in bed, and asking the direction of his beloved home, — so soon to be the house of mourning, — he then fervently clasped his hands in prayer, and for some moments remained in a thrilling silence, as he bowed toward the sanctuary of his earthly jays. Of one of his forefathers it is related, that " after k exviii Memair of Bishop- Hohart. and under his confinementi the singing of psalms was an exercise wherein he took a particular delight, saying that it was the work of heaven which he was willing to anti- eipate ;" and this too was the departing Bishop's heavenly enjoyment. He was much in praise. On one occEision, just awaking out of sleep, he commenced singing select verses of Bishop Ken's Morning and Evening Hymns ; and the last verses of the ninety-third hymn he sang with a clear voice, the very day before his dissolution.. " A Bi- shop," said one of the best of ancient prelates, " A Bishop should die preaching." And the Diocesan of New-York> as he illustrated in his life the dying sentiment of Archbishop Whitgipt,-^the ciiURCH OP God, " pro ecclesia Dei," — illustrated in his death Bishop Jewel's memorable re- cord. He died preaching, — eloquently preaching. Tender sympathies, fervent prayer, animated praise, and pious ex-- hortation, — thbse were the appropriate employment, of his last hours. Without a dread of dissolution, — when the approach of the pallid king was first ahnouneed, he did not tremble. He received his solemn call, with a " peace which this world cannot give." He was ready. He had hut to die. And while prayer glowed within his heart, and praise lin- gered on his lips, — surrounded by his affectionate spiritual comforters, — he gently closed his eyes, at the early dawn of the " sweet day of rest," — the Christian Sabbath. " Dost tliou demand a test, A test, at once infallible and shoi't. Of real greatness ? Tliat man greatly lives, AJf liate'er his fate or fame, « ho greatly dies !" All that now remained on earth of the illustrious Prelate, was a lifeless body. The kind friends who had been watch^ Memoir of Bishop Hohart. cxjx ing the development of this touching scene, ' could scarce believe the fact,' although with a mute eloquence it told, — by every feature which they now saw motionless, — the Lord had that day taken away the immortal spirit of their chief Pastor. It was a startling reflection. Bishop Hobart was no more ! The melancholy tidings soon spread far and wide. Thirty- two years had performed their revolution, since Zion first heard of him and rejoiced. And now the sad crisis came, when, bereaved of a devoted son who was among the best beloved of her children, she was called to put on hej: garment of mourning, and weep because he was not. His honoured remains were borne with a prompt expe- dition from Auburn to New-York. An acute sensation pervaded the whole city,— a deep interest in the peculiarly afflictive event. Unnumbered sympathies attended on his funeral rites, as his relics were conveyed away from his deserted home. The clergy and ministers of all denomi- nations, in the city, and many from remote parts of the state and from other dioceses, moved before ; and the long train that followed with the mourners^ was a retinue of ■citizens prominent in civil offices,, in literary institutions, and in numerous Episcopal congregations and societies. -The procession entered Trinity Church at sunset. Appro- priate services were there performed ; the first Sermon of the following series was delivered ; the ashes of the la- mented Spiritual Father were then. deposited beneath the chancel where they now repose; and "they buried him in the chiefest of the sepulchres," and " all men did him honour at his death." 2 Chr. xxxii. 33. , Ageneral feeling was immediately and powerfully evinced, by the expressive resolutions which were adopted and pub- cfx Memoir of Bishop Hobart. lished, by the badges of mourning whieh were assumed, and by the discourses from the pulpit which were pro- nounced, not oBly in the city and throughout the diocese of New- York, but in various and remote sections of our wide- spread Civil Union. It was a spontaneous tribute of Ve- neration, that has been accorded to no son of the Church in our land but the illustrious departed. And while tens of thousands in America thus indulged their sensibilities, there was full many a response beyond the waves that separate us from the Old World. " From the moment of his contracting his high responsibility," saj's one, " his labours have been almost past belief." " The death of Bishop Hobart," says another, " must be, in the estimation of every one acquainted With his character and station, a great public loss." " To the whole of Christen- dom it is the privation of one of its greatest ornaments, the setting of tiae brightest star in the western hemisphere." He has indeed gone from us, beneath the horizon. Yet we rejoice to think, in a far better country he now shines on high, amid the galaxy that have, in a splendid succession age after age, arisen to give light upon the earth, — have here revolved in their respective orbits, — and, disappearing then from mortal eyes, have been added to the constella- tion of the redeemed, — the glorious company Of the Apos- tles, the goodly fellowship of the Prophets, the noble army of Martyrs, and the general assembly of the first-born which are written in heaven. He now mingles bis pure beams with theirs. Micat inter omnes. But he has left behind him lucid traces of his path, that merit our careful study. From the contemplation we may derive much to interest our uaderstandings, to direct and ^emoir of Bishop Hohart. cxxi IMHIlaMIIMMiaiiaBaflalBMriMHiMltHIKiHiiMl^^ animate our efforts in the cause of truth, and to warm our hearts with love to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. In language which the Christian Observer has so elo- quently applied to him, we " cordially welcome the hope of seeing his name inscribed amongst the Cranmers, and Jewels, and Hookers, of the American Church, as we humbly trust that oUr own with his may be inscribed in one higher than any earthly record, — even in the Lamb's book of life for ever and ever !" NOTE. For the satisfaction of such readers as may wish to learn from what sources the chief facts in the preceding pages have been derived, the following references are furnished. Chapter I. The Life of Peter Hobart, and other paits of Mather's Magnalia, vol. i. ; Winthrop's Journal, vol. i. ; Tudor's Life of James Otis, the Appendix ; Lincoln's History of the Town of Hingham ; Ed- Wards' Life of David Brainerd, chap. i. ; Trambull's History of Con- necticut, vol. ii. ; Allen's Biographical Dictionary, article Noah Hobart ; Wood's Sketch of the First Settlement of Long-Island ; Chandler's Life ef Samuel Johnson, D. D. ; Holmes' Annals of America, vol. ii. ; Obi- tuary Notice of the Hon. John Sloss Hobart, in the New-York Spec- tator, Feb. 5th, 1805, — and the Tablet to his memory, in the New-York City Hall ; Dr. Rash's Obituary Notice of Mrs. Rebecca Smith ; — manuscript letters from the Hon. Aaron Hobart, of Massachusetts, communicated by the Hon. Solomon Lincoln, jun., of Hingham, Mas- sachusetts, and by WiUiam H. Hobart, M. D., of New-York; memo- randa from the MSS. of the Rev. Dr. Ezra Stiles, by the Rev. Dr.^ Holmes, of Cambridge, communicated by the Rev. Calvin E. Stowe, of Boston, Massachusetts ; copies from manuscripts of Mrs. Rebecca Smith, communicated by Dayton Hobart, Esq., of New-York; — letters from Bishop White, of Pennsylvania ; the Hon. Solomon Lincoln, jun. ; Mr. Robert Smith, jun., of Philadelphia; and Nathaniel P. Hobart, Esq., of Pottstown, Pennsylvania. ChapterH. Historical Sketch ofthe College of New-Jersey, by Ashbel Green, D. D. ; Catalogue ofthe College of New-Jersey, 1830; — ^letters received from John C. Otto, M. D., of Philadelphia; Professor Mae- lean, of Princeton; Mr. Robert Smith, sen., of Philadelphia. ; the Rev. Dr. Caldwell, President of the University of North-Carolina ; Bishop White ; and Mr. Robert Smith, jun. Chapter HI. Journals ofthe General Conventions ofthe Protestant Episcopal Church ; Bishop White's Memoirs of the Protestant Episcopal NOTE. CXxiil Church ; Chandler's Life of Johnson, the Appendix ; Journals of the Conventions of the Church in the State of New- York ; — letters from the Rev. Mr. Hobart to the Vestry of Christ Church, New- Brunswick, «nd a letter from Bishop White to the Rev. Dr. Beach, communicated fcy Bishop Croes, of New-Jersey ; extracts from the Records of St. Mark's Church, New-York, furnished by Mr. John M. Catlin; the Records of Trinity Church, New-York ; memorEmda concerning tlie printed works of Bishop Hobart, by his publishers, and partictilarly by Mr. Thomas N. Stanford; — ^letters received from Bishop' White, of Pennsylvania; Bishop Croes, of New- Jersey; the Rev. George Sheets, of Philadelphia county, Pennsylvania ; Mr. Stanford and Messrs. Swords, ot New-York. Chapter IV. The Life of Archbishop Seeker, with a Defence of his i,etter to Mr. Walpole on American Bishops,^and the Appendix to the American edition ; Free examination of the Critical Commentary on Archbishop Seeker's Letter, &c., with an Appendix, containing Bishop Sherlock's Memorial to the King in Council, relating to Ecclesiastical Government in hisMajesty 's Dominions in America; the Modern Univer- sal History, vol. xxxix., Canada ; Cranz's History of the United Brethren ; Holmes' History of the United Brethren, vol. i. ; the Rev. Dr. Chandler's Appeal to the Public in behalf of the Church of England in America, his Appeal Defended, and his Appeal farther Defended ; the Address from the Clergy of New- York and New-Jersey to the Episcopalians in Virginia; an essay on the EiForts to obtain the Episcopate before the Revolution, published in the Protestant Episcopalian, vol. i. ; Journals of the General Conventions of the Protestant Episcopal Church, and of the Conventions of the Church in the State of New- York ; Bishop White's Memoirs of the Church; Bishop Hobart's Funeral Address on the Death of Bishop Moore, of New-York ; Catalogue of Columbia College, New- York ; Bishop White's Sermon at the Consecration of Bishop Moore, of New- York, and his Address at the Consecration of Bishops Hobart and Gris- wold ; the Churchman's Magazine, vol. ii. No. 3, 1814, Supplement ; a collection of the printed documents relating to the General Theological Seminary of the Church ; Swords' Christian Journal ;— manuscripf documents concerning the history of the first Bishop of New- York, communicated by Cad wallader D. Colden, Esq.; Records of Trinity Church ; letters from Bishop Hobart when in Europe, and from the Rev, H. H. Norris) of London, communicated by Mr. Stanford; CX3UV NOTE. memprajida fomidied by Mrs. Hobart, and by William H. Hobart, M. D. ; letters from Bishop Hobart asd meznoranda, communicated by Mr. Daniel B. Dash and lady, of New-York, who were for several moulJiB a sphere unpolluted by its, vices, uncontaminated by its allurements, unruffled by its agitations, and while duly appreciating and enjoying- its means of happiness, ever mainly .ijsitent on. the far. more exceeding felicity, which reigns in brighter realms beyond 1 ■,,Sucb piety, brethren, seemed,.ahnost, personified, in the holy prelate whose remains are soon to find a resting-place beneath the altar of his God. And very .interesting is it, that one who so fully embraced the scriptural view of the value of the ordinance, to the solemnities of which that altar i^ dedicated, and of its sister institutions .in the Christian Church, should tjiere sleep in the Ijope of being preserved by the power of, God, u^ito everlasting life. .Forliis was tl^a,t true, primitjye, evangelical piety,, Viyapja, bjiiljding all on the one only foundation of Jesus Christy and him cruel- fied, aiid drawing all its hope of spiritual ability from the unmerited grace of God, dedicates to hjs glory the moral agency which is his gift, by seeking, in all appointed ways, the influences of that grace, and improving them by faith- fully stirring up the gift of God within — ^the ability which Cometh only, of him. Such a pattern of piety has been removed from before our eyes. Great was our privilege in haying been so long permitted' to rejoice in his light. And blessed be the sweet remembrance of the just ! even the grave c'annot extinguish that light. Oh ! no : while ever the mind which .truly loved to contemplate it, and truly rejoiced in its holy, happy in- iiue;}ce, retains the power of just and virtuous appreciation, its beams will still linger, bright, cheering, and ministering safe and holy guidance. , 10 The ije«. Dr. Onderden&'s Sermmi [Ser. 1. And if the privUefe was great, my brethren, of h^^fog, this light so long, before us, so was the attend3.njt rqsponsi-^ bility also great and, momentous. How has tjie priviJegg' been improved 1 How has the pattern been imitated 1 How has the rule been followed 1 Weep not f(jr him, ye carelg^s^. and impenitent, but weep for' yourselves, th^t. you have suffered such an example to pass from before your eyes, without having duly and faithfully improved it. It was ^, gift of God. You have set it at nought. Right is the hom- age which you love to pay, in any degree^ to departed worth and texcellence ; but it comes not up to the full measure of true respect and gratitude ; it comes not up to the measure of duty to your God, and to the cause of virtue and religion ; it falls far short of safety to your own souls ; if it embraces not that evidence of just estimate of merit which is given ia walking in the same steps of holy living. Brethren, all who knew him saw .enough ofthat dear de- parted saint, to j ustify our view of him as indeed "a burning and a shining light." But there were a few peculiarly blessed in their opportunities of seeing and adt^iring , its brightness. Oh ! how lovely that splendour in which tks orb of day is often presented, at the very moment of Ms sinking from our view ! There was such a splendour on the eve of the departure of that life, whosei loss now fills our eyes with tears,, and our hearts with wo. It was given, to distant friends to see it.^ God Idess the friends, who, iit the remote place of his happy death, .ministered so kindly, so affsctionattely, so unweariedly, to the comfort of bis last • Bishop Habartdiedatt1ieresidenoeoftheIieT.nr.Rudd, in Aufturu, about 320 railea from New-York, beiaif, at the time, on an Episeopsl nsilation. br. l;^] The Rev. Dr. Onderdonk''s^ ISerimn. 11 inomehts.' The widow's blessing will rest upon them, and .the blessing of the fatherless. A bereft parish and dioce^ #ill have therti in perpetual remembrance. An affection- ately" and devotedly attached clergy will iever pray, God'e peace and blessing be: upon them y and let not their good deeds be blotted out of the book of his remembrance ! God Make all their bed in their sickness, and give them grace to die the death of this righteoiis man, and to have their last end like his ! They have, already, had a rich reward. It was theirs to see the consolation and support of Christian peaceand hope, and the glorious triumphs of Christian faith; when nature sinks, the world recedes, and the king of terrors stands in full view with awful menace. The lovely simpli- city 'which had marked the piety of this devoted prelate during life, forsook not that which shed its sweet influences over his dying hour. His expressions were brief, unaffected, and unadorned, but full of meaning. Referring to the tfi^gfatness of the sun, of which, in his characteristic fondness Ibr the works of nature, he begged that he might have a &Uer view, hie spoke in admifation of its beauties ; but it Vas the admiration of the Christian, Idokin^ up from Pro- vidence to grace. This is, incteed, delightful, but there is a *^ Sun of righteousness." This evinced his views- of the istrong' foutidatioB of all his hopes, and the only source of aH his joys. There is a Sun of righteousness. In His light he saw that only light which brought true comfort and re- freshment to his soul. And rejoicing in that ligiit, he was ena.bled to give evidence of the humble composure and se- renity of his mind. There were three favourite ejaculations often on his lips — God be merciful to me a sinner — God's will he doner— God be praised for all his mercies. God be merciful to me a sinner— the effectual ferVeht lli ThM^v. Dr. Onderdonf:^s_ Sermon: [Qer. I. prayer which was the bjpssed mean pf justificatian to thp humble and contrite publican. j God's will be.done — ^the devout ejacula^ipn.of our Divine Exemplar, in the days of .his suffering humanity. And .^t was attended with the devout prayer that he might not say this only because he must — because God's will must have its course; but. that he might feel it; that it might be .,the language, not of constraint, but pf his heart — of willing, cheerful resignation. God be prqised for all his mercies. If " the ruling passion," so also the ruling affections and dispositions^ are •' strong in death." All who knew our beloved Bishop, knew that the praises, of God were a favourite employment, to which his heart was ever attuned, and in which he was ever happy to be united with a band of Christian worship- pers. And now, that he saw the bright inheritance just before him, and that rest, and peace, and joy, were sooa to succeed his labours, his trijils, and his sufferings, he drew fresh strength from near approach to the communion of the just made perfect, and with his whole soul, blessed the Lord for all his mercies. At this trying moment, as ever, his religions views and feelings were built on the only sure and allowed foundation — faith in the doctrines of the Gospel. The corner-stone of them all, the doctrine of the Trinity, presented itself to his mind in all the rich fulness of grace, mercy, and truth. He found in It comfort and support which could come frora Ao other source. He clung to it, as that which, only, can minister to the wants of the dying Christian. He dwelt upon it as the most glorious, and most precious of God's revelations. When the Divine Persons were separately invoked in his behalf, " Oh!" he exclaimed, " in whSt ^er. I,] The Rev. Dr. OnAerdonk's SermoA. tS interesting relations does this doctrine rejiresent the Deify as standing to his people!" And his acquiescence in this great trtith, and the immense value which he set upon it, were far from being the operations of a weak, a delucied, and a superstitious mind. They were the homages of an intellect as high in order, and as rich in cultivation, a's perhaps ever fell to the lot of man. But high as were its natural powers, and extensive as was its cultivation, he knew and felt it to be but the intellect of man. He appreciated the obvious truth, that in the perfect intelligence of the Deity there must be a capacity infinitely greater "than in any human niind, and perfectly equal to the full apprehension of truths, however inexplicable and mysterious to us. He felt, too, that in the teaching of God's holy word, he was sure to be safe, and therefore received with meekness and gratitude all that it reveals.* " Since the above was delivered, farther most interesting particulars of the last illness of Bishop Hobart have been received from the Rev. Francis H . Cuming, who was his faithful and assiduous attendant. From this source the following particulars are added : — " When Bishop Hobart was suffering the most agonizing pain he exclaimed, ' Oh! this psin is distressing, yet what is it compared with what my Saviour endured ! I will not complain. I wiH not complain. God's will be done !' He often repeated the following declaration of the Psalmist, ' Like as a father pitieth his own children, even so is the Lord raierciful unto them that fear him, to them that love him ;' adding, at one time, as he repeated it, ' Oh! I do ; do I not love that gracious Being ? Will he not, then, pity me; me, his child ? God be praised for this pre- cious promise !' " The following is an aifecting expression of his deep humility and clear views of the salvation brought to view in the Gospel: ' God be merciful to me a sinner! What can I say more? I am a sinner,- I need God's mercy ; I can only throw myself on his mercy. God be merciful to me a sinner ! yes, a great sinner! Rut I have been redeemed by the blood of my Savionr ; I have been sanctified, I trust, by the divine Spirit ; 1 will, there- c 14 The Rev. Dr. Onde^rdonk's Sermon. [Ser. 1. With such faith, such devotion, and such piety, our revered father entered into his rest. He has gone, people of his charge, whither you must follow him ; and he will stand where you must meet him, at the- bar of impartial justice. What account can you then render of the fidelity with which you have waited on his ministrations, and the improvement which you have made of his faithful labours jn your behalf 1 Ask this question, each one seriously of his own conscience. Ask it, on bended knees, before your God. Ask it, with a full view of the momentous conse- quences which rest upon a faithful answer. For nearly thirty years he has laboured among you.* Many blessed fore, hope that I shall not be denied the lowest seat in the kingdom of heaven.' Again he asked, ' I» there mercy for the cAte/'of sinners!' and thanked God for the assurances of this given by the apostle. Great was his solicitude that the doctrines of the cross should be faithfully exhibited by his bereaved clergy. To one of them he said, with a solemn earnestness^ ' Be sure, that in all your preaching, the doctrines of the cross be in- troduced — JVo preaching ia good for any thing luithmit these' " His views of prayer are strikingly evinced in the following expres- sions : ' Pray for me — pray that my own prayers may be heard. — Oh ! not, however, because of my importunities, or because there is any wor- thiness in me, or them ; but because of the intinite merits of Jesus, the fiivine Intercessor.' ' You must all commend me, in your prayers, Uj God's mercy. You are attending to my body— forget not I have a soul to be saved— pray for my soul.' He often spoke of heaven, and once remarked, with emphasis, ' He that would be most exalted in that world, must now most humble himself, and bend himself lowest before the cross.' He often exclaimed, ' I wish to talk of God and salvation. I wish to die vith the name of God in my mouth;' but then, he added, * not God without the Saviour. Christ is all — Gojl over all.' When he found him- self fast sinking, he exclaimed, ' I die at peace with all men;' adding the assurance that his descent into the tomb was cheered by the bright beams of the Gospel, and his spirit sustained by the cross of his Redeemer." * Bishop Hobart was born in Philadelphia, September 14^ 17"5. He Ser. l.J The Rev. Dr. OnderdonK' s Sermon. 15 evidences of his successful labour have been afforded. How many shall be added to the happy number, from among those who cannot forget, while life will last, how zealously, affectionately, and industriously, he sought their spiritual and eternal welfare 1. For nearly two thirds of the period of our beloved father's ministry, he was, my reverend brethren of this diocese, over us in the Lord ; and we all are witnesses with what fidelity he fulfilled the weighty trusts of his high office j what a glorious pattern of earnestness and devotion he set before us ; how well he knew, and how zealously he advo- cated and vindicated, the principles of our holy Church ; ^ and how successfiiUy he pursued, in her behalf, what his well-informed and well-regulated judgment satisfied him was the policy the most accordant with her interests, and with the interests of the ever-blessed Gospel, on whose was orduined Deacon, in tliat city, by the Right Rev.Bishop White, 1799. He officiated, for a time, in Trinity Churah, Oxford, and All Saints', Lower Dublin, Pennsylvania j and afterwards in Christ Church, New- Brunswick, New-Jersey. He took charge of St, George's Church, Hempstead, Long-Island, in the year 1800; and in the latter part of the same year removed to this city, as Assistant Minister of Trinity Church. He was ordained Priest in that Church by the Right Rev. Bishop Pro- voost, in the same year. In 1807 he received the degree of D. D. from Union College, Schenectady. At a special Convention of this diocese, in May, 1811, called by the late Right Rev.Bishop Moore, in consequence of his inability to continue in full charge of the diocese. Dr. Hobart was elected Assistant Bishop, and was consecrated, in the same month, in Trinity Church, in this city, by the Right Rev. Bishop White, of Penn- sylvania! the Right Rev. Bishop Provoost, residing in New- York, and the Right Rev.Bishop Jarvis, of Connecticut, being present and assisting. On the retiring of the late Rev. Dr. Beach, in the fall of 1813, he became the Assistant Rector of Trinity Church. On the death of Bishop Moore, in February, 1816, Bishop Hobart became the Diocesan, and the Rector Qf Trinity Church. 1^ TheRev.JJi^r.unaeraonlc'slSermon. \iSfix.JL account he loved her so much, cherished her so faithfully, d^efended her so valiantly,, and laboured so indu^riously in her cause. Oh ! we have had privileges and blessings ia our connexion with our spiritual father of the choicest and most elevated character. Forget we not, therefore, that we have correspondent weighty obligations Testing upon us. Be not ouy's the guilt of godly counsels neglected, and a gpdly example unfoUowed. Under the softening and chast- ening influence of the affliction which now fills our hearts, it will be well to renew our vows of ministerial duty, and to devote ourselves, with fresh vigour, to the work whereunto we have been called. Melancholy is the reflection, that, besides our venerated father, six of oiu- brethren of this diocese* have been called away since, less than a year ago, we assembled in our ecclesiastical convention.u The hoeiry head, the mature in years, and the almost youthful fellow servant at the altar, have been taken from us. We arc spared ; but God only knows how long we shall be. What shall I say of this our bereft diocese? Brethreij, it is impossible for words to express what we of the diocese most acutely feel. The praise of our late head is in every church ; and churchmen of other dioceses, and the religious pf every name, give us their tenderest condolence, because they feel and know that a greater loss could hardly have been sustained by a religious body. I might speak of an • The Rev. William Harris, D. D., President of Cdumbia College, New-York ; the Rev. Isaac Wilkins, U. D., Rector of St. Peter's Cliurch, Westchester; the Rev. Daniel M 'Donald, D. D., Professor In Geaeva Coll^ie; the Rev. John Scllou ; tlic Rev. William Thompson, Rector of Christ Charch, Rye ; and tlte Rev. Edmund D. Griffin, Deacon,, supply- ing the place of the absent Professor of Rhetoric and Belles Uettres in Columbia College. Set. 1.] The Rev. Dr. Onderdonk's Sermon. 17 activity and of labours almost beyond the ordinary strength of man. I might speak of an energy, a quickness, a devo- tion, of mental powers, perhaps without a parallel. I might refer to the promptness with which the calls of duty were ever answered, at the most disinterested sacrifice of comfort, of feeling, and of the ten thousand considerations which would have stood in the way of ordinary men. I might tell of the nearly threefold increase of the diocese which has blessed the labours of him who there sleeps in silence. I might call on the zealous missionary, or the faithful parish priest, to bear testimony how his spiritual father has encou- raged, aided, and co-operated with him in his labours ; how he has cheered him, when ready to despond ; what excellent counsel he has given him in difficulties; and how he has strengthened his hands, when he began to yield to the many discouragements which lie in the way of the minister of the Gospel. But, brethren, why should I do this? Your hearts anticipate all I have to say, and your memories crowd proof after proof on your minds. Oh ! let us be duly thankful for the rich blessing we have enjoyed, and humbly pray, and faithfully strive, that it may not be lost ; but tha.t the influence of principles so correct, a policy so sound, and labours so abundant, may be maintained and strengthened, as a permanent blessing to our diocese. But this diocese is far from being alone concerned in our bereavment. A voice is hushed which was never raised in the general councils of our Church, without commanding the respect and influence to which it was every way entitled. The cause of pure religion has been deprived of one of its most able and enlightened advocates asd supporters. Virtue and morality lament that diligent teaching and a uniform example, of inestimable value to their interests, are no more. C2 18 The Rev. Dr. OnderdmVi Sermon. [Ser. 1. Literature and science have bid a long adieu to one of their most faithful and judicious friends. And every interest connected with human welfare, and the elevation of the human character, droops, in melancholy and in mourning, over the ashes of one who well knew how they might best be promoted, and faithfully and indefat^ably laboured to promote them, :''■', i Over those venerated ashes, let devout Christians kneel, and meekly^ and resignedly exclaiming " God's wiU be done," pray devoutly that his grace may cause the aflBiction of this day of sadness to work for us spiritual good here, and a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, in those happy regions where all tears will be wiped from all eyes, where there will be no more sorrow, sickness, or death,^ and where the righteoos will enjoy perpetual rest and feli<<- cify. A SERIHOX, PREACHED IN TRINITY CHURCH, AND ST. FAVl's ANB ST. jqhn's chapels, NEW-YOHK, September, 1830, ON THE DEATH OF THE RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. p. REV. WILLIAM BERRIAN, D. D. An Asristant Mimster of Trinity Church iS£RMOX U. THE REV. DR. BERRIAN's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. ROMANS xi. 33. How unsearchable are Jiis jvdgments, and his ways pait finding out ! When the melancholy event which now occupies all our thoughts was broken to me, and the first burst of feeling was over, this passage rushed upon my mind, mingling wonder and awe with agitation and grief. The agents, by which God carries on his plans in the improvement and salvation of his creatures, very often appear in our eyes so important to the success and accomplishment of the work, that we not only hope, but seem to look for the prolongation of their days till they have reached the utmost limit of their usefulness. We are surprised that those who are pre- eminently fitted, by their talents, piety, and worth, to adorn and bless the world, and to promote the glory of God, should be cut off in the midst of their labours ; whilst so many who are sluggish, inactive, and unfruitful, are still left in the vineyard of the Lord. This mysterious part of the arrangements of Providence often leads us to exclaim, JIoio unsearchable are his judgments, and hia ways past 32 The Rev. JJr. Berrian's Sermon, [Ser. 2. finding out ! Never has the sentiment been impressed more strongly on my mind, than at this time. Within the brief space of a few weeks, a youthful minister of the sanctuary,* whose cultivated mind was like the polished shaft of the temple, and whose varied talents promised to be an orna-. ment and treasure to the Church of God, was suddenly taken from us, to be received, as we trust, in the Church of the First-born, and to render " blessing and honour unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." He seemed only to have lived in preparation for his work, and when all were looking for the fruits of his labours, their hopes were blighted for ever. And now another of the most favoured servants of God is taken hence, who had long been engaged in his Master's work ; who united the highest human talents with the fervent zeal of an apostle, and consecrated all his gifts to the service of Him who gaye them ; who, if we were to judge of his labours by the common standard of usefulness, had filled up the measure of many lives, and the very remnant of whose days would have been a greater blessing to the Church than the whole existence of ordinary men. Now, indeed, we see through a glass darkly, and cannot com- prehend these things. But though they may confound our judgment, they do not shake our faith. The Author and Giver of life knows best when it should be taken away ; and when we come to see things face to face, we shall undoubtedly perceive his wisdom and goodness as clearly displayed in the most mysterious of his judgments, as in the plainest nianifestations of his mercy and love. While our hearts then are pierced with grief, let them also be * Tbe Rev. Edmand O. Griffin- S*r. 2.J IRe Jiev. jur. joerrians otTTmm. 23! bowed down in humble submission to his will. Right deai^ in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints, and their memory is blessed among men. I shall indulge my own fond feelings, while at the same time I shall giatify yours, by recalling the talents, the virtues, the piety, and worth, which gave our dear and venerated friend such claims on our admiration and love. At a very early age he showed that readiness in the ac- quisition of knowledge which distinguished him so much through the whole course of his life, and without the plodding diligence and patient application of many others, he gradu- ated with the highest honour of his classi His attention then, was first turned to a mercantile life. But he found that this pursuit was uncongenial, to his taste and habits, and soon returned to that seat of learning where he had imbibed his own love of letters, and there spent two years in the instruction of others. There is one incident in this early period, which will strikingly illustrate a peculiarity that marked him in after life — ^the intense interest which he took in every thing in which he was engaged.. He was a member in his youth of a distinguished literaiy society, and so eagerly did he apply himself to the objects and plans of this institution, that some years after he had attended its meetings, when the records of it were destroyed by fire, he was able from memory to furnish its members, substantially and almost literally, with a complete copy of their constitu- tion and laws. And, here, perhaps, it may not be unintei'esting to relate a circumstance of our departed friend, which I have just heard from one, to whose recollection it was brought by a singular coincidence. More than thirty years ago, a person in whose family he had been very intimate, wrote of him to 24 The Rev. Dr. Berrian's Sermmi. [Sen IS the mother of his bereaved partner in terms of the highest Commendation, and declared with a kind of prophetic spirit^ that he would be a burning and -a shining light in the Church of God^ • The prediction was amply fulfilled ; and it is not a little remarkable that the words were the same which foretold his illustrious career, as those which were chosen by the speaker, without his knowledge of this cir- cumstance, for the theme of his eulogium at his burial. A short time after his entrance into the minisfa-y, he had an opportunity of being settled in St. Mark's Church; in this city. But such was his fondness for the peaceful enjoyments of rural life,' which amidst all the active engagiements of his subsequent years he never lost, that he preferred the humble settlement at Hempstead. What motives led him to chainge his plan, and afterwards accept an appointment- in this Church of which he was so long a faithful minister, are un- certain ; but perhaps a reasonable and humble persuasion that his powers fitted him for a larger sphere of action, and that it was his duty to employ them for the greatest glory of the Giver. From that time, my brethren, he was our own, till this sad moment when God has taken him to himself. Many of us are old enough to remember with what impassioned bursts of youthful eloquence he stirred up the affections of his hearers, with what fervour and unction he spoke of divine things, with what an elevation of soul he lifted us up with him to heaven. The richi full, and varied tones of his voice< the unrestrained tenderness of his sentiments express- ed with the utmost pathos, the freedom and severity of his expostulations and rebukes, the evangelical, practical cha- racter of all his discourses, made that an interesting period of his ministry, to all who had the happiness of hearing him* Ser. a.J Ttie iiev. ur. jaemans sermon. 25 As he advanced in, life, from the natural sobering of the mind and the severer exercise of the judgment, some of these charms were in a measure diminished. But still what ^vas lost in one respect was repaid in another. He brought his improved and vigorous powers to the elucidation of scriptural truth, settmg it in as clear a light as a thorough knowledge of theology and a lucid intellect could place it, and still he never valued himself so much on the successful treatment of this part of his subject, as to neglect that practical improvement of it which he considered, after all, the great end of preaching. He felt a peculiar solicitude on this point, and never ceased to impress the importance of it upon his clergy. Very often, however, he chose the simplest topics for the mere improvement of the heart, and enforced them with all that earnestness a,nd fervour which showed that his own was deeply concerned. He constantly kept in view the great leading doctrines of the Gospel of Christ, holding them out conspicuously in every discourse, and representing the Christian life only in connexion with the principles of Christian faith. At times, when there was any special reason for excitement, he united all the dignity and force of manly eloquence with the simplicity and ten- derness which gave such a charm to his discourses in earlier years. And in one respect he surpassed all men whom I have ever heard. Whatever might be the languor of his body, which was often oppressed by disease, or the state of his spirits, which were still more frequently weighed down by care, he was almost always able to rouse himself from his heaviness, to throw off his anxieties and troubles, and to rise to that degree of vehemence and passion, which, was suitable to the solemnity and importance of the sacred truths which he was enforcing. D 26 The Rev. Dr. Berrian's Sermon. [Bet. 21 But the powers of his mind, though very advantageously displayed in the public exercises of his ministry, appeared still mofe remarkable in his intercourse with mankind, and in the practical business of his office, and of life in general. Here his habit of acting on general principles, and of carry- ing them out to their ti*ue and legitimate consequences, his keen and ready detection of any departure from these prin- ciples, the happy illustration of his arguments, the fertility of his invention, the abundance of his resources, gave him an immense superiority over men of loose reasoning and un- settled minds. The soundness of his thoughts, whether in public debate or private conversation, was aided by the case and fluency of his expression, and no one lost any of the force of his arguments by the want of clearness and pre- cision in his language. And the very occasions which would have confounded ordinary men and embarrassed theB" efforts, seemed always to rouse his energies to a higher pitch, and to make him rise above himself^ This fitness for the practical business of life, which his enlarged intercourse with the world, from the duties of his Episcopal office and his connexion with many literary and religious institutions, rendered every day more striking, increased his ascendancy over the minds of men. We should not notice this influence, except that it was all ex' erted for the interests of true religion and virtue, and for the promotion of sound learning in connexion with faith emd piety. And hete let me remark, that he was thought by many to be an ambitious man, who mingled too much of human pride with the high and holy duties of his calling. He was ambitious, but his ambition was the noble and insatiable desire of doing good* In the pursuit of this object he set ger. 3.] The Rev. Dr. Berrian's Sermon, 27 no limit t6 his plans ; in defending and propagating the truth he cared not whose path he crossed ; in guarding the Church against its outward enemies and secret foes, he was thankful for any superiority which God had given him, as he devoutly believed it redounded to his glory. But for his own sake, whether for present reputation or posthumous fame, as unconnected with the promotion of the temporal and eternal happiness of men, he was not ambitious. He stooped to the humblest duties of his (Sailing with as much pleasure as he engaged in the most exalted. One of the latest and most admirable of the works upoa which he bestowed the attention of his powerful mind, was a simple catechism for children, and it was compiled witii so much judgment, arranged with so much order, expressed with so much clearness, and made so agreeable in every part to scriptural truth, that I never teach the young out of it without feeling instructed i&yself. He composed one book, which, without adding to his literary reputation, will ever be the commendation of his piety, that has furnished thousands with holy thoughts and devout ejaculations at the altar, and that will continue perhaps to excite the fervour of Christian souls, when works of more ambitious pretensapns are forgotten. The Festivals and Fasts, that excellent expositor of the institutions of the Church and summary of Christian doctrine, the Christian's Manual, the Clergyman's Companion, the Commentary on the BiWe, were all pre- pared with much labour and care, and without any view to the reputation of authorship or pecuniary reward; In the revision, improvement, and enlargement of these works, he kept a single eye to the welfare of the Church, the promotion of piety, and the advancement of sound doctrine among men. The oi)Iy (wiginal work of any extent in 28 The Rev. Dr. Berrian's Sermon. [Set. 2. which he was ever engage?, his "Apology for Primitive Order," ' together with, all his other controversial pieces j were written with the simple view of defending the truth against the misrepresentations of error. If the time which he spent in these unostentatious hut useful labours had been employed with more selfish and ambitious ends, il might have gained for him an enviable pre-eminence among literary men. What a striking proof of his bumility and faith ! To all his other remarkable qualifications our revered Bishop added a zeal which was never quenched, an ih^ dustry which never tired, an activity which the hand of death alone could arrest. It was remarkable to observe, amidst the weightier duties of his Episcopal office, what a deep interest he felt in the humble concerns of his parochial charge. He was always considering in what way its pros- perity might bd promoted; he mourned over the indifference of the lukewarm, and rejoiced at every indication among its members of vital godliness and enlightened zeal. And here, to show with what minute concern he entered into the spiritual affairs of his people, I trust that I may be permitted to introduce a circumstance in relation to myself. In my early youth, at a time when I was anxiously inquiring aftier those things which belong to mypeaci, I was a stranger in the' Church, unacquainted with any clergyman, and was wandering as it were like a sheep without a shepherd. Much of my time was occupied in religious reading; but, from the want of a guide to direct me, my mind was distracted and my labour in some measure lost, I had a passionate admi'< ration of the preaching of our departed friend ; I hid h'eard of his kind-heartedness, and the affectionate interest which he took in the spiritual concerns of his people. I therefore Ser. »4.;j 'i'tlt nev, ur. asernans aermun. 29 Wrote him an anoaymous letter, simply stating the subject of my anxiety, and requesting him to furnish me with somfe directions for a profitable course of religious reading. My letter was immediately and fully answered, in the most de- lightful spirit of Christian piety ; my request was complied with ; he sought me out, through a clue, of which at the time I was ignorant ; treated me as a companion and familiar friend : changed the whole plan of ray life ; encouraged me to overcome, by private application, the disadvantages of my early education ; facilitated my entrance into college; directed my preparation for the ministry; favoured my views with all the influence of his private character and public station, till I was brought into the close and endearing con- nexion with him in this parish, which death at length has severed. This, though a striking, was not a solitary instance of his concern for the young, but rather an illustration of that pious and aflfectionate zeal which many besides me have received at his hands. But this zeal was shown in every way, hy his faithfuland laborious preaching, by his fostering care of our Sunday schools, by his minute attention to the affairs of all our so- cieties, and his happiness at o very evidence of their success, by his unceasing watchfulness over the diocese eommitteid to his care, and his constant anxiety for the peace and prosperity of the Church at large. He was almost a$ thw:oagldy acquainted with the circumstances of every parish in the state as with the condition of his own, and his restless and active mind was continually craployod in promoting their temporal a-nd spiritual good. His industry was almost without a parallel ; and I think that I shall hardly be accused ftf exaggeration in expressing my own opinion, that perhaps no bishop, of any age or nation, sint;e the time of the apostles, Da 30 The Rev. Ur.JSerrian's sermon. Lser. ». has surpassed him in zeal, activity, diligence, and the suc- cess of his labours. And indeed, melancholy as was his separation from bis family and so many of his dearest friends at the time of his death, yet it would seem as if God in his providence had so ordered it that he should die in the discharge of his duty» as a beautiful and appropriate close to a life which had beea entirely spent in his service. When we consider the rare union of those qualities which pre-eminently fitted him for the • responsible duties' of that exalted station which he so long and advantageously filled — when we consider his rational, but simple^ fervent, unafifected piety, the purity of his life, the warmth and tenderness of his social affections, the frankness and generosity of his nature, which atoned for. all his infirmities and fauhsf and all the Virtues and graces which made him so dear to us in- dividually and the whole Church of God — we cannot help lamenting, in the bitterness of our hearts, our irreparable loss. Oh may we never forget the instructions which he has given us, his holy counsels, his tender expostulations, his godly reproofs ! May every good feeling, and every devout affection, which he at any time may have been the means of exciting in us, be revived in all its force, that we may have reason to bless his ministry, and he to look upoit us as the crown of his rejoicing ! But, severe as the afiliction is which we now lament, to the diocese, to the parish, to his friends in general, how jaach more severe is it to his bereaved and desolate family ! The light and glory of that house is extinguished. The long and uninterrupted happiness of that peaceful, affection- ate, and joyful circle is broken up. But no^new light and comfort will come to them from above. The Spirit of God, Sei> «-j ^„nj ^^.. — — . 31 in sanctifying their affliction, will give them, we trust and pray, that peace which the world cannot give, and " that joy which no man can take from them." The holy life and calm and blessed death of their departed friend, will make them more anxious so to live, as that they also may die in the Lord. And while these mercies of the God of all consolation will sooth and comfort them in their sorrows, they will also have the heartfelt sympathies and ferveat prayers of thousands who are afflicted with them. ij^rounds of the Christian's Submission imder Affietiatt, A ISERMOX, PREACBED IN TRINITY eHURCH, AND ST. PAUl's AND ST. John's chapels, new-york, September, 1830, ON THE DEATH OF THE RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. D. KEV. BENJAMIN T. ONDERDONK, D. D. An Assistant Minister of THnity Church. SERMOX III. THE REV. DR. ONDERDONk's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 1 SAMUEL iii. 18. ttis ike Lord: let Mm do what seemetA him good. The doctrine of an over-ruling Providence, ordering and controlling all things, is one of those great truths which are supported by the united testimony of all mankind, in all ages and nations. It is essentially connected with human happiness, and lies at the foundation of social welfare. Among its best characteristics, and most valuable influences, is to be ranked the comfort which it imparts, in all the troubles and trials of our mortal pilgrimage. In this view of it, brethren, my mind rests upon it, and your hearts cling to it, at this period of sorrow and of sadness. The hand of God has indeed pressed us sorely. Our father, our guide, our friend, our comforter, has been taken from us. The voice which we had so long been wont to hear from this sacred place, in pastoral instruction, in kind admonition, in lucid exhibition of the truths of the Gospel, in powerful appeals in behalf of religion and morality, in terror to the wicked, and in encouragement to the good, is hushed in the silence of the grave. He is no more, who, witli so powerful 36 T/i,e Rev. Dr. Onderdonk^s Sermon. |!Ser. B. and interesting an effect, led your devotions in tliis house of God, bore you along with him in our unrivalled serviees ef prayer and praise, anjl set before you so uniform and illustrious a pattern of worshipping in spirit and in truth. The able expositor of Christian truth and duty, to whom you were wont to have recourse in spiritual doubts and difficulties, and in whose instructions you have found so much satisfaction, and such suflScient guidance, has beei» taken from you. The messenger of heaven's consolation has been removed, who was with you in affliction, directed you to the only source of true comfort, and thence drew beams of light to cheer, animate, and support you ; and when you were stretched on the bed of sickness, was the present and ready minister of peace, support, and holy joy j and when your hearts sank within you, in bidduig a la!$ farewell to objects of affection, took you to the refuge of the miserable, and there gave you blest experience of the cheering light which flows from the faith and hopes of the Gosipel. He who has reclaimed the wanderer, confirmed the wavering, encouraged the sincere, strengthened the weak, and urged all onward in the way that leadeth unto life,, is no more. That ministry under which so many of you have rejoiced, and; many, I trust, have found the blessed, means of increasing with the increase of God, from the act of initiation into his holy Church, through all the appointed means of the grace and instruction of the Gospel, is now closed in death. For these things, bretliren, days of sorrow, of sadness, and of mourning, have been allotted to us. An astounding providence has visited us. We stand'amazed at the change that has come over us, so sudden, so unexpected, and fraught with such a complication of disappointment, and of Ser. 3.] The^ev.Dr. Onderdonk^s Serfnon. 37 tfo. In whatever direction we turn our eyes, we see new cause of grief. In every social and religious department we see the sad inddx of bereavement and affliction. But, brethren, it becomes not Christians — ^though they may weep— though they must weep — to sorrow as those who have no hope. We have a hope, an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast. It is,derived from the truth, In which the text Is confirmed by every rational and scrip- tural view of Divine Providence, that it is tke Lord who Orders and controls ~all afflictive dispensations ; aiid that it, therefore, behoves us to say, in sincere and humble resigna- tion, " Let him do what seemeth him good." That it is the Lord, is sufficient ground for submission and resignation. For the Lord is that great Being whose will is the law of the universe, and whose power compels all things to work according to "that will. And what are wie, that we should say nay to any of his ordainings, or raise the least objection to what he thinks fit? The crea- tures of his hand, totally dependent upon him, and eptirely at his disposal, nought beseems us, but to lay our hand upon our mouth, and in the one consideration, it is the Jjord, recognise a strong and effectnal reason for humble and uncomplaining silence. But although his, indeed, is the will to which all thingIS must bow, and the power which can compel subjection ; yet, blessed be his holy name ! while, on these accounts, we must Submit, he has revealed himself to us in characters, and as possessing attributes ^whicb should render our submission toilUng, and even cheerful. He has taught us that he does MOt willingly afflict or grieve us, but- punishes us for our own good. He has told ■ s that whom he loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. He has given E '$$ Tlte Ren. Dr. Unaeijaoaks jsi^rmm. L''^'^' US thaf view of jfe aiBictivt Yisifatipig^ of the ppe^ejjt time* which roiakes them ^copdycive tp a fei: ipore expeedijig 3»(| eternal vK^glit pf glor.y. 'Stv^a.wmh trilfulatio^, he ha* declared to be (^ path tiucpi^h whtph we may ftBter ipto thp IfiDgdojn of |l^vefl, , .„ ., ,^ JUfih spwces tjjes^flfcanj&j^jundpr affliction, a»d strong and ^nl&^i^ re^Ofl? for pgst chppj^^ljy, as well as resign- edly, ejccjaiaiing, It.i?,t!?e fcprdi Ipt^iim do wjifl,t spie«ap|}i bjmgopd. .. ,^. , ,^, One of the stroiigest ground* pf Christ ja» 60«soI^tsi,w ujidpr aptiptipn, '% the VipWi pf "ts pojuie^ipja vitb the kind- ness and love of God, which SPpA- ever our greatest good, i? , that affiictigns ate a sahiiary j>(iri . of moral 4Upipline. Thp ppw§r&4 t.e.Ddpjif:y of pjir naWre to be Jed away by pbjects p| jgr.atiiicatipn and ejxjoywent^ nptil they gain § gtrppg.¥,r, hpljj, a?td a more ejtt^nsivp in^usflcp, than rjght Jpaspjj, «)• Religion? principlej^ep? to bp either proper of safe^' irnvist b„e t^d pbVipus tp every reflecting person, A- check is gftpji j-p(}uired< apd a flof^'ked and ppwprfuj pn.p, to p/eve^t tJxe mo?t spjrjops jcPflse^uPBce^i Such is our nature, thftt jne are not ^d,a^ted tp a ^t^te pf sjninterru^ed enjoyment. jiVlany plT thp hwfbtest and mp^t ejficiPnt virt4je_s of tlie hi> man character are elicited and strengthened in the school pf gtdy^sjfv. ^he pxppjrienice which affliction impart? i§ often fyaught with the mpst valuable consecjyences. What thg Xiprd dpeSf then, by bringing distress and sprrow uppn i|Sf is ^ mean pf strpn^ening pur virtues, elevating pur moral i^haractf r> l^t^d thus ei^^ntijally improving ovir statP and «pnditipn« And besides arguments drawn from reasoning on the kflpwn principles of our nature, thi? sure word of revelifiion joints ppt ^peci^l promise^ which invest afflictions with a Ser. 3.] The Rev. Dr. Oneterdonle's aermmt. S^ hely cifiaractet. The meekness, resignation, and submis- sion, with which they are required to be borne, are grace* peculiarly dear to our heavenly Parentj and drawing those ■Who cherish them into a near and holy connexion with him. They are mediums of a communion with the Father of spirits, whence spring joy, to diffuse light, even in the darkest gloom of sorrow, sti-etagth to bear j)s up under the heaviest weight of wo, courage to meet the severest strokes of ill, and the abiding, soothing influence of Christian faith and hope. In that weaning from the world, which is one of the happiest results of affliction, and which furnishes an escape from the most alarming dangers, in reference to both our well-being here, and our hopes of hereafter, there are open- ed sources of those purest of all delights which flow from the Affections and exercises of Christian devotion— ^thAt devo- tion which opens heaven, reveals the fkce of God in all the loveliness of divine complacency and parental tenderness, and draws from the exhaustless source of light, and life, and peace, a joy which the world can neither give nor take ^way. O ! how elevated the character of the meekly suf- fering Christian, when his afilictions bring him to the mercy- seat, humble him there under the mighty hand of God, and there lead him to pour out his soul in holy communings with his heavenly Parent I Rising above the pressure of his own sufferings, his mind dwells on those vicarious sufferings of the Redeemer, vdiich minister access to the throne of grace and goodness ; and they, seen by faith, in all the richness df their atoning merits and efficacy, bring comfort to his soul. He finds that it is good for him to have been in trouble, and experiences, in the sanctifying grace of God, wore real enjoyment than in all that the world calls pleasure. . 40,. T^ Rev. Vt. Underdonk's Sermcrn. \pet. 3. And who, of us, brethren, feels not that affliction is no tUore than hj$' deserts ? Who of us can hesitate for a mToment, in a view of his own merits, to say, of even the utmost extent of punishment at the hand of God, Tt is no more than my due ; therefore let Ijim^do what seemeth him good? It is not, indeed, rightto regard the measure of individual suffering as proportioned to that of the comparative demerit of the sufferer. Many humble-minded Christians err in this respect, and are tempted to imagine that because pecu- liarly heavy afflictions have fallen to their lot, some peculiarly aggravated offences must be remembered against them by their God. I respect and honour the feeling of humility which prompts this error ; and far from me be the thought of detracting, in the least, from the full meaisure of humbje penitence with which the sufferer should bow down before Jhi&God,. But^thoughJt.is true that affliction is the result pf; human frailty and sinfulness, and that every sufferer partakes of that frailty and sinfulness in a measure amply sufflcientto make suffering his desert j yet all scripture, and all our knowledge of the world, prove that even great guilt is often suffered to pass unpunished here, and comparative eminence in piety and virtue often visited with the heaviest wo. Indeed, so marked is this, that, like parental chastise- ment, afflictions are invested in scripture with the hojjt character of being even proofs of love ; and that is repre*: sented as a man's most dangerous state, iq, which he is suffered to go on in unchecked prosperity and enjoyment. In connexion with .this point of human desert, we see another argument for uncomplaining submission to God's }yill in the evidences we have had, and notwithstanding all our sufferings^ still have, that he remembers us for good* Ser. 3.] The Rev. Dr. Onderdonk'i Sermon. 41 If we dispassionately take ttiis view of the, subject, and dwell on the many mercies that we have still left, and how kindly distinguished our lot is from Ihat of multitudes of others; and remember, with becoming gratitude,' all our past experience of the loving-kindness of -the Lord ; we will surely say. He hath reijiembered us in mercies and favours far beyond our desert; he still leaVfs us many and sufficient sources of consolation, support, and happiness; therefore, be we, in all things, cheerfully resigned to his disposal. •*Let hira do what seemeth him good." And in reference to the present absorbing grief of our hearts, my brethren, have we not sources of grateful reflec- tion, fraught with the most soothing influences, and calcu- lated to fill us with meek and quiet resignation? The blessing that has been taken from us was long enjoy^ For the greater part of the life of many of you, your d«i- leased pastor was God's active and honoured instrument of the pure joys, and. heavenly satisfaction, flowing from the instructions and exercises of religion. In social intercourse he contributed largely to your happiness. He soothed you in affliction. And in every way, as your pastor and your friend, he was one of heaven's choicest blessings. For these things you certainly owe a debt of gratitude to your God. J^et that gratitude chasten year sorrow, and induce yoa, weekly resigning yourselves to the will of him who has shown himself so kind, to exclaim, * ' It is the Lord : let him do what seemeth him good." And sweet is the consolation, brethren, and most soothiltig the influence, arising out of thjS remembrance of the virtues and exeellendes of him wliose- loss we deplore. Whifo memory lasts, it will delight to linger on the combination «f «0 nmch that was great, gdod, interesting, and levely j on E2 42^ Tk$ Rev. Dn. Onderdonlc's Sermon. [Seif. 3e;.. tl^ ardent pie^ to Goj^, and the kii\d ,and affectionate be- ney^ence to man j on .the nublic, social, and domestic virtues^ on the friend's fidelity, and the pastor's devotion; ©ri the humility of jthe Christian, an,d the high qualificatipng and eminent successpf the learned, active, iand distinguished ' prelate ; which characterized our departed friend and fether. Y: And when, from this \^ew of his character, we pass to that of his present state, and of his i^ter.^st, now for ever sure, in the final consummation of heavenly joy and felicity ; when we think of him as at rest frpgj all his toils, fpr ever released . from anxiety and suffering, and in full possession of all the. happiness of the paradise of God; and when we think .of the crown, the palm, and the robe, which await him, as the fulfilment of the blessed invitation of the last day, an4.the . seat among the elders around the heaveialy throne, whither his hallowed ministrations will be translated, and where homage so faithful on earth, will be perfected and unending-; surely we may even eheerfully exclaim, "It is the Lord : fet him do what seemeth him good." With no other order, my brethren, and no better prepa- ration, than were allowed by an a£9icted and agitated mind, I have endeavoured to throw together a few such thoughts as I supposed would be congenial with yoxir present feelings^ I would that duty allowed me to go no farther than to speak words of comfort to your a£9icted hearts. But there are those among whom the faithful departed servant of the Lord laboured in vain. His eloquent pleading of the cause of God has been bst upon them. His warnings have been un- heeded, his calls disregarded, the threatenings of the divine law is his mouth treated as a thing of nought, the moving oxpostulations of the God whom he represented, suffered to be of no avail ; and his holy ministrations either greatly Ser. 3.} The Rev.' Dr. Onierdonk*s Sermon. 43 neglected, or irreverently and inefTectually attended. But what can I hope to do when so much' has ifailed? O! f would that they'- would reflect, consider their ingratitude, guilt, and danger; and esCap^S'that awful danger, wl^ile tha little time yet remains in which they may.' And let all our hearts, my brethren, be softened tb the reception of that good to which tfie grace of God would render our sorrow contributive; Let us all, pastors and people, pray for each other, that this affliction may work, for our spiritual and eternal good ; and be a means, through the merits of the great atonement, of advancing us to that holy, happy state, where those whom death has severed wiU be re-united, and the exalted services of the Chiu-ch triumph- ant be their joint and never-ending employment. 7he great Man in Israel. ON 7HS OHA&AOTBR OP THB SIGHl' EEV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. D. DELIVERED IN TRINITY OHURCH, AND ST. VAVfS AND ST. JOHN^S CHAPELS, NEW-YORK^i September, 1830, BT THE KEV. JOHN FREDEUICK^CHROEDER, A. Mf. An Aasiitant Minister of Trinity Church. There is a great man Fallen in Israel. 3 iSani. iii. 38-. He, being dead, yet speaketh- Beb. xi. 4. '-^'^'^'K J^evi.Tork, Septembei' ^9th, iSSO. Rev. AND tiEAB Sm,' ''^i^ ■ * < - j;.* «jfe4§f ■Jinpreasetl with the faithful delineation of the character and life of our lamented I'astor and D'icieesan, the Right Rev. Bishop HOB ART, as presented in your late dbd'ourse, on the occasion of Itis decease, we beg leave respectfully to solicit a copy for publication. Yoiir obedient servants, BENJAMIN M. BROWN, \ Committee of a HENRY COTHE^L, J number ofLaymtn. To the Rev. J. F. Scheoedee. Gentlemkk, JVew-rorfc, Oct. Ut, 1830. It has been said, " The public has a right to expect, that if any one submits a portrait to their judgment, he should suspend it and withdraw in silence." The favourable opinion expressed by you. Gentlemen, who are qualified to judge, might well be an additional motive for repressing every suggestion on my part ; yet I feel, that in complying with your request, I ought to say, — though I have attempted to delineate a great man in Israel, in his robes of office amid the scenery of public life, there are other lineaments more admirable, which would not comport with my design, and must not here be sought. " It was not merely in the light of day, and in the eye of liis fellow-citizens, that he was a great man ; but in retirement, and in the domestic circle, he was more eminent." (Cic. J)e Senect.) Your friend and pastor, J. F. SCHROEDEti. Messrs. BsiruMtN M. BeowNv^ and S Committee, Henbv Cotbeal, ) THE PRESIDING?, BISHOP OF THE CHURCH, who mourns over thfe best beloved #his Episcopal brethren'; ' TO THE FAMILY, who are deprived by death of the great source of their earthly happiness ; THE PARISHIONERS, who lament the melancholy absence of their chief spiritual guide ; AND TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, who have so long associated with the name of HoBART, the leading counsels and best interests of our Zion ; The following pages are respectfully inscribed. SERMON IV. THE REV. MR. SQjHROEDER's ^DISCOURSE ON ifHE CHARACTER OF BISHOP HOBART. "I pause— Aad «nter, awed, the temple of my theme.^' And why this awel Why this oppressive weight upofe my spirits; and this breathless silence; and these deep sentiments of sorrow, that pervade with an aflSictive serious- ness our hallowed courts? And why these solemn counte- nances ; and these weeds of mourning ; and that deep-toned organ's death-dirge 1 Why this sombre drapery, which veils 'our holy altai- and our desk, — ^the gloomy garb, the sad habiliment, that shrouds pur consecrated house of prayer? There is a great man fallen in Israel ! But, Sovereign Arbiter of life and death, it was thou who raised him up ; it is thou who hast removed him ! Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven ; even so. Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight.* He has been taken from us; we shall see his face no more ; our spiritual father has withdrawn from earth. But his afflictive exit, O how sudden ! The chill hand of the pale messenger had touched him, only the tenth day before • Matt. vi. 10. Luke x. 21. 5^ The Rev. Mr. Sehfoeder's 'Semm. {Set:. 4, .' J.r;, '■ -'■■ •■L-J^-^L I r, I ,vm - he was finaiy called hence.* ,His soul has winged its way, tp join the souls of the departed. Our Pastor, our Bishop, i^ no more ! On such a theme, O who would not experi- ^ee emotion! We have encircled' his remains ; we have attended hini to the house appointed for all living ;t and we have soleixyiized his obsequies,,. Devout men have carried him to his burial, and made great lamentation over him;! ^"d beneath the very spot where he was consecrated to his high functions,|| his pale ashes now repose. But from j|hat silejit place we hear a solemn call, It is a voice that crieth to us in the city; it is a voice that crieth in the wilderness, and throughout our land. And while all now ejaculate, There is a great man fallen in. Israel; the voice of Him who dwelleth in our sanctuary, arrests us by the proclamation, He, being dead, yet speaketh. These two sentiments, (conveyed in words of holy writ, on record in 2 Samuel iii. 38, and Hebrews xi. 4,) may properly direct the feelings of our hearts to-day. • Oa Tliiu'sday, September 2d, he was at Aiiburn, and then admiiMSr tered the rite of confirmation, and preached for the last time. His last sermon, impressively uttered by his lips, nhich are now silent, was on " The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom." Job xxviii. 28. On repairing, after service, to the parsaaage-house of tlie Key. Dr. Rudd, he immedi- ately complained of au oppression and a cliilness. It was an oppression, that soon overpowered all his vital energies ; it was a cliilness, that in a few days deprived him of the warmth of life. On the morning of the Lord's day, September 12th, K.M. 1830, two days before the completion of his fifty-fifth year, in hope of the glory that is to be revealed, he was translated to the woild of spirits. t Job XXT. 23. ^ Acts viii. 2. II In Trinity Church, in the city of New-York, he was ordained a Priest, A. D. 1800; and was consecrated a Bishop, on Wednesday, May 29(fa, A. U. 1811. Ser* 4.j The Kev. mr. iscnroeaers aermoM- ^ I. There is a, great man fallen in Israel^ Yes, as the ancient worthy after God's own heart, m these expressive terms bewailed the valiant leader of the Lord's armies in old time, we too may bewail. the mvdaunted spiritual leader of our sacramental host. f , 1. In the Efiscopal Chair he was a great man in Israel. Chosen to his high office;' he was duly consecrated: and you beheld him, while that orb of day fulfilled its last nine- teen annual circuits, — you beheld him, animated by the glowing zeal, and occupied in the devoted and untiring labours, of a successor of the apostles of the Lord. Both his physical and moral energies were wholly consecrated to his work. His life was emphatically laborious ; and none but ' He who knoweth all things,' can tell the cares, the trials, the privations, the incessant toils, by which, like the very chief of the apostles, he was In journeyings often, in perils, in weariness and painfubess, in labours, in watchings, in fastings ; and beside those things that are without, that which came upon him daily, the care of all the churches.* With a devotion that was truly primitive, he went through the cities, and delivered unto them the decrees to keep ; and so were the churches established in the faith, and in- creased in number daily.t To his ardent and untiring efforts under God, we owe the present flourishing condition of our diocese. It was he who first enlivened our remote parishes with annual visitations ; and cheered them with his presence and his godly counsel. It was he who animated our missionaries, and by example taught them to endure hardness, as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.J It was he • 2 Cor. yi. 5 j xi. 86, 27, 28. f Acts xvi. 4, 5. * 2 T.in. ii. 3. F 2' 54 The Rev.. Mr. Schtoeder^s Sermon. [Ser.4. who built .'up the waste places of our Zion; and as when the aiicient people of the Lord, amid their enemies, rebuilt Jerusalem, our spiritual leader also, with Nehemiah's ex- hortation,* would encourage his desponding people : " Be not ye afraid of them : remember the Lord, who is great and terrible ; and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses." Yea, while by the help of the Lord he multiplied our parishes three-fold,t the wilderness and the solitary place were glad for him, and the desert rejoiced and blossomed as the rose4 Our diocese has sustained a heavy loss in her bereave- ment. She has been wounded at the heart. She sitteth solitary as a widow, when she smites her breast in desolation. In the language of the plaintive prophet,^ " Her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness." She sees the tears of thousands mingle with her weeping, in a spontaneous tribute of admiration and love, to a great man fallen in Israel. And now only can all duly estimate the virtues of his warm heart, and the endowments of his transcendent intellect. What zeal, what energy, what activity, what fervour, what indefatigable perseverance; what talent, what efficiency, what unqualified devotion to the Church of Christ ! And in his private intercourse, what life and soul, what affability, what graphic illustrations of many of the beat qualities that adorn our nature; and, • Neh. iv. 14. t When he was consecrated, A. D. 1811, there -were but tvienty-aix Clergymen entitled to seuts in the Convention of the diocese. (See the Christian Journal, JSTew-York, T. & J. Swords, A. D. 1829, Vol. XIII. p. IS.) In the year 1829, the number of the Clergy, according to the Journal of the Convcntiop, was a hundred and ilurty-lhree, and the number of congregations a hundred and sixty-five. ^ Isa. xxxr. 1. I Liim. i. 4t Ser; 4.] The Rev. Mr^lSehroedier's Sierman. :S$ above all, what unbounded prodigality of b^^weficence ! We have good reason to admire his, rare qualities o£. heart and intellect;, to rejoice in his devotion ^tp the work of faith; to cherish for his^yirtues the profoundest veneration ; rand to record his memen||,. among those of the great men in Israel, who have hazarded their lives for th^ name of our Lord Jesus Christ.* /* We are witnesses of all 4hings which he did :t and we know, that he counteji not his life dear unto himself, so that he might finish his course with joy, and the ministry which he had received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the Gospel of the grace ;of God.J Will the Lord our God raise up unto us a prophet, from the midst of us, of our brethren,)! like unto him in his most estimable attributes? — O that, by his own hand, his, badge of office had been committed to some spiritual shepherd after God's own heart ! But he is parted from us as by a whirlwind, like that which carried into heaven the Lord's ancient prophet :§ he hath borne away with him his mantle. His deserted mitre we may indeed place upon another brow ; but where, O where, shall we again find the steady nerve, the towering genius, to wield and to direct his ponderous crosier ! He was the next, in order of progression, to the venerable worthy who presides^ • Acts XT. 26. t Ao's X. 39. ' i Acts xx. 24. H Deut. xviii. 15. § 2 Kings ii. 11. ^ The Right Reverend William White, D. D., of Pennsylvania, was consecrated in the Chapel of the Archiepiscopal palace at Lambeth, ia England, on Sunday, February 4th, A. D. 1787, by the Most Reverend John Moore, Lord Archbishop of Canterbury! the Most Reverend William Markham, Lord Archbishop of York, the Right Reverend Charles Moss, Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, and the Right Reverend Jahn Hinchliff, Lord Bishop of Peterborough, being present, and assisting. For the long term of forty -three years, the venerable Fatlier in God, thus consecrated, has watched over our Zioij. SS The Rev. Mr. Schroeder^s Sermon. [Ser. 4. over the supreme council of our Church ; and our diocese, we thought, would soon be fifst'among her sacred sisterhood. But she is despoiled of her high rank; and the man whom €rod shall choose to be her guardism and her guide, must take the humblest seat among his mitred brethren. In years to ..come, our children will speak with us of his great name and his good works. They wiir associate him with the Hookers, and the Barrows, and the Horsleys, and the Warburtons, and all the most illustrious of the departed. But among the fathers and the benefactors of our Church, there will not be one, whose image and super- scription will be presented in more bold relief. In the Church are many burning, shining lights ;- yet here, as in the temple of the universe, one star differeth from another star in glory.* Our prelate has now fallen in Israel ; but he has assumed his place among the heavenly hierarchy ; and posterity, age after age, will view him there, a star of the first magnitude ! 2. And IN HIS ministerial functions he was a great man in Israel. For one-and-thirty years he preached the Gospel of salvation; and for more than nine-and-twenty years he was connected with you, brethren, — first as an Assistant Minister, and afterward as the Rector of our Parish.t He is now fallen, and never more shall he appear within this sacred desk. But it is a pleasing, profitable theme, to • 1 Cor. XV. 41. t He entered into Deacons' Oi-ders, at Philadelphia, A. D. 1798. Hav- ing ministered at Oxford, and Lower Dublin, Pennsylvania, and at Sew- .Rrunswick, New-Jersey, he was called to the pastoral charge of St. George's tlhurch, at Hempstead, Long-Tsland, A. D. 1800. During the same year he became an Asmatant Minister of Trinitj' Chwch j and lie was elected Rector of the Parish, A. D. 1816. Si&r..«4.J i%eRev.Mr.Behroeaer%>Be'fmiin. S^.- glance at the memorial^ of hisl^irip ^•'i^hable 'laboui;^, as-a, zealous minister of Christ. I sit- ■ He always justly occupied an eyvated rank. You need not be reminded'^ brethren, how he declared to you,-all':the counsel of God.* These hallowed courts bear . witness ; and this pulpit and; that holy table testify, — If any one of you hath not received the knowledge of the truth, .thou art inexcusable, Oman, whosoever thou artif , Being ferve?it in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord.J You know the earnestness, the animation, the solemnity, with which he^ lifted up. his voice to you in this holy place. You know his ready words, and his commanding utterance. In every sanctuary he was a welcome messenger ; for while some differed from him in hjs views of policy, all ^heerfuUy confessedfThat his doctrine was according to godliness, II and that in the pulpit he was an able, faithful, eloquent, evangeljcal' divine. ti From his youth, he was devoted to our primitive and apostolic institutions, and was always their undeviating promulgator. While a lad in college, it was predicted of him by his school-fellowSi that one day he would be a bishop of the Church.§ And how natural, how reasonable, were his prepossessions! Our venerable mother, when in her * Acts XX. ar. t Heb. x. 26; Rom. ii. 1. it Acts xviii. 25. g 1 Tim, vi. 3. i Some coincidences have been noted, both in regard to fkets and lan- guage, between this discourse and two Biographical Sketches which have just appeared ; the one in the New-York Courier and Enquirer for Sep- tember 16th, and the other in the New-York Mirror for September 25th. It is proper, therefore, to state, that the disccurse and the sketches were written by the same hand ; and as a very shoi't interval was allowed for the preparation of them, they were necessarily written currents talamt-, so that some slight coincideaces could not well be avoided. ■S8 THe Rev. Mr. Schroeder's Sermon. [Ser. 4. ^jy ■ •■ ■ -^j^- ^ - ■ ■■ ^ ■ - - infancy,- was reared under the very eye of Jesus. And being then trained up in the way she should go, now that she is old she ought not to depart from it.* It was a AoZy doctrimt, that her divine Lord inculcated ; it was a salutary discipline that her divine Lord enforced. With good reason, then, we may hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering.t In his attachment to the Church, our lamented pastor was sincere, consistent, uniform, uncompromising. It is true that the very brightest of the orbs of heaven has its parallax; and viewed from opposite extremes, itwiU appear in widely different relations to its celestial associates. But the High and Lofty One, who siiteth on the circle of this heavens, seeth not as man seeth.lj; And it becomes us, short-sighted mortals, while we argue from the observations which wo take, to beware that we " judge not by appear- ance." If the thoughts and feelings, the undeviating efforts^ the whole time for many years, the temporal possessions; and the ver}' life of a great man in Israel, are made a willing sacrifice, — 'it is but " righteous judgment" to infer gi-eat- sincerity of motive, and to commend uniformity of action. Well read in the Polemics of the Church, our able pastor could defend its bulwarks with a fearless confidence, and an. array of arguments and reasonings, that were tremendous, appalling, irresistible. Both as a preacher and a divine, his praise is in the churches of our land. And the dignitaries and the clergy of our mother Church ; and devoted, honourable laymen, not a few ; beheld, admired, reverenced, loved him. Theii' • Prov. xxii. 6. f^Heb. ji. 33. i laa- iTii. 15 i xl. 33. 1 Sam. xvi. 7. high testimonies are recorded; and as theV now look west* ward toward our happy land, tliey will delight to recognise bis star, thoi^h it will emulate the glorious s{ilendoi;r of their brightest constellations. ' 3. And not only as a bishop, and as a minister of Ghrist« but AS A MEMBER OF sociETV at large, we may deplore his loss, and say, " There is a great man fallen in Israel." In polite circles, we have seen him vie with the most finished gentlemen, by his urbanity of manners, and the conciliating assiduity of his refined solicitudes. And among cultivated scholars, we have seen him take a part, not only in their playful raillery, but in their spwtive combats ; and by his sprightliness of mind, by his prompt resources, by his happy turns and replications, he would come ofif from the tournament with victory. But when he left the social circle, he left iHiere the pleasantry of social life; and as he trod ^|g^ hallowed pavement of the sanctuary, his step, his coun- tenance, and his demeanour were all dignity. At that font and holy table, in that desk, and in this pulpit, you have seen him thus. His engaging Cheerfulness in private, you can bear record, did not detract from his official solemnity. He was peculiarly affable with strangers, was prompt to recognise them, and thus won the hearts of tens of thousands. His memory could record on its capacious tablet every title, trace every countenance, take note of almost every incident, and refer to them at any time with great felicity. It was an enviable trait, that has distinguished many of the most renowned political and moral rulers of the world. It was the praise of Cyrus and of Cyneas, of Aulus Gellius and Lucius Scipio, of Solon and of Mithridates.* • The same characteristic is associated with the name of the late ilhis- tl'ioas Emperor of the French, ami by means of it he warmly attached to 60 5pAfi Rev. Sfr. Schroeder^s Sermon, [Set. 4. And our friend's memory was equalled by his r^idity of thought. How fleet was tke glance ot tiis mind! He often saw through second causes as by intuition ; and hot unfrequently would force his way and grasp with vigour a result, while many able minds, less prompt indeed, re- mained embarrassed, in the effort to remove some interven- ing, unimportant difficulty. The abstruse subtleties of metaphysics, and the nicer criticisms of philology, had no peculiar attractions for a mind like his. He had no time to analyze the elegant perceptions, or to ransack the literary treasures of antiquity. He lived for business, not for solitary thought. His taste inclined him to the active life, rather than the contemplative ; and hadhe lived in the days of the great Stagirite, — not the Academy, but the Lyceum would have been his resort. When thjfe occasion sometimes called for such aji effort, he could defingi with the precision of Aristotle ; yet, like that prince^ of the' philosophers, he loved publicly to go forth and take his part in the moral movements of the world** ,;, bitn his- devoted troops. And wlien the present Commander-in-Chi6f of^v the National Guards of France recently traversed our continent,ji;hl3^ prompt and minute reminiscences were a magic spell, by which many.'* hearts were powerfully influenced. * " There is a principle within us, that irresistibly impels us to act oa the consideration, that as we are men, therevcannot be any thing apper- taining to human nature, in which we have no concern ; and, under the influence of this prihoiple, to enter into the feelings ofotliers ; to aliare in their joys and their sorrows ; to make them, in same measure, our o«!H." " Homo sum — nihil humanura a me alicnura puto." The leading sentiment of his life is thus expressed by our late prelate, in his sermon entitled "Christian Sympathy," wliich was " preached t» the congregation of English Protestants in the cily of Rome, Italy, on Ser. 4.] The Rev. Mr, Schroeder^s Sermon, 61 And our lamented fellow-citizen was eminently hospitable. " Large was his bounty, and his soal sincere." With ^n unsparing hand and open heart, he obeyed the -apostolical injunction, " Be nOt forgetful to entertain stran- gers."* And like the prince of Oriental hospitality, the generous HATEM,t he won the praise and honour even of fais enemies. It is the prerogative of none but master-spirits, to exert an influence as powerful as our late friend secured. The secret springs of human action, the controlling motives of the heart» the innumerable and diversified considerations, by which men may be arrested, awed, conciliated ; — all these he knew with a discriminating sagacity. And he exerted his great moral sway, for the promotion of that hallowed cause which he espoused. As a prelate, as a Christian minister, and as a member of society, he was indeed a great man. But he is fallen ! A few days only have elapsed since he was called away. The same bright orb that now beams around us, rose and looked upon him : — ^he was no more ! It was the early dawn of the benign Christian Sabbath-day ; fit emblem of that Easter Sunday, April 3(1, A. D. 1S25, on occasion of a collection for the benefit of theVaadois, or Waldenses, in Piedmont." The sermon was first publislied in London, and was reprinted in New-Yorlc. • Hcb.xiii. 2. f In the East, the phrase " As liberal as HStem" is the highest en- Gomium of the hospitable and the generous. " Ce personnage ■ . . s'est tenement rendu c^I&bre par sa lib^ralit^, qu'il a fait, pour ainsi dire, perdre le nom k cette vertu," says D' Herbelot, in his JBiblieth^gue Ori- entale, article Hdtem Thai. It is a pleasing thought, that this great Arabian cliief, the prince of benefactors, lived and died a Christian .' See the authors quoted in the Modem Universal Hiitorg, Life of Ms. bammed, Vol. I. p. 191. G Q^ The Rev. Mr. Schroeden^s Sermon. [Set. 4. Spiritual state, in which the souls of those who sleep in the Lord Jesus enjoy perpetual rest and felicity. And as he yielded up his soul into the hands of his Supreme Lord on high, like the great leader of God's ancient Israel,* he was peculiarly favoured with a clear prospect of the promised land. It may be written of him also, that when he ceased to look upon the world, his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.! He was a martyr to the intensity of his exertions. Phenix-like, he perished in his own flame. But like the same ii^amortal bird, from hi« ashes he shall rise again. Yea, now he liveth in our memories and in our hearts. Behold his form as it reveals itself. It is the same. He is there walking, brethren, in the precincts of another world; he hath put off the flesh; it is his spirit. He direct; his eye to you, and he accosts you. II. He, being bead, yet speaketb. These words inspired Scriptvu'e has pronounced of Abel,| jvho was the first that died a martyr in the cause of God. And our revered prelate, when he died, obtained the same witness ; and like righteous Abel, ke was a martjr in the cause of God. He tpo, being dead, yet speaketb. From these venerable walls, O hear the echo of his intonations. Hear him, ye who have been baptized by him, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. He says, " Have you believed and done all those things which you then undertook, or your sponsors then undertook foryou?"|l Ye, who, by the imposition of his hands, before God and • Deut. xxxiv. 1. f ^eai- xxxir. 7. * Heb. xi. i. I Our admirable foi'malaries, associated with the tenderest and tlie moit haltowei feeliiigB of oar hearts, preseat powerful motives to ielf- Ser. 4.] The Rev. Mr. Schroeder's Sermon. 6$ this congregation, have renewed the solemn promise and vow that ye made, or that was made in your name at your bap- tism, hear his voice. He says, " Have you daily increased in God's Holy Spirit more and more, and are you prepared for his everlasting kingdom 1" Ye, who have been united by him in the most tender of all earthly bonds, he speaks to you also, and says, " Have you lived together after God's ordinance ; and forsaken all others ; and surely performed and kept the vow and cove- nant which you have made? Do you, in perfect love and peace, so live together in this world, that in the world to eome you may have life everlasting 1" Yd, who, upon beds of sickness, have been admonished by him to prepare to meet your God, before it be too late for ever,* — and who, in answer to his fervent supplications for you, have been spared even to this moment, hear, O hear his solemn call to you. He says, " Has the goodnesst of the Most Merciful led you to repentance? Are you prepared to die?" Ye, who have met with him in the house of mourning, whose friends and relatives, whose children, whose com- , panions he has followed to the field of graves, and there committed dust to dust,^from that world, where all the spirits of your dead are now assembled with him, (behold and hearken,) it is your pastor, who looks down and says to you, "Have your afflictions yielded the fruit of righteousness 1"|: O listen, ye, who name the name of Jesus, unto whom your lamented minister of the sanctuary has so often broken examination. As a minister of Christi I wonid urge them upon every conscience ; and say to those who have assumed before God and men our solemn vows, " What do ye more than others ?" > • Amos iv. 12. t Rom. ii. 4. * Heb. xli. ll'. 64 The Rev. Mr. Schroeder's Sermon. [Ser. 4. the bread of life, and offered the cup of salvation. He says to you, brethren in the Lord, " I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom. And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men ; for I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God."* Fellow-sinners, fellow-mortals, who have been attendants on his public ministry, — by his expositions and entreaties, by his pastoral services, and by all his sermons, which have gone up for a memorial before God, O think how your re- sponsibilities are connected with his labours in the Church, of Christ. He accosts you earnestly, but O how tenderly, and says, " Sons of Zion, daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children ; mourn over your transgressions ; and flee to Christ for refuge from the wrath to come."t In the golden words of the great prelate and great preacher, who most adorned the Oriental Church, your absent pastor, now in the spirit, says, " Have you commended my preaching'? With strong evi- dences of your approval, have you received my exhortations.1 O that hy your works you may evince to me your praises. Jet that proof which is to be derived from your obedience be not long deferred! Let my exhortations be forthwith followed by your prayers. This praise I seek, — ^this com- mendation, that is to result from your works." " Yea, let them be my crown of rejoicing at the great day!"J • Matt. xxvi. 29. Acts xx. 25, 26, 27. t Luke xxiii. 28. Heb. vi. 18. 1 Tliess. i. 10. Ser. 4.] Tke Rev. Mr. Schroeder's Sermon, 6S And hearken ye, who, as the Wardens and the Vestrymea of our parish, have so often met with him in council. By a coincidence, as pleasing as it is pensive, the very place where Grod's honour- dwelleth, in our ancient parish-church, is the place where your beloved Rector's ashes now repose. Look toward his silent mansion there ; and hear, O hear his voice, while, like the souls from beneath the altar in the Apocalypse, he being dead yet speaketh, and with them says, " I rest yet for a little season, until my fellow-servants also, and you, my brethren, shall be fulfilled." " Only let your conversation be as it becometh the Gospel of Christ."* Hearken, brethren in the ministry, who have been or- dained by him to any holy functions. From his new grave he speaketh unto you, " Keep your lamps trimmed and your lights burning; ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh; watch for souls, as they that must give account ; blessed is that servant jvhom his Lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing. And what I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch."t '^t. And to his Right Reverend Associates, the sam€!«;|eparted spirit says, " Work the works of him that sent you, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work. Take heed, therefore, unto yourselves, and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed -!•»» fntpaivtrit Wi|*»-8» ; tl?,\' "oVac »>JV iwi rat «{j.(|»^"f«'|«»;9« Toui iraivout, oi futicios i XS'"" '^"f aa-oJt/fiac tUc nntd th i'rra.Koh, fitrii Titr a-aj*iv«»-;ii tuSict: «J;t"» •>"'»«» ^»'* '^'i i^iii>"t iKUtit rev xjoTOf Tot fid til teyai a.\iim." CamsosTOM de In- comprehemibm i Hob. iii. Tom. I. p. 471. Venice, mdccxixit. Comp. 1 Thess. ii. 19. • Rev. vi. 9. 11- Phil. i. ar. fLukexii. 35. Matt. xxv. 13. Heb. xiU. 17.. Matt. X)UT.46. Mark G3 66 The Rev, Mr. Schraeder's Sermon, [Ser. 4. the Church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. Whatsoever thy hand flndeth to do, do it with thy might. And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanc- tified."* To thee. Presiding Bishop of the Church, our lamented Prelate turns with a peculiarly glowing aspect. Venerable Patriarch, thou hast watched over him from infancy. Thou hast seen die first budding promise of his early youth ; thou hast seen the full-blown flower of his manhood; thou hast seen the fruits, the rich, abundant, precious fruits, which he yielded in the garden of the Lord. But now, (O God of mercy, hold up thy servant with thine everlasting arm!) thou hast been called to bend thine aged form, and weep in bitterness, over the pale ashes of thy beloved in the dust. Thou art bereaved of the most cherished of thy spiritual children.f He would have tended thee, O how fondly, how affectionately, if thou hadst been first called to close • John ix. 4. Acts xx. 28. Eccles.ix. 10. Acts xx. 32. f "Daring my long \ife. Sir, 1 have not knows any work of death, exterior to the circle of my own family, so afflictive to me as the present. I have known, and have had occasion to remark, the character of my novp deceased friend, from his very early boyhood; and can truly say, that I have jiever .known any man, on whose integrity and conscientiousness of conditraH^have had more full reliance than on his. In contemplating ■what must be the brevity of my stay in this valley of tears, it has been a gratification to me to expect, that I should leave behind me a brother, ■whosft past zeal and labours were a pledge, that he would not cease to be efficient in extending our Church, and in the presei%ation of her integrity. ,But a higher disposal has forbidden the accomplishment of my wishes ; much, as I verily believe, to his gain, although gre.itly to our loss and to that of the Church." These are the words of Bishop White, in a letter to a gentleman in this city. Ser. 4] TkeRev.Mr.Schroeder'S'^Strmon. 6% thine eyes to sleep in Jesus. But now, alas, it has pleased, God to bring thy gray hairs with sorrow to his grave. Re- vered spiritual patriarch, we mingle with thee our sympa- thies. But hearken ; he, being dead, yet speaketh. " Why weepest thou, father? Thy son is yet alive. I shall not return to thee, but thou shalt soon come to me."* Revered parent of God's chosen, it is thy blessedness to say with good old Israel, " It is enough; my son is yet alive: I will go and see him."t Peace, peace be unto thee, venerated father in the Lord. And when, with thy silver locks, thou shalt go hence in a good old age, thine be a crown of ever- lasting glory with thy beloved in the heavens ! Hark, he yet speaketh. He accosts his family, his mourning, his bereaved,, afflicted family. " Widowed part- ner," he says, " widowed partner, sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. There is a day when we shall meet agaiii, to part no more for ever."J Orphan children, sorrowing relatives, he says, " Make the Saviour of your soul the supreme object of your love."|| " It now remains for you, by turning truly unto God, to make it my great blessedness, when I shall rise up in the unnumbered con- gregation at the judgment-seat, to say, ' Lord, behold I and the children which thou hast given me. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name : those which thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost. O • John XX. 13, 15. Gen. xlv. 26. 2 Si\ra. xil. 23. ■J- Gen. xlv. 28. + 1 Thess. iv. 13, 17. 2 Oor. r. 10. II This was literally his fervent exhortation, addressed to Dr. William . H. Hobart, his affectionate sou. And it was urged, in language so very similar to the words of a distinguished author, that a relation of the touching scene would forcibly recall the passage to the mind of any one, who ever entered into its true spirit. See Klopstock'a Meaaias, Achter Gesaog, the last twelve lines. 68 The Rtv. Mr. Schroeder's Sermon. [Ser. 4. seek ye a place among the blessed throng, where I am now with Jesus.' "* Hark again: it is the spirit of our pastor once more speaking. He bequeaths to us the recollection of his death- bed. Precious gifti " His conduct is a legacy for all." <* His God sustaiDS hira in his &nal hoar; His fisid liour brings glory to his God." Behold the interesting scene. View the lamented prelate en his couch. Hear his devoted clerical attendant, whose valued privilege it was to afford him the last offices of hospitality. Hear him announce the soul-trying message, that death is now near at hand. With a devout and holy resignation, (hear, brethren,) your dying pastor and your friend responds, in accents of great firmness, — " Well, God's will be done." He was arrested by a disclosure, that might touch any bosom with solicitude. O yes, " The death-bed's a detecter of the heart." But what resignation, what composure, and what pious joy, did he exhibit! Cherish, brethren, in perpetual remembrance, the last hours of your late spiritual father. For his family, what affectionate inquiries; for his son, what godly counsels and entreaties ; for the faithful clergyment who watched at his * Isn. viii. 18. Heb. ii. 13. John xvii. 12. Phil. i. 23. t The Kev. Dr. Rudd and the Rev. Mr. Cuming, by their unremitting solicitude and kind services, have associated their names with the hallowed sentiments that embalm the memory of the departed. They have both published interesting accounts of his last moments. Ser. 4] The Rev. Mr, ScAraederh Sermons 69 bed-side, what affeetionate ackniowledgments, what bene- dictions, in the name of God's only Son, our dear Redeemer. For his devoted medical attendant,* what reiterated assur- ances of confidence, and what gratitude: " God will bless you," said he, " my Saviour will bless you." As a depart- ing Christian, view him, O my brethren, and be instructed by the scene. What deep humility ; what holy resignation ; what fervently impassioned prayers ; what lively faith ; what animating hopes of joy in heaven. " God be merciful to me a sinner. God's will be done. I have no merit of my own ; as a guilty sinner would I go to my Saviour, casting all my reliance on him — the atonement of his blood. He is my only dependence ; my Redeemer, my Saviour, my God, my Judge."t With a peculiar solemnity, he partook, for the last time, the memorials of his Saviour's dying love ; his son, (the only member of his beloved family then with him,) kneeling at his bed-side, and now, for the first time, uniting in the holy ordinance. With a clear voice and pious fervour, the departing man of God sung his Redeemer's; praise. * Dr. Morgan, of Auburn. t Among the last words of our lamenled Bisliop, one of the accounts referri'd to adds the following; " I have been sanctified, I trust, by the divine Spirit; I will, therefore, hope I shall not be denied the lowest seat in the kingdom of heaven." "Be sure," said he to one of the clergymen who were with him, " that in all your preaching, the doctrines of the cross be introduced : no preaching is good for any thing without these." And in reference to his approaching dissolution, and to the future condi- tion of the Church, he remarked, " Her affair^ will be managed by other hands; God, however, will be with her: God will defend her." He often e.'iolaimed, " I wish to talk of God and salvation, — I wish to die with the name of God in ray mouth; but then," he added, "not God without the Saviour : Christ is all; God over all." " I die at peace with all men, for 1 am sure I forgive all." 70 Tht Rev. Mr. SSekreeder't Sermon, [Ser. 4; " And worthy is the Lamb all power. Honour, and wealth, to gain. Glory and strength; who for our sitls A sacrifice was slain ! All worthy thou, who hast redeem'd And Fflnsom'd us to God, From every nation, every coast. By thy most precious blood." For a few hours his enfeebled frame sunk more and more under the influence of his disease ; and when that orb of day had not yet lighted up the east, — at the fourth, silent hour of the Sabbath mom, he parted with " the last breath of expiring nature;" he fell asleep in Christ, ^^ithout a struggle or a groan. At such a scene, O who would not exclaim, " Let me die the death of the righteous, let my last end be like his." " The chamber, where the good man meets his fate. Is privileged beyond the common walk Of virtuous life; quite in the verge of heaven." Farewell, Spiritual Father! Thou art at rest from the tribulations of this life. Though thy body is an inmate of the sepulchre, we can exult to think, that thy soul is in a sweet communion with Jesus and his saints. All thy good works have followed thee. And while thy glorious record is on high, thy virtues are engraven here upon the hearts of tens of thousands, who now call thee blessed ! PREACHED IN 6RACE CHVRCB, NEW-TOBK, September 19, 1830. ON THE DEATH OP THE BIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, P. D. EEV. JONATHAN M. WAINWRIGHT, D. D. Kectoi of Grace Churdi. ' JVew-Tork, September 2l«f, 1830. Rev. aks seab Sib, ; < '' The undersigned members of the Vestry of Grace Churcli beg leave respectfully to solicit a copy of the Sermon preached by yon on Sunday last, on the death of gur lamented Diosesan^ the Right Rev. Bishop HOB ART. We trust that you will assent to ojir requfeslj, that it may be printed and published. With much esteem. Your obedient servafits, EDWARD R. JONES,. JOHN DELAFfELD, ABRAHAM OGDEN, GOLD HOYT, JOSEPH BAVLEY, ABRAHAM SCHERMERHORN, SAMUEL W. MOORE. To the Hev. Dr. WAiN-nrnioHT. SERMOIV V. THE REV. DR. WAINWRIGHt's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 2 CORINTHIANS iv. 7. We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excel- lency of the power may he of God, and not of us. All who have experienced the effects of reb'gion in reclaiming their souls from the dominion of sin, or in sustain- ing them under the oppression of sorrow, or who haye witnessed its blessed influences upon the • character and condition of others, will feel that the Gospel of Jesus de- serves the strongest terms of approbation which language can supply. Even the words of sacred writ will hardly be esteemed by them as possessing an eloquence sufficiently powerful and expressive to show forth all its praise. It is indeed Wainierigkt^s Betmm. 83 my brethren, to such solemn meditation. I would recall to -you our departed Bishop, that once more you may behofd him ere his mortal remains have quite decayed beneath that ■ altar,* and ere we have well realized that we can see Ms face na more; because he hath assumed the garments of iminSrtality, and commenced his joyful intercourse with the redeeme^. ,'. Let us think of him then ; and in this place, •and on this Sacred day, he will first be brought to our mind's in those public official duties, in which he chiefly delighted^ •which he performed with such distinguished excellence and success', and in which it was our enviable privilege often to behold him. With what ardent love for the soUls of men 'did he enter the sacred desk, and there put forth the energies of his mind, and the afiectioAs of his heart, to speak of the things which make for our eternal peace! The sounds df his animated and pathetic eloquence have hardly yet ceased from our earsj and his energy and grace of expression we can yet see in the picture of our minds. As a preacher 6i the Gospel, he was powerful and convincing, and its peculiar ■doctrines he exhibited in a faithful and uncompromising spirit. He shunned not to declare the whole counsel of God. The fall and corruption of man^the Trinity of Persons in the Unity of the Godhead — the atonement for sin by the death and sacrifice of Christ— our restoration to the favour of God through faith alone in the merits of the Divine Redeemer and sanctification of the Holy Spirit-i- the means of grace, as promised and conveyed in the sacra- ments of the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth, which he purchased with his blood — the second advent of Christ to judgment, when we must all appear b^- • He lies buried beneath the altar of Trinity Charch. 84 The Rev. Br. WainwrigWs Strmon. [Ser. 5. fore him, and be received into eternal bliss, or be consigned to eternal wo, according to the deeds done in the body— these were the sacred themes upon which he dwelt with faithful constancy. Nor did he fail to explain and incdcate the moral duties, and to enforce the precepts of religious wisdom as applied to a]l the relations of <«nan,' with whi^ the Scriptures abound, and to which our blessed Saviour's sermon on the mount was devoted. But theM, in this de- partment of the preacher's duty, he was not thaJcoM and formal expounder of ethics derived from heathen philosophy, and slightly modified and confirmed by the Gospel — ^No ; in the spirit of the Gospel he proclaimed all its truths, doct^nal as well as moral ; and moral obedience was enforced upon the ground of faith, and its attainment was encouraged through the influences of the Holy Spirit helping our in- firmities,, and given in answer to constant fervent prayer. Again 'we remember him, as, in the robes of his sacred office, he stood before the altar, to lay his hands and invoke his solemn blessing upon those presented for the holy rite •f confirmation. With what dignity, solemnity, and feeling, were the sacred functions performed! and how animated and affectionate was the exhortation with which he was accustomed to conclude this most interesting service of our Church! Indeed, in all the public services of the Church he engaged with an heartfelt interest, which every where and at all times excited a devout attention ; and thus even the outward ministration promoted our spiritual edification and comfort. Leaving the temple of the Lord and its holy employments> we must recall his image when divested of his sacred func- tions, and engaged in social intercourse. Who that upon these occasions has once beheld him, will not remember, "Ber. 5.] The Rev. Dr. WainwrigMs Strmon. 85 and, alas! weep at remembering— =now to be seen, and iaeard, and^felt no more — ^his kind expressive smile, the cheerful accents of his voice, the quick and friendly pressure ofthis hand>!j^^^ow earnest, cheerful, and engaging, were ~ his ^powers ^^Spversation ! and how ready- and unaffected ^was, his inte^pjiin all that concerned the happiness and tA^te,re of his "friends ! Actively as he was engaged in p^Kc duty^ and] in those various concerns by which he thoMht the best interests of society were advanced, yet he was r'ea'dy tcf participate in those innocent relaxations by wh;ich i# cares are alleviated. In public the eloquent pl^pSier and the dignified prelate; in private he became "the warm friend, the cheerful, instructive, and condescend- ing companion. To present to you the characteristic features of his mind in full delineation, would require a larger space than could be filled in the brief time alloted to our meditations, and would demand the pencil of a master hand. But this im- perfect sketch can hardly fail to show some of the stronger marks of resemblance in a character so open and so uniform. No one could have known him, even casually, without a full Conviction that he possessed a heart as warm and as suscep- tible of all kind affections as evW rested in a human bosom, and that his powers of intellect were of be prais|:b FOR ALL HIS MERCIES !" When his sufferings increased^lSr any circumstance occurred that had a tendency to distress Jiis mind Or try his patience, with pious submission he would ejaculate, " God's will be done !" And when in his own meditations, or through the conversation and prayers of his friends, the^rospect of his soon being called upon to appear before his God and Judge was more immediately presented to him, in deep humility he woidd exclaim, " God bb merciful to me a sinner !" And on one occasion, with Sti^f-abasement if possible even lower, " God be merciful to me a sinner! — ^yes, a great sinner— But I have been redeemed by the blood of my Saviour ; I have been sanc- tified, I trust, by the Divine Spirit; I will therefore hope I«^^ not be denied the lowest seat in the kingdom of heaven." In all this affecting relation, how evidently do jve. behold the marks of the renewed and sanctified follower of.lhe meek and lowly Jesus ! What impressive lessons should we draw from it, to teach us also to cultivate those graces of -the Christian. character so little cherished or re- garded in the busy contentions of the world, yet so lovely in themselves, so sure a solace in the hour of trouble or of Set. 5.1 The Rev. Dr. Wainwright^s Sermon. 89 danger, and so acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour ! Patience, humility, faith, and resignation — ^these have been exhibited to our notice in the most impressive manner ; they have been preached to us in tones of moving eloquence, fronTtMe'-'il^ing bed of him who, in life, was distinguished, ?li " Henteftvth, there is laid up for him a crown Ser. 7.] Tie Rev. Dr. VpfoWs Semim- 123 of glory, " and this crown he wears in triumph, in exemp- tion from-ephysical and moral evil, and in possession of supreme, and perfect, and unchanging good. , But, my brethren, having thus finished his course witli joy, and won the prize, and entered interest, the Christian will not be an inactive participant of the fruits of victory- He will be erriplayed. And his employment will be adapted to his glorified state, and to his nature, as a being composed ef mind and body; of a mind perfect in all its faculties, and ofsa body, spiritual, indestructible, glorified, and cor- responding in perfection with the mind. On this point, the revelation of the Scriptures concerning angels, the present inhabitants of heaven, and to whose nature the glorified saints will be allied, throws no incon- siderable light. Those exalted beings. are represented, in- deed, as engaged in constant celebration of the praises of Jehovah. But this is not all they do. -They are " minisien^ ing spmts, SBTtt forth tn minister unto them who shall be the heirs of salvation" and as such are employed in doing the will, in executing the purposes of God in heaven and on the earth. They are active beings; they are never un- occupied ; they are engaged in the most unwearied exertion. Now, the faithful in Christ Jesus, after they have put off this earthly tabernacle, our Saviour teaches us, are to he " as the angels." If so, they will not repose in indolence^ they will not be mere passive recipients of happiness ; nor will they spend their time in praise and adoration only f but, like those, their elder brethren, the bright and glorious patterns of the existence on which they enter, and the character they sustain, they will be employed, actively and constantly; and this very employment will constitute the pj-incipal source of their joy. 124 The Mev. Dr. UpfoWs Sermon. [Ser. f. In what then will the employment of the saTeA of Christ consist ? This inquiry can only be answered generallyi' Th^ limited revelation of Scripture in relation to this subject precludes minute detail. And here also, our best and safest guide is the instruction afforded us of the occupation of the angels, Like them, the glorified servants of Jesus will be engaged, among other things, in contemplating the works and ways of Jehovah ; and his nature, attributes, and per- fections, as they are therein displayed. And for this pur- pose, the film of earth being removed from their eyes, the • universe will be spread out before them, and the wbole machinery of Divine Providence and grace will be exhibited to their renovated vision. They will perceive in this way, with constantly increasing distinctness, the infinite wisdom, goodness, power, and mercy of the Almighty. They will behold all the infinite perfections of Deity concentrated ia himself; for t hey wil l^eeimrray JI e ia, t hcraB^orious and self-existent, God. Their conceptions will be heightened in vividness and clearness, as they contrast his doings in the universe of his own making, his creative and preserving energy, and his dealings with his intelligent creatui'es of all worlds and of all times, with that perpetual and distinct exhibition of himself. Their field of vision will comprehend the whole of animate and inanimate being, and world on world will successively be brought before them, all pro- claiming the greatness, and the glory, and the wisdom, and the power, of their Omnipotent Creator. The mysteries of the abode which they have left, once perplexing and inscrutable beyond account, will be gradually disclosed, unravelled, explained, and understood. They will also contemplate the wonders of redemption, the mystery of Set. 7.] The Rtv. Dr. UpfvUs Sermon. 125 their own salvation ; and as they proceed in the study of that stupendous work of grace, they will find new cause of astonishment, new motives to grateful and rapturous adora- tion. In exercises such as these, the purified and perfected minds of the heirs of Christ will be employed ; and from them they will derive exquisite and unspeakable enjoy- ment. They who shall be permitted to " enter into the- joy of their Lord," will be engaged, as a consequence of the preceding employment, in glorifying their Creator and Redeemer. Permitted to see and know him as he is, to contemplate his unveiled perfections, as they are displayed in all the vast variety and extent of his ways and works, they will be constrained to render him supreme and unmin- gled reverence, confidence, admiration, and love. Beholding his glorious majesty» the fear *)f the Lord, profound Venera- tion, unniingled with servile dread,^ will rise spontaneously and delightfully in every bosom. Fixing their intellectual gaze on the manifestations of divine wisdom in the works of creation and providence^ adrairationj inconceivable and constantly increasing, will be felt and exercised towards the eternal mind which planned and executed them. Tracing the mercy and goodness of God in all his counsels, especially in the scheme of redemption, they will love him,, supremely, unreservedly, exclusively, " with all their heart,, and soul, and mind, and strength" Discovering the certain, truth of the Infinite, personified in his own. glorious self, seen as he is ; exhibited in all bis, diversified operations ; and established in their own blissful experience of the exact, yea, more than exact, fulfilment of the precious promises of the Gospel; they will regard Him with entire and undoubting confidence. M a 136 The Rev. Dr. UpfoWs Sermon. [Ser./7£ In all these respects, will the sanctified inmates of heaven, the companions of angels, glorify, the God of providence, and the God of grace — " the King of kings, and the Lord ef lords." And, my brethren, from these very employments will " t?ie spirits of the just made perfect" derive motives, all- prevailing and perpetual motivesj to adore and praise their Maker. Praise, though not as is commonly supposed the onli/, will be the certain employment of heaven. This is plainly taught in Holy Scripture. It is the delightful occu- pation of the angels, and it will be the same to those blessed ones who shall hereafter be assimilated to their nature, and elevated to their condition. Of this we need no further evidence than that of the exile of Patmos, who, describiaig his vision of the heavenly abode, and the state of those who, "from among all nations^ and kindreds, and tongues," have entered into rest, represents them as mutually kind- ling with devotion and ecstasy in the near contemplation of Jehovah, his creative power and wisdom, and his redeeming love ; and " arrayed in white robes, with palms in their hands" chanting in united harmony the everlasting song, " Holy! holy! holy ! Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come ! Blessingyand glory, and honour, and power, and wisdom, he unto Him that sittcth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb." The host of the saved, my brethren, are employed in praise. But this does, not imply, nor are we to, conceive of them as perpetually engaged in singing hymns to God, and in unceasing anthems of thanksgiving. The praise of the lips is not so much meant as the praise of the mind ; nor external so much as internal worship. An all-pervading and grateful sensibility to the goodness, and mercy, and Ser. 7.] The Rev. Dr. UpfoWs Sirmon. 11% love of God towards them ; an habitual and predominating spirit of devotion, arising from a near contemplation, and a realizing sense of his perfections, and his supreme worthi- ness to be praised and had in honour of his intelligent creatures, will chiefly constitute the adoration of the saints. No doubt there is stated external worship in heaven; but it is not the exclusive, the engrossing occupation of its inmates. Other employments belong to that abode of perfect peace ; such as have been before considered, and such as remain to be mentioned ; and not merely the exercise involved in the term " worship." These employments ixa^ly activity, and they relate to God and to one another. The inhabit- ants of heaven are engaged in doing his will, in executing his purposes and counsels, and in carrying into effect his diversified and endless operations. They are not only " made priests" but " Mngs, unto God," and the promise is, "inei/ shall reign with him for ever." And this inti- mates, if not their advancement to high and dignified stations in the kingdom of the Redeemer, and their ad- mission to a share in its government, and to degrees of authority proportioned to their works on earth, their en- gagement in exalted services. Every individual will, have a part assigned to him in the administration of the affairs of the universe, as a ministering servant of its Supreme Ruler ; and a part too for which he is specially qualified. No one will be useless, or idle, or unemployed. All will be occu- pied, and all will be satisfied with their occupation. " The system" of Jehovah " fills immensity, and endures through eternity. The plans, persons, faculties, attributes, and employments, are fitted by supreme wisdom to the extent of the system. Ample room, therefore, is here furnished 128 The Rev. Dr. Upf old's Sermon. [Ser. 7. for the operations of every virtuous being: a boundless scope for every endowment, acquisition, and effort." Besides the occu]B3tion, of the saints in light, in matters relating imniediateLy to God and his operations, they will be engaged also in mutual acts of love, and friendship, and kind offices towarcb each other. Heaven will be an abode of love, a place of delightful intercourse and blissful com- munion. All its inmates will be friends and brothers. And the friendship which will pervade its courts will be pure, and holy, and disinterested; an unmingled friendship, ardent and entire. From it, selfishness and deceit will be utterly banished ; and charity, sincerity, and universal good-will, will prevail, and continue, and abound. The intercourse of the followers of Christ, exalted to the presence and glory of their Master, will be impaired and interrupted by no separate interests, no jealousy, no envy, no hatred, no contention, no ambition. Among the countless millions who will occupy the mansions prepared by him, not an enemy, not a stranger, not a cold, unfeeling, or unsocial heart will be found. Knowing one another, even as they are known of God, all will be friends. And thus united in sweet seraphic fellowship, it will be their employment to exercise active kindness towards each other, to engage in acts of mutual charity, and in every possible way to benefit each other. The blissful intercourse which subsists in heaven will also be increased and perfected by mutual and constant communication of the results of their respective offices and occupations, relating to tlieir contemplations «f God and his works, and to their share in the ministrations of his kingdom. They will " take sweet counsel together, while S6)c. 7.] The Rev. Dr. Upfold's Semtm, 129 they walk in the" everlasting " house of God at friends.*' And this counsel will have respect to their mutual happiness •and glory, and to Him from whom their unspeakable gifts and blessings are derived. That intercourse, moreover, will never be interrupted, and never end. It will be as perpetual and enduring as - thizing attendants, " I have no merit of my own. As {» guilty sinner would I go to my Saviour, casting all my reliance on Him — the atonement of his blood. He is my onW dependence, my Redeemer, my Sanctifier, my God., my '"Judge." Brethren, with such views and such senti- iirents, be it our care, *' to give all diligence to make our cMlingland election sure," and to seek after " glory, and ili&V, and immortality" in the werld t» come. .4i»o>' The Christian Labourer, TFvEACHED IN CHRIST CHURCH, FOOGHKEEPStE,' September 26, 1830, ON THE DEAtH OP THE RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. D. bt the REV. JOHN REED, B.B, Rector of 82aA Churcbr '^ 1^ CONGREGATION OF CHRIST CHURCH, POUGHKEEPSIE, A TOKEN OP ESTEEM AND AFFECTIOri;, THIS DISCOURSE IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATES Br THE AUTHOR. SBRMoiDir vm. lirE REV. DR. reed's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. Brethren, ;You will indulge me this morning in unburdening my own feelings, which have seldom been so heavily depressed, by; adverting to the death of our much lamented Bishop — Alas! 'a sudden and deeply afflicting but holy providence. But two short months have passed since he officiated at these altars in all the blessings of health, with all the powers of ^is genius, and all his commanding eloquence ; in a sceno which could not fail to interest all, and which was to me doubly affecting.* From that time his voice was continually" heard to cheer our Zion, until the fatal disease arrested it, which terminated his life in ten days. Well does the Church in this Sta.t^m.^'^j^&'iaoAihna^ through the world, mourn ; for one of the most powerful advocates of truth, one of the most fearless and successful champions in the cause of Christ, has fallen — has fallen in the midst of his days, in the meridian of his usefulness. But • The son of tlie speaker w»s ordained. N2 138 The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. [Ser. 8. it is God's will and work ; he had higher loffices than those of the Church on earth in which to employ him ; let us, therefore, clothed in the drapery of mourning as we are, lift our souls to heaven and say, " It is the Lord: let him do^ what seemeth him good:" let us say, " Father, thy wilLbe done:" let the humble exclamation pervade our bosoms, " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; biased be the name of the Lord !" You are aware, brethren, that this flock which now sur- round me were high in the esteem and tender in the care of our now lamented Diocesan ; and, could he now speak, his prayer to our divine Lord would be, " May" pure and undefiled religion more and more abound among you." Twenty-five years of uninterrupted intercourse with him had so strengthened our Christian love and friendship ; so often had he unbosomed his soul to me, in counting his cares, and toils, and hopes; so uninterruptedly and so entirely have I ever found his mind and heart devoted to the success of his Master's kingdom and the salvation of souls ; so often have I had to admire the success of his wonderful powers ' in combating error and paralyzing the efforts of infidelity^ ^ SO constantly has he been my counsellor and my friend ; and so confident have been my hopes that he would yet long .remain in the Church militant, that his removal to that triumphant, is oilfe^of 'the most oppressing events of my life. But " blessed are the dead who die in the Lord; even so saith the Spirit; for they rest from their labours, and their works do follow them." " Their works do follow them." — Rev. xiv. 13, Let us advert to the character of our venerated Father in God with this view — " their works do follow them." Ser. 8.] The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. 139 His TALfiNTS ; His acquikements ; His GRACES ; and ' His labours. "Their works do follow them." His talents. Scareely an American ha? ever lived, who more deservedly bc^f^he character of a man of genius than our venerated and lamented prelate. His conceptions were vivid and rapid almost to intuition. He seized his subject with all the ardour of his soul, and at the same time with a distinct- ness and; precision enabling him to come to his conclusions with a readiness which astonished as well as charmed his auditors. This rare faculty enabled him in a short life to acquire an immense fund of knowledge, to see the various bearings of the different departments of science and litera- ture on each other, and to apply them to that grand cause which always lay nearest his heart. Men of genius are usually theorists, and are impatient in reasoning and practice. But different was it with him. His splendid powers seldom soared unaccompanied with the chastening influence of a rational application to natural and spiritual life. He was, indeed, the man of business ; so much so, that his systematic facility was the wonder of all who knew him. We have had the bes^proof of this decla- ration for thirty years in his ceasel'ess and efficient feb'ours in the public counsels of our Church, where it may safely be affirmed, that he has done more than any other man. Samples of masterly and lucid reasoning, too, may be found in all his numerous publications. In his " Apology," which . he iSi^rote twenty-six years since — when his imagination was fervid, and every sensibility of his heart was awakened, by (he violent attack made on him and the communion to tvhich 140 The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. [Ser. 8. he belonged, by his great and learned adversary* — in which are some of the rarest flights of fancy, there is so much fine and pungent reasoning, so much learning and fairness of argument, that one of the most respectable of the English reviews pronounces it among the best samples of polemic divinity. In all his controversies — and he has been engaged in many, for he continually had his eye and his heart upon the purity, and security, and honour of the Church as the glory of his Lord — he attacked the error and not the man. He impugned no man's motives; but he came down upon his adversary with the powers of learning and argument without personal criminations, and hence seldom failed to disarm him upon the noble principles of the Gospel. The fame of his genius will follow him; and as his earthly re- mains moulder, will brighten wherever refined taste, and literature, and religion are cultivated, and cannot fail to have a benign influence on the Church from age to age, and, with the blessing of God, tend to the peopling of that heaven to which we trust he has gone. " Their works do follow them." His acquirements. It will readily be believed that with such powers of intellect his acquirements would be proportioned. Educated early in life, and under the care and patronage of the venerable and learned Bishop of Pennsylvania, whom he always ve- nerated and"styleS his; Father in God, he had every facility for improvement in literature and theology. And when admitted into the sacred ministry, although soon loaded with the labours and cares of a large parish, his ever active mind * Rev. Dr. Mason, who is said to have remarked to a friend after.the controversy had ended, " Were 1 compelled to entrust the safety of ir^y country to the honour and integrity of one raan, that man should be Jolin Mcnry Hobnrt." Bsr. 8.] The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. 144 was constantly improving in science ^jjd, literature, ancieftt and modern, as well as in theology. To the day of his ieath, although for years he had little time except what he sriatc^ed amjds); his many duties, and took from hours of lepose, he kept up with the literature of the world, aijd vrds familiar with thei gijlj|icfitions pf Europe an,^ America, ^ In 'theology he was armed at every point. The doctrines of the Reformation and the great diyijt^es of the seventeenth centary were his standard. These he compared with the Holy Scriptures, and formed a system resting on th^e pro* phets and apostles, " Jesus Christ being the chi^f. corner- stone." He was familiar with the arguments of every writef who was the enemy or the friend of the eternal divinity and infinite nature of th^ Son of God. On the do.ctrineS of the Trinity were founded all, his hopes of a blessed iirt- Hiortality for fallen and degenerate man. From this doc' trine he derived the- plenitude of the atonement as thfe- r.ansom of a guilty world, the efficiency of the Holy Ghost in i-enovating the soul and changing her nature from sin to holiness. From this doctrine he derived the divine and spiritual nature of the Christian Church, as founded and organized by the Eternal Son — God himself — as a school in which souls are trained and educated for glory. Taking his Lord and his apostles as ^is instf uct^s and examples, and the lights qf antiquity as hi^ guides, ,he co^Jid jjot separate the Christian Church and the Christian doctrines, the means of grace from the doctrines of grace. He could not think, that. Christian institutions, and. ordinances, and sacraments are mere ceremonies ; but believed them indis- pensable, because his God had ordained- dietn and enjoined their observance in the fulfilment of all righteousness. He, therefore, believed, and brought a host of testimony to sup- 1^ the Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermm. [Ser. % port his belief, that every regular Christian Church must be deriyedfirom that which Christ organized while on earth, saying with the voice of antiquity ^ that " man can no more DJ^e a Church than he can a world." Stored with know- ledge upon this subject, and fully persuaded of its (truth, with his characteristic decision he embraced the Church as the sanctuary of hi^ hopes, because the sanctuary-iof his Giod. He defended her as the body of Christ, and he laboured and prayed for her extension and honour as the' Jtingdom of his Lord. These acquirenients willnot cease with his earthly exist- ence. The treasures which he with so much wisdom and labour heaped up, will be a lasting monument of his fame — will pass down to posterity eis a rich legacy to our Zion, and, with jthe blessing of God, cannot fail to be a munition tO^istChurch against the batteries of error and infidelity. Accompanied by diVine g?ace, they cannot fail to impart heavenly wisdom and that unction of piety and holy devo- tion with which they abound ; and so cannot fail to aid others ip running, with wisdom, fidelity, and zeal, the race which he has now finished. " Their works do follow them." His grages. In him, moral virtue was always conspicuous. No man ever saw him veiled in guile, or stooping to the low arts of in- ' trigue ; an^ no man ever thought of impeaching his integrity or fidelity. Truth was his standard ; and, in the practice and support of truth, he fearlessly made his way onward^ unawed by man, and trusting to the God of truth as his succour and support. Nothing was more offensive to him than a feigned sanctity, or an artificial show of piety in word or action. Convinced that pure and undefiled religion was the work of the heart, and mingled with and gave a Ser. S.} Thte Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. 143 savour to the daily life, aBd» would not be corifined to time or place, he looked upon alt cant as disgraceful to the Christian character, and derogatory to that iagenuousness, integrity, and, honest zealj which should ever adorn and dignify the Christian. On his election to the Episcopate, being - seriously adwsed by a distinguished friend to, en- deavoiie to fling o£f hi$ familiar manner, and assume more dignity and reserve in his person, he answered, " Undigni- fied I must ever be, if I cannot be otherwise except by doing violence to my principles and my nature." His in- violable attachment to truth always showed him to be what God and his grace had made him. There was no ambiguity in his public or private life. In his words and in his actions we saw his heart as well as his understanding, and princi- ples, and motives. He feared not the scrutiny of friend or foe. Hence, he seldom withheld his name from those nu- merous publications which he was called to make, in the vicissitudes of the " Church, to defend his principles and policy. ' In such a man might be necessarily expected the sincere, the undisguised, the efficient friend. His heart was full of the social affections to overflowing; and if he was ever un- armed, and for the moment lost the balance of his noble intellect, it was when he unexpectedly mot the friend in whom his heart confided. It was then he melted into love. As he formed attachments upon the enlightened principles of reason and justice, they were active and permanent. This a numerous and wide-spreading circle will testify; and especially his clergy, whom he loved as his children and brethren — ^whom he counselled and cheered with wisdom and prudence — 'Whose hands, and hearts, and hopes he Strengthened by his presence and timely aid, do this day 144 The Rev. Dr. Reed's SermoA. [Ser. 8. testify by their tears and sorrows. Once having imparted his confidence to his clergy, he never withheld it, until his mind was brought by slow and painful degrees to the con- clusion that it was misplaced; and when he withdrew it, it was with that wisdom and prudence best calculated to im- prove and reform. Enmity was a stranger to his bo$om« He could love, but he could not hate. In his social life, in his private and public duties, in his conversation, and in his publications, he always separated the error from the uihappy subject of it: he could condemn the former, and pray for the present and eternal good of the latter. But it was in the exercise of the Christian graces in which our venerated Prelate was most distinguished. He had most humbling and prostrating views of the depravity and sins of the human kind. Hence the corruptions of the human heart, the ruined state of man by the fall, and his hopeless condition without the sacrifice and mediation of his God and Saviour, were frequent and affecting themes of his public and private discourses. He deeply felt within himself the weight of his sins ; and hence his soul imparted a fervour and pathos to the utterance of the public confes- sions of the Church, which thrilled through every heart. But not more powerful was his grace of repentance tha» that of faith. It was the language of his whole life, and it was his departing declaration — " My hope is not in my own righteousness, but in my Saviour alone, in the great and manifold mercies of my God." He never for a moment doubted the eternal and infinite divinity of the Saviour of the world; and hence it was his joy to trust to that " full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction" for the sins of the whole world, made by his Lord upon the cross. His faith decisive and controlling upon th^ important Ser. 8.] Tha Rev. Dr. Seed's Sermon. 145 article; his heart and understanding entered into it; and-he dwelt upon it in his private conversations and public dis- courses with all his acute and forcible reasoning, and illus- trated it with the best powers of his eloquence ; showing the Christian system dry and hopeless without aii infinite Saviour, and him who rejects the doctrine of the Trinity as denying the Lord who bought him by his blood. Such repentance and such devoted faith were necessarily accompanied with a lively and animating hope. Amidst all his cares, and solicitudes, and labours, he kept the vision of his soul on heaven as his home. His frail constitution daily reminding him that this was not his place of rest, he finished the labour of many a day with trembling lassitude of body, frequently exclaiming, , " My course may soon be finished ; I must labour in the cause of my Master while the day lasts; and if this should be near the close, Father, thy will be done." His love to God and man was equal to his repentance, his faith, and his hope. He lived for himself as little as any man; as much for the glory of God and the gbod of souls as any other. No theme so much elevated him, filled his soul with such holy ardour, and so lighted liis countenance with the glow of angelic fervour, as'the love' of God. And hence, in the thanksgivings and praises of the Church he was always seen to be wrapt in adoration. As his love to God, so his love to man had no bound. No, man spent less thought upon this world's goods. He gave himself wholly to the service of his Lord. He never passed by an object of mercy or charity, but always esteemed that the most exalted charity which had for its object the salvation of the immortaL part of man. Under the control of such graces, he was instemt in season and out of season. O 146 The Rev. Br. Reed's Sermon. [Her. 6. And can such example, such graces, such unceasing de* votion to the salvation of man, such pre-eminent character in such lofty station — seen and exemplified in the presence of thousands, and venerated and admired by almost as many as beheld^cease to have an influence as the body now moulders? Will it have no abiding, no animating, no in- structing power upon his numerous clergy whom he has left behind in the vineyard of the Master — for whom he has so often prayed — whom he has so repeatedly counselled, and instructed, and edified — whom he has so many times ad- monished to be wise, and prudent, and holy, and zealous in then- all-sacred and responsible situations, as stewards in the household of their Lord? Yes, the counsels of their departed Father will now be more deeply impressed- by hia death, and they must daily say, " Few are the days before we must be called to ^ve an account of our stewardship at the tribunal of heaven, and therefore we will strive to be more rich in grace, more abundant and faithful in labours, that we may finish our course with joy." And, brethren, had he the paternal care of all the churches? Every congregation in this state can testify how tender, and faithful, and effectual that care was. He has not only timely and with almost unrivalled dignity and effect per- formed among you his apostolic functions, but he has, by the blessing of God, given to the Chiu'ch a standing and character. By his writings he has defended it against what he esteemed a fatal policy, and against error, heresy, and schism. He has been instrumental in increasing the facilities of acquiring the knowledge of the Christian profession and of the duties of godliness ; and he has, ' by his repeated presence and addresses, impressively showed the beauty and blessings of a holy life, and animated you to seek first Ser. 8.] The Rev. Dr. Meed's Sermon. 147 -J '■- . A.L„..i,., the kingdom of God and his righteousness, as the , chief object of your hopes, and the rich, unfading treasure pf eternity. All, and especially those who have accompanied him to the sacred altars, and with him renewed their cove- nant with their God, must feel a, new impulse given to their resolutions to lead a new life, and to their prayers, that they may have increasing grace — that they may daily be renewed more and more, against the solemn day when they shall be called to meet their departed Father at the tribunal in yon- der heaven, to account to the God of all for the deeds done in the body. Yes — although but the instrument in the hand of God, we should be insensible to the interests of the Church and our own spiritual standing did we not remember, with lively sensibility, the last visit, as the last instructing and animating words of our venerated. head, and suffer Ub character and counsels to accompany us as we progress on toward the tomb which he has so unexpectedly entered. " Their works do follow them." His labours. The rare talents which we have ascribed to him, did we know nothing more of him, would assure us that he had effected much in his short life. But we know more. Early in his ministry his active mind led him beyond the ordinary duties of his parish, and he sought means for the edification and enlightening the members of the Church. For this purpose he compiled and published several volumes of an instructing and devotional character. Among which are his " Festivals and Fasts," containing an admirable view of the doctrines, government, and, worship of the Church; and cannot be read without improvement of the heart and head. His " Companion for the Altar," which, more than any other similar book, breathes a fervent and rational piety in its rich and animated- prayers and meditations. 148 The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. [Ser. 8, Fqv more than twenty years has he almost constantly been engaged in some new publication, until his works now con- stitute as great a number of volumes as has been produced by any other American author, several of which will go down to posterity with the. immortal works of the seven- teenth century. They will be, quoted with the judicious Hooker and learned Taylor, and cannot fail to give charT acter to the American Episcopal Church for generations to come. But his labours ended not in his writings. They are the fruits of the moments which he took from his incessant daily labours. Having devoted himself to the ministration, of the word and ordinances of his God, and been conse- crated to the offices of the sanctuary, it was his pleasure as well as duty, to serve at the altars And one hundred and thirty congregations in this state can bear witness with how. much zeal, industry, and fidelity; witk how many Sacrifices and how much toil ; with how much devotion and holy fervour ; with how much learning and eloquence, he has ministered among them. Under the lively conviction that the Church in which he ministered is the Church of Christ — the appointed way which his Lord ordained in which man is to seek and obtain salvation — ^his whole soul was engaged in the extension and honour of it. He inces- santly preached the peculiar doctrines of the Gospel, and in that way illustrated the .distinctive principles of the Church. He never for a moment, and on no occasion, in his visita- tions through the diocese, compromitted the system which he had with labour and research adopted; and yet so manly and so ingeniously did he enforce that system, that even sectarians approved and honoured his ministra- tions. Said a distinguished judge of our courts, " I meet Ser. 8.] The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. 149 him in every place of my circuit; and he is followed and admired by all who hear him." He meddled with no sectarian forms or principles : but the Church — her govern- ment, her doctrines, and her worship, were his continued themes ; and these he wisely, and fearlessly, and zealously enforced, until prejudice has given way to rational convic- tion, and our communion has increased more than three- fold during his Episcopal office. He has been the welcome messenger of peace and con- solation to the few. families of our communion scattered in the wilderness, who were sending their crifes and prayerS for the blessing of Christian ordinances. He cheered them by his presence and counsels, and animated their hopes and their labours, and they have in a few years, in their turn, cheered his soul by presenting themselves the numer- ous £^nd devout congregation. Many a missionary and layman will recount, with a glowing heart, the effects of his visitations in the new settlements of this state, and how the inhabitants of a whole county travelled to salute him welcome, and receive his counsels ; and I can scarc^y picture to myself a scene more solemn or more affecting than my fancy this moment presents to me, of the state of those numerous congregations in the northern and western districts of this state, in the charge of missionaries, who were peculiarly under his fostering care. They loved him. They leaned upon his counsel, and that pecuniary aid at his dis- posal .through the Missionary Society. They are now clothed in mourning, and their sorrows will not yet permit them to hope that God will open a way whereby they shall enjoy the means of grace. But he has finished his worlds with them and with us, and those works follow hirai 03 150 The Rev. Dr. Reed's Sermon. [Ser, 8. They follow him, brethren, to remind us to bless our God that he hath raised up such a light in his Church to elevate our infant communion to its present peaceable and prosperous condition. They follow him, to remind us that the best and most splendid of God's servants are but earthen vessels — are to be esteemed but for the treasures they contain, and are broken at his pleasure, and return to him the Giver. They follow him> to remind us that we should venerate and honour the Church to which we have the happiness to belong, by a lively exercise of all the Christian graces, and by an humble and animated zeal in fulfilling all righteous- ness ; that we may, at all times, be prepared to be translated from God's kingdom on earth to that in heaven. They follow him, to remind us of the duty of humbly and devoutly praying to the Great Head of the Church, that he will, in due time, supply us with a successor in the high and sacred office, of a character after his own heart, and who shall be the instrument of perpetuating the peace and pros- perity of our Zion. They follow him, to remind us that our lives are short and uncertain, that every pulsation brings us nearer to that tribunal where ministers and people must answer for the deeds done in their bodies, and where we must receive the sentence which will seal our eternal fate. They follow him, to admonish us to inquire into our spiri- tual state, and knew whether we are renewed by thp Spirit of our God ; and if not, to give neither sleep to our eyes nor slumber to our eyelids, until we have attained that treasure which our spiritual Father so much prized. They follow him, to remind us that he has ascended to Ser. 8.] The Rev. Br. Reed's Sermon. 161 his Father and Dur Father, and that we should prepare to meet him. Farewell, then, blessed spirit! — a short farewell — until we shall meet in realms where there shall be no more separation, no more death! Amen. Tribute to departed Excellenee. VrOK TBS LIFE AND CHARACTER or THK RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOB ART, D, ». DELIVERED IN ST. FETER's CBCRCH, AUBURN, September 10, 1830, BT TRI REV. JOHN C. RUDD, D. P. Hector 1^ raid Church. SBRMOX IX. SHE BEV. DR. BUDD's ADDRESS ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. It has been the custom of all ages and nations, when great and good men have been removed by death from the scenes of their usefulness, to devote a portion of time to the consideration of their worth, and to seek encouragement ra the paths of virtue from their examples. If there was ever a time, my brethren, when we might be expected to give ourselves to this duty, it is the present, when God in his providence calls us to contemplate a bereavement of the most serious nature, and one unusually extensive in its effects. Without disparagement to any, it may be said, that there has rarely, if ever, occurred in this country, the death of an ecclesiastical person, whose loss will be more Sensibly felt, or more deeply mourned, than that of Bishop HoBART. 1 should fail in my duty to his memory, not only as the head of the Episcopal Church in this state, but as a Chris- tian minister, as a man and as a friend, if I did not express .. my views of his character in the most full and unequivocal,* manner in my power. It shall be no part of my effort in this address, to utter the strains of an extravagant adulation of the dead. I must, however, speak »f him as I have 196 Tht Rev. Dr. Rudd's Sermon. [Ser. 9. linown him for more than seven-and-twenty years. During that time, it has been my enjoyment to be on terms of close, constant, and intimate intercourse with hiin. He was my first friend and adviser in the study of theology ; and during all these years, there has never been the coolness nor the alienation of an hour. If at any time any difference of opinion has arisen, it has never related to any thing of real magnitude, nor has it been of any considerable continuance. I have known this most estimable man, not only as a mi- nister and a bishop, but we have been companions in the most unreserved and tender hours of social intercourse and friendship. Our respective domestic circles have known the mingling of those kind offices and feelings, from which the most choice enjoyments of this world can be derived. Many of the dearest friends of the one, have been the fondest objects of affection with the other. Yes, my brethren, if there is any one in the ministry of our Church who can, and who ought to speak with confidence of the public and private character of our departed Bishop, it is he who now addresses you. I have been long near him, and have marked the mighty efforts of his mind, seen the exertions which few have power to make, and I have witnessed again and again the display of those amiable and winning manners which have animated and charmed the domestic circle ; and I have beheld, in innumerable instances, the most unequi- vocal evidences of his ardent nlety — -the devotion of his soul, the aspirations of his heart — the expressions of his lips, testifying that his Saviour was his chief joy a>id de- • pendence — his hopeof sanctificatlon, renewal, and strength. I have seen him, not only in his public employments, but in those retired hours, when every consideration was a straiiger to his bosom tjiat did not regard the salvation Of Ser. 9.] The Rev. Dr. Rudd's Sermon. 15lf his fellow-men — ^the honour and grace of his Lord — the means employed, through the visible Church and ordinances of his God, feir the advancement -of holiness in heart and life. The justice of all this may be seen by a proper consider- ation of this distinguished and beloved individual, under the distinct features of his character and life — Ms mind — Ms principles — Ms policy — Ms affections and tempers — Ms piety — Ms manner of performing Ms duties. The mind of Bishop Hobart was a cast of no common mould. There was a reach and vigour of thought which embraced a whole subject at once. With the eye of aa experienced architect surveying a magnificent edifice, he did not trouble himself about the carving and gilding of the temple, but took in at once what were to be the controlling characteristics of the subject in view. And at the samp time, if there lurked in any of the embellishments defects, however small, no one more quickly saw them, especially if they -violated any of the principles which he valued. Unlike many great men, he had no desire to be thought great, and above all, he had no desire to be thought great in every thing. He did not despise the great and engrossing topics whichxall forth tha mighty minds of (SveTy age. He glanced at the subjects of leading public interest and utility, but his business was with the word of God — the Church of his Redeemer — the salvation of "his Tellow-men, and. he never saw that he had much time to spare from thesg. Stupendous objects. Capable as he undoubtedly was of tising to great distinction in any department of life that he might have selected, the grand aim 'of his intellect was use^ fulness, rathel: than notoriety. I will not say that he was indifferent to the honours of the Church, ot the commenda- P 158 T%e Rev. Dr. Mudd's Sermon. [Ser. 9. tions of the world — but I. will say, because I honestly believe, from a long observation of him, that no man thought less of popularity than he did, I know he loved the ap- probation of his friends, and gathered satisfaction from that of the great and good ; but bis mind was too lofty in its aim, and too vigorous in its course, to be swayed by those narrow considerations which prompt little minds to grasp at little things, that they may raise themselves into conse- quence. The leading characteristics of his mind were clearness and quickness of perception, followed by a vigour in execution rarely to be met with. When an exigency iifc- the Church demanded from him a prompt and energetic measure, there was no long course of reasoning required to determine him what that measure should be. With a rapidity of thought which few men can comprehend,, he looked over the whole ground before him, and his purposes were taken, his pen moved with, a celerity rarely equalled, and the public were in possession of his thoughts. To giva but a single instance from many that might be taken, it may be stated, that his " Apology for Apostolic Order and its Advocates" was written full twenty-three years since, while he was under the pain and exhaustion of severe disease ; and yet that work has been pronounced in Europe one of the ablest and most useful arguments in favour of Episcopacy Awhich modern controversy has produced. Th« critic will no doubt find defects in that work» and the captious disputant will discover faults ; but, after all, these defects and faults are those of a great and vigorous mond, prompted by a sense of duty to defend what it honestly believed. In fairtj there was no love of controversy for its own sake; fw no man ever had a more ardent derire for the quietude and serenity of retked life. But as Providence bad cast his let Ser. 9.] The Rev. Dr:Rudd's Sermon.. 159 upon a conspicuous theatre of action, lie could not slirink from any responsibility which his station created. Those who knew him most intimately, know that his mind was in- capable of descending to mean arid trivial objects. Those not in his immediate circle and confidence, but who judged of him from his language and his conduct with candour, cannot fail to ascribe to him great powers ot conception^ great boldness and vigour in execution. The principles of our departed and venerated Prelate^ like his mind, were clear and well defined. They were never disguised. From the first productions of his pen down to the last of his exertions, the same prominent sub- jects fixed his attention. He grew up in the Church which had his highest love, and those truths which constituted her distinguishing excellence, he regarded as possessing material importance, and claiming his open avowal as well as his steady illustration and defence. In the great truths of divine Revektioa — the fall and corruption of mankind — the atone- ment and mediation of the God-man Jesus Christ — the in- dispensable necessity of a radical change in the heart and aflfections, by the renewing and sanctifying operations of the Holy Ghost— the paramount importance of holiness of life in order to the attainment of the divine favour, no man was ever more distinct-^no one more forcible — no one more impressive. I appeal to those of you, my brethren, who heard the last sermon he ever uttered, for a justification of what I here say. Did you ever listen to a more explicit declaration of the immense importance of an immediate attention to the great business of securing your salvation through the sacrifice of Christ, the agency of the Holy Spirit moving the heart and producing godliness of living? In that discourse you saw one of the leading principles of Bishop 160 TheRev^Dr.Rudd's Setmm. [Ser. 9.. Hobart's theology-^it is the principle which first called up my admiration of the Episcopal Church, and for the ellstinctness of which I am indebted^ under God, to my well and long-tried friend. The particular to which I allude is the value attached to the ordinances of religion, as consti- tuting the means through a proper use of which the soul is to be brought to a true sense of her need, and nourished in the cultivation of sound understanding and devout affec-* tions. In other words, this lamented Prelate, entertaining, as he did, the most profound solicitude for the prevalence ef evangelical truth, regarded the provisions of the visible Church, apostolically constituted, as presenting the most clear and satisfactory method by which the understanding was to be enlightened, and the affections guided, renewed, and sanctified. It was a remark of bis on the day his last sickness commenced, that he could not but lament that Christians generally did not consider more attentively the importance of connecting practical and ardent piety with the use of the ordinances of Clu-ist's own appointment — the Steady application through his visible Church for the suc- cours and instructions of his grace. No man was farther than our beloved Diocesan from relying upon the ef5cacy of outward ordinances alone. Unaccompanied by divine grace, he never failed to declare, they would be hinder- ances rather than helps in the way to heaven. But having satisfied his own mind that our Divine Master had organized his Church with a direct view to the spiritual improvement of his followers— that in that Church there was to be, to the end of the world, an order of men for its government— that they were expressly appointed to explain, defend, and ad- minister those rites through which souls were to gather nutriment for the support of holy tempers, his constant Ser. 9.] The Rev. Dr. Rudd's Sermon, 161 ^■■■■■^■■■■■■■^■■iBHMaiMaa^H^BBaaaBaBH^aiiliaalllHtliillilliM desire was that all should improve these ofSces of mercy, and thus, through divinfr grace, be qualified for the presence of their Judge. His maxim was, the Word of God can only be truly preached, explained, and improved, through the Church of God. Those who may have thought that he sometimes gave unnecessary prominence to the latter, should remember that he regarded the two as emanating from the same divine authority, and that he held it a fearful thing to separate what God had joined together. We pass from the principles to the policy of the Right -Reverend Person whose loss we deplore. And here every one well acquainted with his character must allow that his course was always open, frank, and undisguised. He took no i?ircuitous measures, he indulged in no concealed inan* oeuvres for the furtherance of what he regarded important purposes. The moment he saw what he honestly believed to be error — ^the moment he witnessed movements of doubt- ful or dangerous expediency — he boldly and unequivocally took open ground — avowed his opinions and impressions, and ardently defended them. He stopped not to ask whether the view he took would advance his popularity or not. I know many have said he was too sensitive ; and those who were most about his person, most in his confidence, will not hesitate to- confess, that in the character of his mind there was a nervous temperament that displayed itself in great quickness of feeling ; but with all this sensitiveness, there was a singleness of purpose, a uniformity of opinion, and a magnanimity in action, very rarely evinced. While he most unequivocally preferred the doctrines, the institu* ' tions<, and usages of his own Church, and while he openly' deprecated every amalgamation which tended to cast those doctrines, institutions, and usages into the shade, and render P3 162 The Riv. Dr. Rudd's Sermon. [Ser. 9. them inefficient, no man was ever more cautious in avoiding every thing like an impeachment of the motives and piety of others. The world saw him as he was, decided and firm in his principles, undisguised in the avowal of them, never shrinking from his own responsibility. No man ever dis- played more true moral courage ; and the prosperity of the Church in his diocese must be allowed as an unanswerable evidence of the soundness of his policy, and that the blessing of God attended his labours, and crowned the untiring efforts of his zeal. In his affections and tempers. Bishop Hobart presented claims to admiration and love that no one could easily resist. While the splendour of his genius, the vigour of his intellect, and the extent and soundness of his learning, gave him exaltation in the estimation of the world, his amiable and engaging manners in social and private life, his affectionate and tender deportment in all the relations of friendship, and of blood and kindred, formed, after aU, the prevailing charm of his character. Those only can truly appreciate him, who have seen him when, released in some measure from the cares which almost incessantly preyed upon him, he gave himself to the enjoyment of the society of those he loved. In such hours there was a child-like simplicity, an ardour and tenderness, which many who knew him best will never forget.. They saw in him the unostentatious piety and elevation of the Christian, combining with all the exercises of chastened and controlled affection. Quick and impetu- ous as his temperament was, no man was ever more careful to avoid giving pain to others. Severe as were his censures, and explicit as was his language when he admonished, no man ever had a more happy talent in soothing the mind that he desired to improve and to guide. Of the motives of Ser. 9.J The Rev. Ur. Sudd's Sermon. 163 others he was the tenderest judge. In all the many, contro- versies into which he found himself led, you can rarely, if ever, discover hipa ascribing improper motives to his oppo- nents — mistaken, undoubtedly, he often thought them, but honestly mistaken he was always ready to believe them. And here it should be remarked, that in the discussion ,of all the points of theology and, expediency in which he . deemed it proper to be explicit and in earnest, he can never, I believe, be found to have commenced the contro- versy. When, in his capacity as a minister of Christ, he has deemed himself called upon for a certain course of instruction to the people under his care, he gave no reason- able provocation to those of different denominations. When these instructions have become objects of attack from others, we have always found him ready, and able to defend his views; and seldom have we seen the pen of controversy in a more able hand. Bt(t through the whole, aiident as he may have been, kindness of temper has marked his course^ and that kindness never left him till he ceased to know earthly things. But however engaging the qualities of his heart, and however exalted the powers of his mind, the richness of ,hjs character was seen in his piety. Without any blendings of fanaticism or ostentation, there was an ardour of religious feeling, and a strength of expression, that found their way to every well-disposed heart. It was impossible to listen to his preaching without a pgrsuasion, that to bring himself , and others to the fulness of Christian faith, and the fidelity of Christian practice, were the supreme objects of his desire. To humble the sinner at the foot of the cross — to exalt the- Saviour's love and mercy — ^to encourage and constantly invite the grace and power of the Holy Ghost — to move 164,, The. Rev. Dr. Enid's Sermon. [Ser. 5».. the heart to that obedience which should have for its end the renewal of its affections— to wean the souLfrom the earth, and direct its hopes, its aspirations, its desires, to the* heavenly world, were the supreme, the constantly ani- mating purposes of this departed.rainister of the New Tes- tameat. In all he has left behind, you will find this pre- vailing aim and desire. His whole life was a comment upon his doctrines. None but the most perverted or mis- informed can possibly find, in his conduct any thiog to destroy the piety of his character. He lived a life of ardent faith, of love to God, of labour for his Church ; and those wlio saw and heard him in his last days, will never cease to desire that they may be able to give the same exalted evidence of triumphant belief and controlling devotion of sold. Those who saw him in. those trying hours, cannot cease to say, animated by the peace and joy that he had, *' Let me die the death of the righteous, cind let my last end be like his." After all that has been ^d, shall I speak to you of the manner in which our venerated Bishop performed the duties of his ofiice 1 Ah ! who that ever heard him, that ever marked the peculiarly simple, yet solemn — the command- ing, yet tender and impressive character of his eloquence, that can forget it 1 He never stopped to weigh and mea- sure his performances by the rules of art. What he uttered, whether in his sermons or the services required of him, came warm from the heart, and every look and motion told you that he had forgotten himself in his desire to honour his . Divine Master, and to do good. No commendation of mine can give weight to his . most solemn instructions, and the manner in which he imparted them. From the characteristics I have imperfectly presented of Ser. 9.] The Rev. Dr. Rudd'i Sermon, 165 this great and good man, it would be natural to proceed to the notice of what he has accomplished. Though he la- boured under the pains and inconveniencies of a feeble con- stitution through his whole life, and though his years felt far short of the boundary to mankind, yet few men have done more, especially in the works of usefulness to the best interests of the world. In addition to many and severe duties in other fields, you have seen him moving through this wide-spread diocese, year after year, with unexampled activity, discharging the duties of his high office with a promptness, vigour, and effect, which excited the admira- tion of all. To these labours, under the divine blessing, is to be ascribed, in a very great measure, the advances of our communion. Through his whole life, and especially through the nineteen years of his Episcopate, it would seem that he thought' not of himself. His body and his mind were given to the Church of his God, with uncomplaining perseverance ; and ever as he went, his hands were open as his heart ; for he gave, even beyond what could reason- ably have been expected of him, to every object of benevo- lence or charity that came properly before him. Vain, my hearers, would the attempt be, to give the details of his kindness to the poor, his consolations to the sad, his com- forts imparted to the suffering.. But all his works on earth are done. You saw him but a few days since, in .this temple, performing the last act of his sacred office. You listened to his last sermon. Some of you were the last on whom he laid his hands in the ordinance of confirmation. Oh ! my brethren, will you ever forget that last discourse of this talented Bishop, this most eloquent of preachers, this best of men 1 Will you, on whom he laid his hands at the very hour when disease was marking his way to the 166 'I>ht Rev. Dr. Rudd's Sermon, [Ser, b. giaVe, ever forget the tender, tiie earnest, the pious, the eacouraging address which he uttered as you stood before the altar ?• Will not some of you, my hearers, regret this day, that you did not listen to the invitations of mercy, and kneel at tiije altar then, that you might have enjoyed that last laying on of hands — the benediction and prayers of that beloved and apostolic man l We will not stop now to reason with you on this point, but we will hope and pray that this severe visitation of God's providence may produce in you and in me, and in the whole Church, an increased desire to improve those blessings which are now within our reach. Truly, the Almighty calls loudly upon this congre- gation. In a few years three of those who have been yom* Rectors have been called to their last account. Northrup, M'Donald, aad Sitgreaves have closed their ministry ; and now, our Bishop has ended his labours, his spirit taking flight for heaven from our own abode. Sore, indeed, my brethren, is this wound to our Church, and the only conso- lation we can gather must be found in the hope and trust tha/t " He that hath wounded, will make us whole — He that hath bruised, will bind us up." I have spoken to you, brethren, of the worth of one dear to you and to me. I have spoken of him as 1 knew himj in the unreserved intimacy of a long friendship — as I have seen him in a high and sacred station — as I have observed him in the discharge of momentous and delicate duties — ^s I have marked him in other days ot pain an^ sickness — as I beheld him in his last hours, evincing the triumphs of an exahed Christian faith, unfolding the charms of a refined and affectionate temper, combined with the wdour 'and elevation of a most noble intellect. To some, my language may seem the partiality of a long standing Scr. V.l I'lie xiec j-rr. jn,uuu s aermviit 167 , ' .-» w. Jj - ' ^ove — be it so. My firm conviction is, that those who shall hgreafter read the life an4 history of my friend, will not consider what I have said as beyond the truth. He is> gone, and long will the Church mourn for him. May Go4 by his grace sanctify this deep bereavement to us aljw The Duty of being always ready. PREACHED IN TRINITY CHURCH, BOSTON, September 19, 1830, Being the first Sunday after THE DEATH OP THE aiGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. D. Bishop of New-York. OEORGE W. DOANE, A. M. AsuBtant Minuter of said Churcb. Published by request. He was, indeedi '^ a burning and a shining Mght," and rejoic» ing, as we all did, " for a season,?' in bis radiance, we may all feel darkened. And if He who gave him for our good, had not, in his own inscrutable, but never to be distrusted, wisdom, withdrawn him from us — we must all lament, with hearts that could not easily be comforted, for its disasteroHS and, to our dim vision, premature eclipee. John Henbs' Hobart was born in Philadelphia, on the 14th of September, in the year 1775. Having received his education, at Princeton College, together with its highest lionours, he, &r a time, acted as- one of its officers of in- struction. In 1798 he was admitted to holy orders, by the Right Kev. Dr. White, and entered at once upon the la- bours of the ministry, first in Pennsylvania, then at Hemp- stead, on Long-Island, one of the most obscure parishes im the state of New- York. But talents and virtues like bis were not to remain in obscurity : there is a lustre in them which the humblest station cannot repress. Having served for a short time in the parish of Christ Church, New- Brunswick, near Elizabeth-Town, in New- Jersey, (wber« he was married to his most estimable wife, now,' alas ! his mourning widow, the daughter of the Rev. Thomas Brad- bury Chandler, D. D.) He was in 1800, and in the 26th year of his age, settled as an assistant minister of Trinity Church, New- York — ^then, as now, tlie most ample i> its endowments, and the most powerful in its influence, of any' in our communion. This was a sphere to give his nobl» powers and generous dispositions fit scope and range of action ; and from that time his course has been ever in the public eye, and ever useful and honourable to the Clmi-ch, as it has been glorious to himself. The Protestant Episco^ Ser. 10,] The Rev. Mr. Doane's Sermon. 181 pal communion was at that time small and feeble, and some of the ablest champions of another Christian name were levelling against it the arrows of their most practised and determined archery. True to the promise which had bound him to her altars, to live and die by them, and strong in the confidence of his good cause, the youthful minister stood forth,* and, like the Israelitish shepherd, by the blessing of the God of truth upon his good right arm, put all their proud array to shame, to silence, and to flight. And from the day of that discussion, the controversy as to the character and claims of the Protestant Episcopal Church, with the exception of now and then A skirmish at the out- posts, has remained at rest ; and her altars strengthened; and her ministers multiplied, are offering, year after year, to an increasing host, the truths and consolations of religion pure and undefiled — the' sanctity, good order, and devotion of her primitive discipline and thrice-hallowed worship. In the year 1811, on the incapacity, by disease, of the venerable Bishop Moore, Dr. Hobart was raised to the Episcopate of New- York ; and the history of the American * Allusion is here made to the " Apology for Apostolic Order and its Advocates, occasioned by the strictures and denunciations of the Chris- tian's iMagazine" — a work which was equally the triumph of truth and charity, and in which the splendid talents and luminous logic of the author are beautifully relieved by a most Christian humility, and child-like in- genuousness and simplicity. It was in this book, at the close, that the apologist recorded that magnanimous and noble sentiment — " My banner is, Evangelic al Truth, Apostolic Orde^^ — a sentiment which should be inscribed upon the corner-stone of every church, and written, apiong the lines of life, in every Churchman's heart. In regard to it, let the author here record his humble suffrage, " Evangelical Truth, .Apostolic Or- der." — Those whom God has joined together, let no man put asunder! When I forsake them, or divide between them, may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, and my right hand forget her cunning ! R 18-i The Rev. Mr. Boane's Sermon. [Ser. 10. Church, from that peried, well displays how the wisdom of man an/i the blessing of God united in that choice. From that time, the advancement of the Episcopal interest in his own diocese has been rapid, constant, almost incredible. The clergy have increased from the 23 who were present at his election, to 134 ; the number of congregations has been multiplied in a proportion more than equal ; and the Churchi of the Apostles, not sustained by the weapons of a carnal warfare, but by the benign and holy influences of truth and reason, of charity and piety, has grown in favour with men, as rapidly as it has extended heneaih the favour of God. By his numerous and able writings, by his ser- vices in the general councils of the Church, by his devotion to all her institutions and interests, above all, by the tower of strength which was afforded to us in the solidity of his judgment, the sternness of his integrity, and the splen- dour of his name, the life of Bishop Hobart has been the common treasure and glory of us all, and generations of those who shall come after us, will rise up and call him blessed. But the labours in which he was so abundant, and we were so enriched, proved too much for him ; the con- stant attrition of the ever-active mind wore out the perish- able frame. Harassed by the anxieties, and exhausted by the labours, of a large and arduous parish, united to " the care of all the churches," Bishop Hobart's friends have long felt the necessity of some division or diminution of his duties : but his zealous spirit would not listen for a moment ; and resolved to give his last breath to the cause of his Master and of mankind,, be still prosecuted enterprises, and entered upon labours, which wore beyond Herculean strength. During the last summer he had planned and undertaken a visitation, unsurpassed, save in the Indian Ser. 10.] The Rev. Mr. Boane's Sermon. 188 labours of the lamented H'eber. It was but half completed, when a bilious fever laid him, far from home,* upon the bed of pain; and, after ten days' illness, at four o'clock on the morning of the last Lord's day, (September 13th,) his noble and devoted spirit entered upon that blessed " rest which reraaineth for the people of God." — Thus has fallen, prematurely for all but himself, the able scholar, the power- ful writer, the eloquent preacher, the man " without fear and without reproach," the excellent parent, the affection- ate husband, the kind friend, the true Christian patriot, the humble minister of Jesus, the laborious, faithful, honoured, and beloved' Prelate. Over his ashes, his parish, his diocese, the whole American Church, unite their tears. Christians of all names, forgetting, in the virtues of the man and labours of the Bishop, the conscientious differences of opinion, which he always openly avowed and fearlessly de- fended, bewail, with grief unfeigned and unrepressed, the loss, to our limited view, irreparable, which religion and humanity have thus sustained. But God is righteous, God is wise, God is merciful — and to his decrees, dark as they are to us, we bow in solemn reverence. Glorious for him the change which we deplore must certainly have been. He died as became his exalted talents, his eminent virtues, his fervent piety, his elevated office, his tremendous charge. He died as a Christian, as a Christian minister, above all, as a Christian Bishop, should desire to die. He fell, with his spear in rest, and with his armour on — upon the field of action, in the discharge of duty, in the fore-front of God's embattled host — fighting manfully, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus, against the world, and sin, and hell, the * At Auburn, New-York ; in the hosiiitable raanSion of his " frieml of thirty years," the Rev. Dr. Rudd. 184 TAe Rev. Mr. Doane's Sermon. [Ser. 10. glorious warfare of the Christian faith — reaching forward to that bright and amaranthine crown which God has pro- mised to the soul that overcomes. — Brethren, beloved in the Lord, while we lament his loss, let us emulate his ex- ample. Let us keep our " loins always girt," and our " lights always burning," and be ever ready, come when he will, to arise and meet the Lord. " Blessed," for ever blessed, " are those servants, whom the Lord, when he Cometh, shall find watching P' Submission to the Providence iff God enforced. A SERMOX, PEEACHED IN ST. PAUl's CHURCH, BALTIMORE, On Sunday, September 19, 1830, vsoTS biceivihq ihteluoence as THE DEATH RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. D. Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the State of New-York. WILLIAM EDWARD WYATT, D. D. Reetor of said Church. R3 SE2RMOX XI. THE REV. DR. WYATt's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. PSALM xlvi. 10. Be still, and know that I am God. Upon the establishment i5f David's throne, the heathen nations about Judea were filled with rage and terror. In his victorious but desolating career, cities had been burned, monarchs driven fi-om their kingdoms, vast armies extir- pated; and the people of Canaan at length combined to crush this hitherto resistless foe. In the psalm from which this passage is selected, and which appears to have been composed at the period spoken of, the inspired monarch has mingled his sense of present danger with the gratitude due for past deliverances. It is the expression of triumph- ant piety, teaching those who adopt it in their devotions to derive comfort under the most threatening aspect of events, from reflection upon the attributes of God ; to com- memorate to his praise the great mercies already wrought for his Church; and to assure their hearts that He who has so often glorified his name in her defence, will glorify it yet again. And in the conclusion, it represents Jehovah as addressing us by such dispensations, and, in the words 188 Tht Rev. ifr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Ser. 11. of the text, proclaiming the just and resistleiss sovereignty of his providence. My brethren, there are many events still taking place in the world, wnich manifest indisputably, in their causes, operation, and final results, the agency of this gracious Providence. But there are others also, which severely try the faith thus acquired : and when, through reflection and principle, we have constrained ourselves to acknowledge in them an overruling divine power, we cannot conceal, notwithstanding, from our own hearts, that his dispensations are sometimes dark and inexplicable ; and we exclaim with the Psalmist, " Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known" A series of melancholy occurrences, within no lengthened period in the Church, has had a tendency to awaken such reflections.' And that recent event, painfully prominent in the public mind, which has covered our sanctusury this day with mourning, more than any similar occurrence, fills the dwellings of Zion with grief and consternation. If the principalities and powers which sway the darkness of this world, triumph in a suspension of the most efiicient means of grace, they must exult, when the pastor of a flock, hold- ing stations in socifcty which render their devout example eminently salutary to others ; when the ecclesiastical head of a wide district ; when the patriarchal bond of union between the clerical members of such a district ; when an illustrious practical evidence of the spirit of religion ; when a missionary of the Gospel, clothed with apostolic powers, venerated for the purity of his life, the kindness and urbanity of his deportment, the energy and dignity of his intellect, the fervent piety of his spirit— they must have a stern exultation, I say, when such an one is laid mute and Ser. 11.] The Rev. Dr. WyatVs Sermon: 189 powerless beneath his altar. Surely it indicates no peculiar proneness to despondency to imagine, that before such losses can be repaired, such offices again discharged, such order, and arrangement, and salutary influence restored, the foe to God and man may enjoy many a triumph. We forget, at such a moment, the all-pervading spirit, and the all-disposing hand, of an unseen but gracious Providence ; we forget the precious assurance, that " not a sparrow falleth to the ground unnoticed by the universal Father ;" and we mourn in repining and dismay at the frustration of our' hopes, as if it were given to chance, or to man, with wanton hand, to demolish the noble fabric which God had reared and consecratod for himself. It is when we are thus agitated, that a voice from the oracle reaches the conscience with an awful and yet kind authority, proclaim- ing, " Be still, and know that I am God !" I do not propose, at this time, unprovided as I am with a knowledge of the circumstances of his fatal illness, and of the dates of som& of the early events of his life, to speak minutely of the excellent qualities which distinguished the Prelate for whose irreparable loss we are mourning. But, after a brief allusion to the frequency, and to the distressing nature of these recent dispensations in the Church, it will not be deemed inappropriate, in the view of them, to in- culcate the duty of uncomplaining submission to the wisdom and sovereignty of God's providence. The events to which I allude, have been singularly fre- quent and mournful. From various causes, the ministry of the Protestant Episcopal Church in this country has never been sustained in numbers adequate to the extent of her demands. Consisting in a gi'eat measure of the intelligent and higher classes of society, the qualifications demanded 190 The Rev. Dr. Wydtt's Sermon. [Ser. 11. of her ministry are of a high grade ; while, at the same time, to the youth of our community, the paths of ambition, the pursuits of professional science, the means of rapidly amass- ing wealth, the seductive engagements of worldly pleasure, are all in a corresponding degree open; and lamentably few are the^arents who, like Hannah and Elkanah, bring their sons as offerings to the Lord. Probationers are there- fore received among us with devout thankfulness ; they arfte reared with anxious care ; their services, iii many dioceses, are sought assiduously. In the western states, the offspring of the Episcopal community — a greater multitude than that which awakened the compassion of the Saviour in the wilderness — are hungering and fainting for the bread of life. Those few missionaries who go thither, rather i:reate new stations than supply the existing demand ; and many, every where, are continually attaching' themselves to other asso- ciations, from the impossibilily of obtaining an adequate supply for our own altars. At such a moment, it is natural to feel deeply the loss which the Church sustains, even in the impaired health and broken constitutions of those who, thus incapacitated for labour, are seeking in foreign lands the restoration of their powers. But far more deadly must she lament the fatal ravages which have beeff permitted, not only among the young and ordinarily endowed, but among the valiant and the mighty men, whose shields have been pierced in the battle. Since that most afflictive event occurred which removed, even from this altar and this diocese, one* whom we can never reflect upon without veneration and tenderness, I cannot say how many of our ministry have been the victims of disease and death. The • Bight Rev. James Kemp, D. D. Ser. IL] The Rcv..Dr.WyatCs SermoTH IrOl Bishop of NorthrCarolina,*- equally eminent for the fervour of his piety and the vigour of his intellect, in the midst of his years, just as he was extending his sphere of usefulness widely and most efficiently into the west, was arrested by the summons to the tomb. Which of you who had been permitted to receive the Gospel, equally majestic and gracious, ,from his lips, was not moved to exclaim when he was taken away, " How are the mighty fallen in the midst of thejjjatde!' How are the weapons of war perished!" I shall not attempt to enumerate the losses which the Church has suffered; in her more distant sections; but it will be recpUected, that of those who attended the last ecclesiastical Convention in this city, two, at that time vigorous and healthful, are already in the world of spirits. In the diocese of New- York, since a similar occasion, seven have closed their ministry in death ; one of whom, after the most ela- borate education, improved by foreign observation and study, had just returned, to bring the brightest talents, the soundest principles, and the most fascinating virtues, into the service of the altar. I might speak also of others of my brethren who, recently called to render up their stew- ardshipt rest from their labours. But this last, unexpected, desolating event, awakens all our sympathy, and engrosses all our consideration. Unbelief triumphs ; the foes of the Church rejoiee; piety mourns; the timid despond; and those who would most submissively adore the appointments of the Divine Being, can only exclaim with the Psalmist, " How unsearchable are thy. judgments, and thy ways past finding out!" But Jehovah has chosen to make " darkness his pavilioa • Right Rev. J. S. Ravenscroft, D. f). 192 The Rev. Dr. Wyatt's Sermon. [Ser. 11. iabout him." If we could always understand his purposes, our measures, if not our schemes, would tend to frustrate tl^em. The universe is his dominion ; and we, se^ng but a small portion of it, unable to discover the relation which the several parts bear to each other, can form no just con- ception of the best mode of carrying on his gracious designs. He has therefore a right to the homage of our unhesitating and unrepining trust in him. But, on such occasions as the present, we feel the need of examining our principles ; of strengthening our trust, and consoling our hearts, by the suggestions of religion. In the remainder of this discourse, therefore, while I am considering what is meant by- the sovereignty which God claims and exercises in the affairs of our world, I shall show the grounds of our obligation also, to cherish a spirit of unqualified and uncomplaining submission. The nature and extent of the providential agency of God may be in some degree illustrated, by considering that it arises, not merely from his power to dispose, and right ta govern, each one of us ; but also from the equal relation which he holds to the rest of his creatures. He is the uni- versal Father ; and it is his province so to overrule events in the history of each individual, that they may be compatible with social order and general prosperity. This he does without infringing our moral liberty, by his control of natu- ral causes, or the laws of the universe : this he does also by such a control of our will as a judicious friend employs, who, by his advice and kind co-operation, guides the deci- sions, mollifies the passions, and aids the virtue of another, although he may be unable to exercise any but a moral sway. That we may shorten our days by violence or ex- cess, and prolong them by prudence and skill ; that we Ster. 11.] The Rev. Br. Wyatfs Sermon. 193 may perpetrate atrocious, no less than comparatively tri- vial, faults; or refrain, through the-influence of principle, from drunkenness, dishonesty, revenge, and other offences against God and man, will not admit a question. Argu- ment could not render it more certain : ' sophistry, how- ever ingenious, could not cause a man to doubt it. The sovereignty which God exercises, then, is confined, by his «wn adopted system, to such a restraint upon our designs and measures, and such a disposal of other circumstances over which we have no control, that his general purposes in the government of the world shall be carried on ; that his promises to individuals shall toe fulfilled ; while the sup- ply of the materials or instrumentality is left, in a measure, to our own wisdom or folly. God's providence is a super- vision of what is taking place upon the earth : it so sancti- fies the effects of the agency of the wicked upon the for- tunes of the righteous, that what was perhaps meant as evil, and what he will fearfully punish as evil, in its operation upon believers may prove the highest mercy. " He makes the wrath of man to praise him. The remainder of wrath he restrains." This providence is universal, "Whither shall I go from ihy Spirit 1 or wiiither shall 1 flee from thy presence % If I climb up into heaven, thou art there : if I go down to hell, thou art there also* And if I take the wings of the morning, and remain in the uttermost parts of the sea-; even there also shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me." This providence is particular, that is, it beholds every action of every man, every thought of every heart r it numbers the hairs of our head ; and the minutest as well as the greatest of God's creatures is sub- ject to the same laws— to the same infinite, and wise, and JHerciful guidance and control. In reflecting tipon the pri- 194 The Rev. Dr. WyaWs Sermon. [Ser. 11. vilege which Jehovah condescends to claim in the disposal of our afTairs, we are to avoid the imputation to him of an agency which would make him the cause of sin, and of its calamitous effects : and, on the other hand, we are to avoid denying him such a providential interposition in protecting and blessing us, as the promises of his word lead us to ex- pect — as our hearts, in their trembling despondency, feel to be necessary for us. We are not forbidden to believe that an event had its origin in sin, and should be deemed a calamity calling for the deepest lamentation, merely be- cause the sovereignty of God did not prevent its occurrence. What are the results of his special appointment, and what the fruits of human agency, permitted and overruled to the advancement of his purposes, he reveals not, and therefore we can never know. " Secret things belong unto the Lord our God ;" and let us be careful, lest, in seeking to be wise above what is written, we assign to the will of the most holy God what he numbers among the transgressions of his re- bellious creatures. Forget not that " the Lord God Omni- potent reigneth;" but let this conviction be cherished with a reverential awe, forbidding us to pry into things hidden from us. ' The sovereignty of Jehovah is also exercised in the length of the probation which he allows to each one of us. Of the laws which govern the divine mind in this matter we can- not discover the slightest intimation. Myriads are brought upon this mortal stage of existence, only to pass off of it again. Myriads, at the moment in which all that was pre- paratory to their usefulness and virtue seems to have beea accomplished, are cut off unexpectedly, abruptly ; and every calculation that affection, the nature of things, the conditioB of society, the dependence of individuals in the domestic S«r. 11.] The Rev. Br. WyaWs Sermon. 195 circle, would justify us in forming, is frustrated and proved delusory. The infirm, the decrepid, the lunatic, the profli- gate burden upon society, very often survives ; while they whose example, and precept, and active instrumentality, scattered blessings in their wide and distinguished path, are taken away as with, a whirlwind ; innocent pleasures are abandoned, stations vacated, duties forsaken, and the community left in silent consternation, gazing up at the receding chariot and the opening heaven. Ignorant as we are of many of the divine purposes, we know that there is no caprice, no contingency with him. In the uncertainty which invariably attends the duration of our lives, we dis- cover much wisdom and mercy. Did we uniformly behold " signs of the approach of the Son of man," in what a spirit of daring irreligion would men commonly wait for the ap- pearance of those signs 1 But it is not possible for any in- dividual now to procrastinate the great business of life, in expectation of a future and more favourable opportunity of fulfilling it, without incurring a guilt which wears the aspect of reckless folly, or infidel defiance of heaven. Venture not to form a plan for the future in this respect. Presume not to prescribe the opportunities and years which God shall allow you to become qualified for the enjoyment of his promises. This only you know, " Now is the accepted time." There can be no injustice in the divine decrees, if they should no/ spare the procrastinator another hour ; or the sovereignty of those decrees would equally discover their legitimate exercise, in permitting him to drag out a frivolous old age, as devoid of justifying faith as his youth and manhood had been. We should carefully weigh the claims of God's sove- reignty, in relation to the extent and spirituality of the 196 The Rev. Dr. WyaWs Sermon. [Ser. H. Christian law. Men find much in that law to contend against, much to explain away^ much that they silently overlook. I allude not here to aberrations and frailties which call forth the contrite tears of the best servants of God. But, of those who would esteem the charge of infi- delity a cruel reproach, are there not many who, notwith- standing, neither pretend nor design to practise all its du- ties ; who dispute the wisdom of some of the most sacred institutions of Christianity ; and who deem much of the heavenly-mindedness, the self-denial, the forgiveness, the love and practice of prayer, the religious zeal, which we find inculcated in the Gospel, as unattainable virtues, in- junctions not wisely adapted to our condition and abilities? There is a difficulty in the minds of some, in admitting the simplest and most intelligiblej and yet the most radically important . trutli in the Bible :, I mean: — that God will give salvation freely, for Christ's sake, to those who could never have merited it by their works. It is his gracious procla- mation, that " being justified by faithj we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ ;" " that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit ;" and that " by grace ye are saved, throi^h faith, and that not of your- selves — it is the gift of God." Such are the terms of the Gospel covenant which Jehovah in his sovereignty has or- dained ; and in answer to the proud and rebellious reason- ings of some men on the subject, we can only say, " Who art thou that repliest against God ? Shall the thing formed, say to him that formed it. Why hast thou made me thus t" The grounds of our obligation to submit without repining to the appointments of God's providence, need not surely be enforced at much length. Helpless and dependent Ser. 11.] The Rev. Dr. Wyaifs Sermon. 197 creatures as we are, " the weakness of God is stronger tlian men ;" and what infatuation can be greater than to desire that our security and happiness should be in the keeping of our own foresight and sagacity 1 We speak of the despotism of princes — of the talent which belongs to some men for controlling agents and events — of the might of the muscular arm — of the iron constitution. If a single fibre be relaxed in the arm of those despots, if a single nerve vibrate with too acute a sensibility in the brain, if the minutest excoriation should fester in the lungs; how soon may every evidence of the boasted manly, or princely, or intellectual power, vanish " as a dream, when one awaketh !" Remove the object of your most impassioned solicitude, and daily prayers, and never-dying vigilance and tenderness, to a neighbouring dwelling, to the next chamber, and what is the extent of your power, at such brief space, to guard it from the most awful calamities 1 Fortify your abode, and bind your person in armour,, and surround yourself by mailed troops, to whom interest,, and ambition, and love, may impart a ceaseless, watchfulness and zeal ; and then lift up your head and look for an un- failing defence from the desolations of the tempest, from the pestilence walking in darkness.. Why need we speak of agents so mighty, to cast into ruin a being so powerless as man ? We must every day, after all our precautions, confide not only our comfort and property, but our health, . and safety, and life also, to the discretion of the ignorant and rash, to the care of the feeble or the vicious. Bring these attributes of our nature and condition into close con-, trast with the eterntil self-existence of the Almighty. Before- the worlds were framed by his word, before the most an-. cJent of the orders of ministering spirits were called into S2 198 The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Ser. 11. existence, before the li^t was, before there was any thing created, God had beheld an eternity rolling its silent ages at the foot of his throne.- " He only has immortalitj', dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto." How then must He look upon the presumption which so often accompanies us in our frailty and helplessness ! Let us carry the tribute of willing trust and submission, and place it at the footstool of Jehovah. The ignorance and fallibility which characterize our na- ture, furnish an argument equally strong for submission and trust directed towards God. We are ignorant of what is passing in our own bodies : we carry about us, for months and years, some derangement of the inward system, some distempered organ or gland ; and after days of languishing and nights of agony, we only know that we are tortured — that we are the victims of an inscrutable agency, which skill can neither control nor detect. We are ignorant of the direct tendency of many of the providential occur- rences tsiking place about us, and we mourn, with impa- tience and repining, what God has ordained for our welfare : we exult, with a presumptuous confidence^in what, after the- revolution of a few short months, may prove to be the chastisement of our folly. Still more emphatically, however, does the guilt which- we can neither deny nor atone for, urge upon the con- science the duty of casting ourselves, in uncomplaining submission, before the awful Disposer of our destinies. Let not the criminal, against whom conscience, and the sacred code, and the eternal attributes of the Judge, pro- nounce a fearful verdict, challenge the disposal of his own life, and person, and privileges. If, upon an examination of all these standards of truth, you find a verdict of guilty, Ser. ll.J The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. 199 deplorably guUty-j against your own soul, arraign not the mysterious dispensations of heaven. Whatever may have' taken place, whatever may yet be reserved for you, in the wise allotments of Providence, murmur not ; dispute hot with your Judge ; and in your darkest hours, hear his majestic but friendly voice admonishing you, " Be still, and know that I am God !" If to sustain without repining the ordimjry vicissitudes of the world, we require the aid of these principles, surelythey cannot be needlessly applied under the bereavement which the Church has just experienced, when the inquiry— God grant that it may not be a presumptuous one! — when the inquiry naturally arises. Why has a wise, and gracious, overruling Providence permitted this 1 But, brethren, it is not only submission which such dis-^ pensations inculcate. '> Amidst aU. the tumuk Ocea'si&ned by engagements of profit or pleasure, 'amidst^all-"the cares an*! schemes which' may now seem so necessary or agreeable? the doings of God in the w^jrld are designed to rebuke and chasten our inconsideration : and from every opening' tomb this admonition is designed to reach the conscience,' " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wis- dom, in the grave, whither thou goest." To the believer, however, this assurance is as consoling as it is salutary. Are you sometimes almost prone to despond, in looking forward to the long conflict with sorrow and change, to the long series of self-denial, to the unintermitted exercises of a rigorous faith, which the providence Of God and your Christian calling may impose upon you 1 Over all these the love of Christ and the hope of heaven are able to shed a sacred dignity and charm, representing them as the 200 The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Ser. 11. privileges of the believing soul. But were it not thus, as the happy experience of so many martyrs and saints have- proved it to be, the time of your probation is certainly short; and your task may be remitted earlier than the ordinary calculations of life lead you to expect. " You know not what shall be on the morrow." That future which you anticipate with sadness, and imagine to be clouded with cares and sorrows, may be passed in the un- clouded presence of God and his Christ. A few more trials, something more of that sanctifying discipline which you are called to encounter in an intercourse with the un- believing world, some more sighs extorted by the experi- ence of your own frailty, and the Lord shall be thine ever- lasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Let your acquaintance with the former eflScacy of the grace of your Redeemer, and the countless instances of his providential care and compassion, inspire you with confidence in committing yourselves for the future to his holy keeping. His love is an exh^ustless fountain ; his covenant an everlasting refuge. Fear not, then, the unseen dispensations that he may have in store for you. " Neither life, nor death, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers^ nor things present, nor things to come, shall be able to- separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus." But be careful " not to fall from your own steadfastness." The promise is, " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life." Live, then, consoled and animated by habitual contemplation of the near and rapid approach of your glorious inheritance ; live, " as seeing him that is invisible;" and remember, that the intercepting veil which conceals from you now all that unspeakable glory, may be drawn aside as quickly and as gently as the Ser. 11.] The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. 201; dark mists of " the morning spread upon the mountains" are dispersed by the rising sun. Then shall you behold again, and embrace again, those that have departed hence in the triumphs of Christian faith. Oh the joy of that hour ! Oh the rapture of the song of the redeemed ! Oh the spiri- tuality of that worship which we shall then together celebrate, at the very foot of the throne, in the very presence of the Lamb, in the midst of the great multitude, " which none fan number," of angels and archangels, of prophets, and martyrs, and apostles, and saints, and brethren, and friends; all in one holy congregation, beneath the vault of one vast temple, in the everlasting Zion of our God. BrethreI^, seeing that all these things shall be dissolved, and that we have " these exceeding great and precious promises," wha;t manner of persons ought we to be in " all holy conversatinii and godliness 'J" Christian Zeal exemplified. A SERMOX, ^REACHED IN ST. PAUl's CHURCH, BALTIMOBI:, On Sunday, September 26, 1830, BEING A SKETCH OF TUE LIFE AND CHARACTER OF THE RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. R. Bishop of the Protestant Episuopal Church in the State of New-York. WILLIAM EDWABD WYATT, D. D. Rector of said Chui'ch. 8GRMO]9r XII. fHE REV. DR. WYATT's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 1 SAMUEL iv. 13. His heart trembled for the ark of God. Welcome then the hour which shall bring, iii the tomb, exemption from sorrow and repose from toil* If every path in life is rugged with cares, and every pursuit liable to terminate in disappointment and vanity ; if our social enjoyinents and privileges leave the heart " cumbered with serving ;" and St. Peter's rejoicing was, that he was a " partaker of Christ's sufferings ;" and the affectionate zeal of St. Paul constrained him to wish himself " accursed for his brethren's sake ;" and the priest at Shiloh " trembled" in his holy solicitude " for the ark ;" then let our rejoicing be, that " there remaineth a rest." If we may not hope to approach " the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God," without this deep disquietude, these consuming cares, since the Saviour'^i passage to it was through the humiliations of an impoverished state, and the 'Paintings of a weary nature, and the treachery of thankless followers, and the buffetings of a ferocious soldiery, and thfe aliguish of a bloody cross, then let us be assured that trial, T 306 The Rev. Dr. Wt/att's Sermon. [Ser. 12. and not triumph, is our portion here ; and that the reward of faith is reserved for us " within the veil." But how elevated the character of him, who, amidst perpetual change, solicited by pursuits which tend to agitate ajid ensnare us, has become independent, in a great measure, of the results of the minor enterprises of life ; and in his prosecution of one great object, as exalted as it is durable, and as satisfying as it is exalted, carries the whole tribute of his life to God ! Such, to the venerated Prelate whose unexpected and most lamented death was announced to you on the last Sunday, was the enterprise of advancing the prosperity of Zion. Of him emphatically might it be said, " he loved the Church." To her cause he brought the noble offering ** of his fervent spirit, his vigorous intellect, his ceaseless activity. Undaunted by personal opposition ; heei^ess of reproach, of health, of property ; almost suppressing the warm affections which were enkindled in him in domestic life ; all his powers and affections were concentrated in one mighty and lasting impulse ; and without despondency, but in the intensity of his most engrossing solicitude, " he trem- bled for the ark of God." Far happier was he, in the destiny allotted him by Pro- vidence, than the holy seer of whom these words are re- corded in our text. Eli, a high priest of the race of Itha- mar, was possessed by a spirit of deep and holy devotion to the sanctuary j and the judgments of God, denounced against his house for the wickedness of his sons, moved him less than the injuries of a dishonoured religion. Upon one occasion, when the Israelites had gone out to battle against the Philistines, they carried with them the ark of the covenant, in the belief that its presence would secure Ser. 12.] The Rev. Dr. WyaWs Sermon. 307 them victory. The aged priest sat at the gate of the city, to receive the earliest intelligence of the fate of the battle ; " for he trembled for the ark of God." And when a mes- senger arrived from the disastrous field, and in hurried accents announced that " Israel had fled," the venerable seer yielded not to his consternation. When it was added that there had been " a great slaughter of the people," his spirit was not broken ; and he was told, " Thy two sons, Hophni and Phineas, are dead ;" but his heart sustained him even under the gush of parental tenderness. But at length it was said, " The ark of God is taken. And it came to pass, when the messenger made mention of the ark of God, Eli sank down, and fell from off the se»t back- ward, and he died." Such was the consuming force of his zeal for the welfare of Zion. And similar, my brethren, was the spirit which seemed to animate and govern the life of the Prelate whose history and dying moments I design to offer, in a brief sketch, to your consideration this morning. In selecting a passage as the basis of a discourse which should be characteristic of this eminent divine, and tend to recommend for your imitation the excellent qualities by which he was distinguished, a doubt for a moment arose whether, at this distance from the scene of his immediate ministry, the claim of such a subject would be acknowledged in its due force. But every hour since the event was gene- rally known, serves to remove the needless apprehension ; and in every section of the Church, the friends of apostolic truth and order mingle their lamentations, under a sense of their common and irreparable loss. It had also occurred to me, that perhaps the address of one who, like your present preacher, cannot at such a moment wholly merge his pri- vate feelings in his public duty; who cannot speak of the 308 The Rev. Dr. WyatVs Sermon. [Ser. 12. pre-eminent High Priest but in the language of a grateful pupil ; who cannot recall to his mind the brilliant official qualities of the deceased, unattended by the fascination which his social and domestic virtues shed over his charac- ter — might not meet a due correspondence of sensibility in your bosoms. But the circumstance under consideration seems to have awakened sympathy in all. Age heis been kindled into tenderness ; sectarianism casts aside the jea- lousy of its character ; the public prints have combined t« deck with tributes, proud though unavailing, the tomb of the patriot Christian ; and every where " a voice of wail- ing is heard out of Zion : How are we spoiled ! how are "we gra^tly confounded, for death is come up into our win- dows, and entered into our palaces \ For the mountains will 1 take up a weeping, and for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation." " O thou sword of the Lord, how long will it he ere thou be quiet? Put up thyself inta thy scabbard, rest, and be still." But before I shall enter upon the narrative — designed^ God knows, not as eulogy, but for our improvement — it may be proper tp show the application which the text will admit to the characteristic principles of Bishop Hobart vo, the discharge of his ministry. He believed the Church, the Ark of God, to be endan- gered in its purity and influence by two opposite descrip- tions of error ; and against those he directed the force of his vigorous and enthusiastic mind. , First, he entertained the deepest apprehension of the effects upon the general influence of Christianity^ of the somewhat popular system inculcating " partial redemption." In his controversial writings no topic roused him to as great a degree of pathos and energy as the promise of universal pardon to the peni> Ser. 12.] The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermtn. 209 tent, through a Saviour's blood. No speculative error called forth a language of as stern reprobation as that which portrays the Almighty Father dooming the helpless creatures of his hand to an inevitable perdition. The opposition which his " Companion to the Altar," and some other of his earliest productions, received from eminent Calvinistic divines, unavoidably drew from him an exhibi" tion of the tendency of their system ; and he appeared always to feel that he was defending the vital interests of Christianity, in showing its hostility to tenets which are revolting to the honest and amiable convictions of the heart. How just does it appear to attribute the melancholy predominance of Socinianism in the New-England states to the re-action which the austere principles of the Puritans had produced 1 What can more surely subserve the cause of infidelity, than those views of the Gospel which, though sometimes regarded as peculiar indications of vital piety, exhibit as gloomy, and vengeful, and despotic, the Being whom the Scriptures denominate " Love 1" Not less anxious was Bishop Hobart to exhibit Chris- tianity as a system awakening the strongest affections of our nature. From the unimpassioned faith of the moralist, from the heartless speculations of the philosophizing be- lieveir, from the barren routine of Pharisaical ceremonies and exercises, both his principles and feelings caused him to revolt. And while, with a trembling solicitude, he guarded the Gospel from the reproach of fanaticism on the one hand, he was not less zealous to cherish a spirit of impassioned devotion on the other. How obviously were the duties of his ministry sustained by the deep impulses of feeling, as well as by the obligations of his office ! How incontestably were the truths which he proclaimed the T2 210 Tli4 Rev. Dr. Wyatt's Sermon. [Ser. l± consol9.tions of. hjs heart, as weH as the convictions of his ""'l?^^'"i'"g ' Himself the man of science, the companion of the most distinguished professional men in the wide ^sti-ict over which he presided, he carried to the aUar, in Jiheir presence, the homage of the most grateful and rever- ential worship. It was his practical " confession before men," that that deserves not the name of Christianity, — can never prove a " justifying faith," which, content with the speculations of the closet, refuses its lowliest adorations hefore the cross of the Redeemer. ; . There was yet, however, another characteristic feature in the ministry of the deceased Prelate, which illustrates the justice of the application of the words of the text. He entertained the highest reverence /or tke authority of the institutor in the outward ordinances of the^ Gospel; and " he trembled for the ark of God," when he beheld the supine indifference, or the infidel boldness, with which the Uberalism of the present day would set aside as trivial, what God has vot^chsafed to consecrate and defend, t haye remarked, that there was about him at all times, tind it wi^l be seen accompanying him with an affecting lustre in his latest dying hour, a warmth of spirit utterly incom- patible with what we denominate Formality. But yet there was never one whp maintained a more consistent, manly, decided defence of the forms of religion, and of alj the outwE^rd institutions hy which its graces are administer- ed. The indispensable chai-acter of the apostolic priest- hood; thenecessity of an unbroken succession; theeflScacy ef sacraments ; the incomparable excellence of the liturgy of the Church ; the danger and criminality of a temporizing policy in these things ; the sacred obligation of vows of conformity and obedience taken at the ordination of th$ Ser. 13.] The Rev. Dr. WyatVs Sermon. 211 priesthood ; these were points which he hesitated not to recommend with all the force of his mind, and to insist upon with all the authority of his office. And he alleged that the Church of our fathers has more to fear from indif- ference among ourselves to these considerations, and from a desire to propitiate popular favour by withholding them, than from the open hostility of contending sects. Out of opposite views on these subjects, the maintenance of which belongs emphatically to the Church that he so ably served, have grown all the evils of disunion, all the distrust that others have been led to entertain of the spirituality and efficacy of our doctrines,, and all the retarded progress in numbers and influence which must attend " a house divided against itself," That the Episcopal Church is an ecclesi- astical body holding distinctive principles; that the main- tenance of these is compatible with the exercise of ' the kindest charities towards others entertaining different views ; that an attempt to obliterate these distinctive features, or to amalgamate, by a forced external association of sects, where there are known to he opposite tastes, principles, and habits, can only end in wider alienation and personal hostility ; and that each denomination of believers, honestly pursuing its own sacred objects in its own quiet and unob- trusive way, is most likely to promote inward piety and a general dissemination of the Gospel : these are principles, the adoption of which, in his sober practical wisdom and long experience, he believed essential to the prosperity of the Church. And " he trembled for the ark of God" when he discovered the influence of a foreign spirit, or the love of change ; respect for the caprices of public opinion, or the frivolity of those who, caring not for the principles of flie Gospel, seek only the gratification of their taste in 212 The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Ser. 12. offices of worship, insinuating themselves into the bosom of the Church. Such are those characteristic principles in the ministry of this eminent Father of the Church, which are peculiarly designed in the application to him of the words of the text. So much is already;before the public in relation to the incidents in the life and last iUness of Bishop Hobart, that the sketch now to be offered need not occupy a very considerable portion of your time. He was a native of Philadelphia, and graduated at Princeton with the highest honours of the college. A few months were passed in the pastoral charge of a church in Pennsylvania, and of a small village in the diocese of New-York, when he was Called, in 1800, to those associate churches in the city, in "which he continued until the period of his death. Uniformly devout, intellectual, fervent, the estimation in which he was held was never affected by the successive changes and competitions i^hich so large a city must afford. And from the day of his appointment, his pre-eminent usefulness and •popularity in the pulpit never ceased, and never declined. In 1811, upon the illness and disability of Bishop Benjamin Moore, of that diocese, it was proposed that Dr. Hobart should be appiointed" an assistant in the Episcopal ofSce. His election took place under circumstances which strik- ingly exhibited the inflexible confidence of the public in his worth, and the high estimation in which his talents and piety were held ; and, together with the present venerable Bishop of the Eastern diocese, he was consecrated in Trinity Church, New- York. This was a season of deep anxiety to the friends of Primitive Truth aftd Order ; and it was only the accession of those excellent men to the Episcopal office which removed an apprehension, arising' Sep. 12.] The Rev. Dr. 'Wyatfs Semen. 213 from the advanced age and infirmities of several of the Bishops, that, to perpetuate the succession, it might be necessary again to apply to Europe. Bishop Hobart en- tered at onse, with all his native energy and zeal, upon the duties of his new and most important station; and the subsequent and unexampled growth of the Church in that state ; the augmentation of the number of country_parishes,, and of the clerical body; the multiplied and prosperous Episcopal congregations in the city, now amounting altoge- ther to twenty-one; their firm attachment to the distinctive principles of the Episcopal communion, which, through the medium of his writings, more than from any other cause, are there widely and satisfactorily appreciated — bear testi- mony to his faithfulness, ability, and zeal. How uniformly does it appear that Divine Providence, in wisdom and mercy, raises up men peculiarly gifted, to meet peculiar exigences of communities and nations! Our Church, in .consequence of the political relation which had formerly existed between it and the government from which we haVe separated, had continued to encounter prejudices, and nds- apprehensions highly unfavourable to her growth and pros- perity. The perfect understanding which Bishop Hobart possessed of her pure and apostolic system of doctrines ; his familiar acquaintance with the writings of the early fathers, by which so many important points in that system are elucidated ; his spirited and scholastic mode , of investiga- tion — enabled him promptly to throw off injurious imputa- tions from the Church, to expose the mistakes of ignorance and prejudice, and to challenge for her doctrines that veneration to which they are so eminently entitled. Among the controversies in which he was providentially engaged, •there was one, however, which, in this section of the country, 214 The Rev. Dr. WyaWs Sermon. [Ser. 12. has been often and unaccountably misapprehended^ It related to the most efficient mode of disseminating a know- ledge of the sacred Scriptures. It has been already named, as among the principles which his experience and practical wisdom led him to maintain, that all Christian deoomina- tions can most advantageously conduct their own religious institutions, unfettered by connexion with other societies ; and he extended this principle to the management of the Bible Society, Hence, no doubt, by some strange perver- sion of what he has said or written, he has been represented as unfriendly to the distribution of the word of God. No reproach could be more unjust. He was himself, to the hour of his death, the active and zealous president of a Bible Society, and would have given the sacred volume to every member of the human family, as the best gift of God to man. ■Ctfthe fascination of his ordinary deportment in society, of the kindness and cordiality of his uniform manner, of his frank and manly avowal of his sentiments, none could fail to be conscious, upon the slightest acquaintance with him. But'the power and tenderness of his social affections could not be as generally known. Incapable of cherishing unaraiable feelings .towards his most inveterate assailants, he gave to the friends of his bosom an enthusiastic regard. Wfeile to the flock of Christ he was a' Cliief Shepherd, in vigilance, tenderness, and efficiency, to the pastors of it he united the kindness of a brother with paternal, solicitude and care ; '''holding up the weak, healing the sick, binding up the broken, bringing i again the outcasts, seeking the lost." Hearing that one Of his clergy, a man of plain un- derstanding but genuine worth, in a country parish, was esteemed dangerously ill, he immediately procured a con- Ser. ia.3 The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. 215 veyance to him, administered with his own hands the last offices of religion, and leaviwg the chamber of the dying priest, the Bishop burst into a flood of tears, and uras un- able for some time to control his emotion. Meeting a young man who, owing to the Bishop Ms earliest religious 'im- pressions, had gone on successfully in theological - studies until he obtained admission to the ministry, and observing him for the first time arrayed in the dress of the sacred order, he cast his arms about him rejoicing, and embraced him widi the most affectionate sensibility. In domestic life he was simple, cheerful, unaffected ; claiming no peculiar privileges, mindful of the gratification of all. But, thus unostentatious in his natural temperament, singularly rapid in his conceptions of a subject, and always conscious of a pressure of important duty, his usual deportment was marked rather with force than dignity — with a sense of the accountability, than of the stateWness of his bflSce. In his public ministrations, however, especially those which belonged to the Episcopal ^chair, gravity^ chastened his fervour, and a spirit of devotion, hallowed theimpressivfe- ness of his eloquence. His mind knew no repose. Being upon some occasion interrupted, during a few days, in his active duties, by indisposition, it was aftervgajrds, ascertained by a friend, that, notwithstanding the languor and-siiiffering of the period, he had explored on his bed several vollimes of considerable bulk. And when engaged in visitations of his diocese, the extent of country over which he. travelled, the -labour which he sustained in more than dkily preach- ings, the various parochial concerns which he would direct and arrange for his clergy,- and his untiring cheerfulness and vivacity in all, have been the subjects of universal astonishment. 316 The Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Spr. 12. At length,^ however, care and toil exhausted his framej although they failed to suhdue his spirit ; and it was be- lieved that the only means of prolonging his most valuable "Me, was an entire removal, for a season, from the field of his labours. It was determined that he should pass that season in Europe ; and the sensibility which was then pub- licly expressed by all classes of society, in relation to the state of his health, will always afford to his friends the most gratifying recollections. Among the various associations T?rhich conveyed to Bishop Hobart, at his departure, public expressions of sympathy and regard, there was observed tjhat of the Trustees of the congregation of Sheareth Israel, in New- York. He was absent during two years, and amidst the vicissitudes and fatigue of an extensive journey, and the interruptions .of ^flmetimes an acute disease, he prepared for the press, and published in London, two vo- lumes ,of his sermons, which he had carried with him in manuscript. Since his return, he had allowed himself no intermission of, duty; an^until the. hour -which was the commencement of his fajal disorder, the unabated vigour ef his miB^ and' body afforded the Church the prospect of iong aiid brilliant services. The circumstances of his illness may be known to many af'you. "y It, occurred at- Auburn, while Jie was engaged in 'an extensive EtMScopal visitation, and continued ten days ; and during a large^portion. of the time, he could not have been without a sense of danger. What a trial of principle ! what a conflict, was he called to endure ! In the midst of iiis years — in ^a station of .unparalleled im- portance to the £!hu,rj^7'(^h aiarge and dependent family, who possessed,^ during jhe continuance of his labours, a most ample support — how precious must life have seemed Ser. 13.] T'he Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. :217 to him ! But in this dark hour his reiterated language was, " God's will be done." The triumph of his faith was mani- fested, not in bold profession, not in ecstatic exercises, but in quiet, uncomplaining submission, to the will of Him who wisely, though sometimes mysteriously, ordereth our destiny. His sufferings were very great. " Oh ! this pain," he ex- claimed, " is inconceivably distressing : it is agony — it is agony. But God's will be done." Even in the midst of his sufferings he would endeavour to excite and admonish his clerical friends : " Be sure," said he, " that in all your preaching, the doctrines of the Cross be introduced : no preaching is good for any thing without them." There were moments in which a sense of sin saddened and grie- vously oppressed him, and in his Christian simplicity and meekness he solicited his clerical attendants to suggest com- fortable reflections. One reminded him, '* Bishop, the promise is, that the blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin." " So it is, so it is," he replied. " God be praised. God be merciful to me a sinner. I will hope that I shall not be denied the lowest seat in Christ's kingdom." Again and 'again he exclaimed, " I wish to talk continually of God •and salvation ; I wish to die with thfe name of God in my mouth ; but then," he added, " not God without the Sa- viour. Christ is all — God over all. Yes,* I wish to de- scend into the grave with the torch of redemption in one hand, to enlighten its dark passages, and the cross of my Saviom- in the other." So fill! was this melancholy period of touching incidents, and expressions of the most exalted piety and devotion, that there is danger of extending inordinately the delinea- tion of the impressive scene. After delivering the most affectionate and weighty admonitions to his son, the only U 218 Tht Rev. Dr. Wyatfs Sermon. [Ser, 13. member of his family that had reached him, and exhorting all present to secure " the prize of their high calling," and after receiving the sacrament of the Lord's supper, and joining with a thrilling pathos in that communion hyJnn which is an ascription of praise to the Holy Trinity, he became silent, as if absorbed in devotion ; and at length Calmly yielded up his spirit, passing, we trust, from toil to repose — from sustaining faith to rapturous vision — from bearing the cross, a missionary amidst rude hamlets, and regions of forest, and uncultivated wastes^ to sharing its immortal triumphs, a glorified spirit,'^in the kingdom of his Redeemer^ , Brethren, what can I say that may prevail upon you to emulate his fidelit3f in the service of his Master 1 What can I say that you m&y become as zealous for Christ, as diligent for the promises, as absorbed in preparation for eternity ? Were the apprehensions of tlie holiness of God, of the reqiusitions of the Gospel, and of the mysteries of ihe unseen world, so mighty in his mind after such a life of devotion, and of -apostolic heroism and fidelity'? Could he only sustain approaching death and judgment when his soul was clinging with its characteristic fervour to the cross 1 And what will be your support in that awful but inevitable hour, if you should then find that you have lived without God in the world; or — ^what is not better — with a superficial, unproductive faith, and heardess devo- tion X He, we doubt not, has entered into the joy of that Lord who has promised to bestow a corresponding reward upon the faithful servant, for his diligent employment of ten talents. Let us not fail to be admonished by the doom «?f the slothful servant, who buried his single talent in the eaftli. Remember that for him, and for you, there is but Ser. 12.] The Rev. Dr. WyaWs Sermon. %\Q one Gospel, as the common rule of your lives, and the sole condition of pardon and acceptance ; but one law to govern the decisions of God's tribunal ; and but one alterr native — immortality or perdition. Take ye heed, then, watch and pray, for ye know not when the time is. A iSCRMOX, PREACHED IN ST. PHIUP's CHURCH, CHARLESTON, r SOUTH-CAROLINA, On Sun4'ay, September 26, 1830, nrOTS BECEIVINO intelligesce at THE DEATH OF THE RIGHT REV. JOHN HENRY HOBART, D. I>. CHRISTOPHER E. GADSDEW, D. D. Rector of said Church. iSERiEOJK^ xni. THE REV. DR. GADSDKN's SERMON ON THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 2 SAMUEL iii. 38- Know you not that there is a prince and a great mam fallen this day in Israel ? ■*v In thus speaking of Abner, what was the motive of David ■? Was it the mere impulse of friendship? Was it not rather the desire to awaken a just sense of the charac- ter of the deceased, to suggest remorse to Joab, who had been the means of shortening his life, and to induce a general imitation of his virtues, and the efforts necessary to supply his losg ? The memory of the talents, the virtues, and the usefulness' of Bishop Hobart, causes all the mem- ber^of our Ghurch, but more especially the clergy, to par- ticipate in those painful emotions under which David, after hours passed in mourning, and weeping, and fasting,* laid to those about him, " Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel 1" v However appropriate if' miglit be in another place, ' it would be altogether unseemly in the pulpit, to render a • It so happened that there wgs a public fast on the day before the delivery of this sermon. 234 The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon. [Ser. 13, ' " ' Uv ..-^-■'■-- . " ' -t' !; ' - '' ' ' -" ' mere tribute to the dead. No ; our purposes here are fpr the living; to awaken aiyi to strengthen just sentiments in their minds, to influence their practiqie, and to warm their piety. Such are the motives which induce me to attempt a sketch (it c,an be no more) of the life of him whose death is the occasion of very sincere and deep mourning to thou- sands on both sides of the Atlantic. If his mind was not as exact in all its conclusions as that of some others, we should remember, that while they were meditating,, the occasion for using the decision was perhaps gone by^ Mce discri- mination is -a high gift, and incomp£lKp.bly valuable on some occasions ; bijjt there are other occasmns, in which a capa- city for prompt decision, in the main correct, is still more useful. Happy the Church which can number among its governors, men as were»Peter, and John, and Paul, of different mental qualifications,* all applicable to the various occasions which^ may be expected to call for their use ! Quickness of perception, fertility of invention, dexterity in improving an opportunity, and energy of actiop, were pro- minent characteristics of his mind. To an executive ofl&cert no qualities can be more important,.. It was therefore re- marked, that, however successful bis efforts in the pulpit, and in controversial and other writings, his talents emi- nently fitted him for government. A.knowledge of human nature, acquired more from intercourse with men than from books, contributed not a little to his success in,this depart- ment. It. was not from a prei^oininant tas,te for active duty a|id society, but from following the leadings pf Provi- dence, that his course oifjife was formed 5 for.})e,,liad, to use his own words, " a passion for retirement ;" and there • 1 Cor;xii. 4; 1 \ ^. 13.] The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon,. 225 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ was a time when he cherished the hope of sitting down ih some quiet country parish. A body seemingly almost un- susceptible of fatigue, remarkably corresponded with his mental activity : it was a frame admirably suited to such a soul, if indeed it had not been moulded by the power of the moving principle within it. His knowledge was not a great library, for which a man might have occasion only once or twice in the course of a long life, fitted less For use than to create admiration, perhaps envy, of its possessor, and too often encumbering him, and crushing his natural energiesi^; but it was knowledge calculated to develope his own re* sources, and strictlyt practical — just such as was needful and useful, and ornamental to one who was a preacher to mixed audiences, and a Bishop of a Church as yet in an infantile state, with its institutions riot well settled. Sj^te- matic theology, Church polity, and pulpit eloquence, were the subjects to which his studies had chiefly been directed, and with which he was thoroughly acquainted. Of his skill in imparting knowledge, the best evidence is the adoption, to so great an extent, and more particularly in his own large diocese, of his views on points of theology respecting which Christians have been so much divided. The fruits of his genius and studies (may I not say the first fruits, for he came into the ministry at an early age ?) he brought as an ofTering to the Lord, .and laid them at the foot of the cross. It was obviously his chief desire and pursuit to do good to the house of God, and in the offices thereof. The prosperity of the Church, the ability of its ministers, the enlargement of its borders, the orthodoxy of its members generally — ^these were the articles of intelligence most wel- come to his heart, which could most brightly light up his countenance. For Christ and the Church, was the mott* 336 The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon. [Ser. 13. of his life. His conversation, unless indeed it was led by others — and it was not often that it was led — was seldom on any subject unconnected with religion. It was impossible to be with him and not perceive, or to live near him ar^ aot know, that he had a single eye to the advancement of the sacred cause, and that he was absorbed, in a degree which was seldom equalled, by this great subject. Iii Europe, whither he went for the recovery of his health, his mind seemed scarcely to turn aside to the new scenes around him. Antiquities, and the curiosities of nature and art, had but a passing glance. He was employed in cultivat- ing the acquaintance of learned and pious divines, investi- gating the state of the Church, and gathering up information which would subserve his clerical usefulness on his return ; and the sermon with which he greeted his flock, was a valuable vindication (the result of his own comparison o.f the opposite systems of the United States and Great Britain) of religious liberty, and replete with wholesome advice to his Christian brethren in both hemispheres. The light which this discourse shed on his manner of life while abroad, beautifully illustrated his consistency of cha- racter. " It is impossible," said one who had been express- ing some disapprobation, " not to perceive that he is engaged heart and soul in his work, and is perfectly free from all views of personal advantage." This it was which disarmed his Opponents, and was the corner-stone of his extensive popularity, and of a devotion on the part of his friends which has not often a parallel. His opinions might be, and were, questioned ; but no one did, or could doubt that he adopted them from the purest motived, that he was strongly convinced of their ti'uth, and that all his measures aimed at no sinister purpose, but at what he conceived to be the Ser, 13.] TAe Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon. 2S7 interest of the Church of Christ. Luther himself had not a tnore sincere or more intense zeal. In boldness too he resembled this illustrious reformer. Moral courage was a yi|6ue possessed by him in an eminent degree. There were occasions when he breasted public opinion, which would have swept before it almost any other man : but he was so much tespected and beloved, and such confidence reposed in his integrity, that he was alwaysilistened to pa- tiently, and hot seldom did he bring opponents over to his views. If his boldness carried him sometimes to the bor^ ders of harshness, he did not remain there a moment. It was delightful to trace, as in his writings, so in his kind deportment and language, almost immediately after some warm expression liable to be misunderstood, the influence pf Christian courtesy and brotherly love. It was his study " so to minister discipline as not to forget mercy, and to be so merciful as not to be too remiss." The disinterest-, edness which characterized the disciples of Christ, in those days when they had all things in common, and which has in all ages distinguished the men most devoted to God, was a bright trait in his character. His ample income would have admitted of a reservation for a possible old age and a fatherless family, had he been so disposed ; but he wisely preferred to employ the whole of it in giving full effect to the sacred office he held, and in meeting the claims of the physically and spiritually destitute. He was, as he engaged to be, " merciful for Christ's sake to poor and needy people, and to all strangers destitute of help."* Pointing * The writer takes pleasiu-e in here grateIa|Precording a fact in illus- tration of the benevelciiee of the deceased. A young Deacon liaving sent, for " the Churcliman's Magazine," an article written willi too ranch cartlesfticss as tostops and paragraphs, liishAUobart voluntarily under- 238 'Me Rev. Di^ €radsden''s Sermon. [Ser. 13» to his library, he remarked to those friends who had asked to see it, " Here is all my property." His surviving family have, however, the inheritance of a good name, better than riches, and a large claim, which will be honourably i re- deemed, on the thousands for whose eternal welfare he suffered, and laboured, and prayed so long and intensely. They have the inestimable inheritance of the favour of God, for his promises will surely be fulfilled ; and has he not said to his people, " Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive ; and let thy widows trust in me 1" Says the Psalmist, " I have not seen the righteous forsaken, er his seed begging bread." Merit, like water, it has been well observed, will find its own level. The extraordinary merit of the deceased at an «arly age removed him from a village to the largest con- gregation in the city of New- York ; and on the first vacancy after he had reached the canonical age, when he was only thirty-six years old, he was placed at the head of the largest of our dioceses — which contains nearly one-fourth of the whole number of our clergy. In ecclesiastical precedence, founded on the date of consecration, he stood next to our senior Bishop. To him was chiefly committed the care of that most important institution, our General Theological Seminary ; for he was not only a Professor in it, but, as the Bishop in whose diocese it is located, practically its Governor. took, willi no little cost of time, to prepare It for the press, although at that time no acquaintance existed between him and the wiiter. He was further ijleased to intraduce the article to public notice with some re- marks very encouragin^HVthe unfledged author, and said not one word of the trouble incurred by the worthy Editor. But be ever delighted t» foster the efforts of the young, especially when employed in the service of his beloved Church. „ Ser. 13.] TfmRev. Dr. Gad^en's Sermon. 229 These elevated stations gave full scope to his abiUtjeaf and claimed services which called for much self-denial, patience, and exertion. - Few men could have fulfilled his many, diversified, arduous duties so w;ell, for few have, the ipequisite physical and mental qualifications. The Diyjae Author*of his endowments, who by his providence brought him into the sphere in which he moved, by hi$ grace fanned his zeal, and crowned it with success. At hj|. accession to the Episcopate, the diocese numbered forty-five, and at his death one hundred and twenty-eight* clergymen ; thus in? creasing in nineteen years nearly three fold. Every year new churches were springing up in that fertile west, where, on a tour of Episcopal duty, he met the„disease which ter- minated in his death. Rapid as was the growth of the Church, it was still greatly E^tarded by the want of minis- ters. How pathetically, in his annual addresses, does he lament the scarcity of labourers in a field already white for, the, harvest ! How earnestly does he appeal to piety to supply the men for the service of the altar, and to charity to furnish the means for their education ! , How judicipus the plans of his devising, for calling forth the resources of each congregation in aid of theological education ; and how unremitted his endeavours to.preventthe sending our minis- ters to foreign lands, while the demand for their services at home was so pressing ! This was his objection to foreign missions. No man desired more ardently the conversion of the J^ea^en, or more fully recognised the obligation of iip- parting-to them the knowledge, anjj the .^ordinances of the Gospel.j'But does this obligation rest upon every man, and at all times ] He thought it was not otir duty, at this time. * The numbers ali-e taken fiom the Journals of the General Conven- tions of 181 1 and 1829. X 230 The Rev. Dr^adsderi's Sermon. [Set. 13. '» Remembering that he was set to " banishand drive away from the Church all erroneous and strange doctrine contrary to God's word, and both privately and openly to call upon others to do the same," he took a part in every religious controversy of the day that might affect his particular charge. Valuable are his published sentiments on Episcopacy, on Bible Societies, on Theological Education, on the Union of Church an^.State, on Revivals, and other topics, which have divided Christians both in and out of our Church ; and they who are not convinced by his arguments, cannot deny him the merit of having ably^ and at much expense of time, and effort, and health, vindicated those views which he believed to be founded in reason and the word of God. But it was not that he had a taste for controversy, His earlier productions, and*the greater portion of them, are practical. Besides two volumes of sermons, the Church iji indebted to him for several devotional and didactic trea- tises, (catechisms,^,instructions to candidates for confirma- tion, and the like,)- and for republications of scarce and valuable books— -in particular, for that large work, Mtint .^nd P'Oyly's Commentary on the Bible, with the addition of many notes, selected and arranged by himself. Com- mentaries, contradicting, or at least keeping.out of view, .the principles of our Church, were getting more and more into the libraries of our people ; the call, therefore, for some such work as that of„Mant andwD'Oyly was imperious; and he who, above all the members of the Churchj had the least command, of his own time, who was alreadyi under a load of duties which few could have sustained, responded to it promptly. His zeal and industry in this instance have benefited the members of our Church gepersjly ; indeed, tvhile his own diocese had his cliief .exertions, ^e was never Sdr. 13.] The Rev. Dr. Gackien's Sermon. 231 unmindful of his relation to all the churches. His corr^ spondence, in particular, affordi3d full evidence that he was a constant and Anxious observer of the occurrences in other dtoceses,*and indeed throughout Christendom. In the retrospect of his labours as an Author, a Pastor, a Diocesan, a Professor in the Seminary, and a member of the House of Bishops, we trace the result of the divine blessing on his determination " to give himself wholly to the work whereunto it had pleased God to call him — to apply himself, as much as lay in him, wholly to this one thing, and to draw all his cares and studies that waiy." This highly gifted, excellent, and, under the divine bless- ing, successful Minister, had scarcely passed the meridian of life. In his part of the country, fifty-five is not an ad- vanced age ; and such was the natural strength of his coii- stitution, and so few the marks of time upon it, that the hope of his being long spared' to society and the Chur^i was hot unreasonable. But mail's tiine is in the hands of ;God. When the harvest is comfe, when the proper, day ;pffir?ves — well known by him, though not by man ; for he ■ seeth not, as God seeth, the recesses of the heart, and the whole scope of consequences — in his good time, God put in the sickle. The will of the Lord be done. Submission i^ our obvious duty. " I was dumb," said the man after God'fe own heart, " I opened not my mouth, because thou didst it." But it is not inconsistent with the most unreserved submission to realiza the extent of our loss. Resignation, und^r afilictions which are not realized, is of little value. It is resignation under great calamities, felt with their whole weight, which is the highest virtue, and most acceptable to God. The man of the world meditates on his sorrows without any object :"he thus nurses and aggravates them-j ;J32 Tht Rev. Dr. ■Gadsden's SefmiM. [Ser. 13. antil they driv© him to despair. The Christian reviews the melancholy past in all its circumstances aftd conse- quences, with the view of cherishing a sense of' his own helplessness, of the insufificiency of human aid, (vain is the help of man !) and of his entire dependence upon the Al- mighty; and also'"6f Searching out those lessons of duty which all the divine dis{/enSations are adapted and intended to inculcate. Every affliction calls man impressively to repentance; for it reminds him of sin — sin,' the source of all suffering — sin, but for which there would have been no sickness, no sorrow, no death, no loss. In that calamity we have been considering, are we not in particular re- minded of the dependence of the best interests of human nature upon God ultimately and supremely ? Wen are but the instruments of his beneficence and wisdoni : he brings them forward and removes them at pleasure. Under events like the present, this is our consolation : He who created, preserved, educated by bis providence and grace, intro- duced to the sphere of usefulness, and , aided and blessed the exertions of the deceased Bishop, is " the same yester- day, to-day, and for ever." " He ever liveth ;" his ear is open to the supplications of his people, his eye is an their wants, his hand is not shortened, that it cannot relieve. He can, he only can supply the great loss his Chiirchiias sustained. Let us look to him thefl with firm faith*and those importunate prayers which are the condition of his favour. Has he not promised to be with his Church always, even to- the end of the world; that- the gates of hellsh'all not prevail against her ; that she shall triumph over alf Wer enemies, visible and invisible ; that her dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the' river to the ends of the earth 1 Grieved by the remembrance that the labourers o'f the plen- Ser. 13.] ' The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Sermon. 233 ■^— ■—■■-^---—■^—'■— *—"«■— -j^l— ■■!-—!-* teous harvest are so few, and that the small number has been lately so much reduced by the death of several of our most efficient ministers, this, this is our consolation and hope — " The Lord reigneth," — " let us be glad, thereof." Again,^ ,In reflecting on the loss of the Church,, the Christian is unavoidably reminded of the goodness of God to that Church, in .providing it with such a Bishop, and sparing his life for a series of years. When Job was la- menting that the Lord had taken away, his pious mind na- turally associated the recollection that the same Lord had given. Over the tomb of the departed saint there are shed tears of gratitude, as of sorrow — sorrow, not for him, but for ourselves, and his and our friends-^and gratitude to his Creator,, Preserver, Benefactor, ?ind Saviour, from whom he derived all his valuable qualities, with whom~ he is safe and happy — ^who will restore him to us again, at the resur- rection of the just. Lastly, in meditating on the life and character of a de- parted saint, we are naturally reminded of our own defi- ciencies, and of the obligation to avoid his errors, (for there is no man that sinneth not-,) and to be a follower of him so far as he wa^ of Christ. These, and other advantages^ re- sult from the faithful celebration of what are called saints* days in our Church. Are not these advantages especially aimedi.at by the Divin& Spirit, in recording, in the Holy Volume, both the faults; and virtues of those men whom we-believe to be now among the just made perfect ? " Ye hayOih^d," says the, apostle, " of the patience of Job." ".Remember them who have had the rule- oveByou, whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation Jesus Christ," All Christians, but more especially minis- ters, may profit^hy the example of devotion to God, fear- X3 S34 TA/J Mev. Br. Gadsdin's Sermon. [Ser. 13. 'lessness in his cause, and disinterestedness, which we have been contemplating. For his example of entire devoted- sess to the ministry, the Church perhaps owes his memory as lajrge a debt as even for his invaluable services. It is impossible to review such a life, and tq look into such a character, without havin~ excited some good thoughts. It had imperfections ar. i errors. Th^y were, lUse those of St. Peter, open to every eye — the result of that ardent dispo- sition, and that consciousness of sincerity, which if he had not hadj who can say that he would have been so well fitted for his station, and so useful in it 1 Be it our endeavour to take warning as there may be occasion for it. If of a simi- lar temperament, seeing where our danger lies,^ there let uS apply our watchfulness. As to errors of judgment, let us be sure that we are not in error in thinking that we per- ceive some of them. Time will show whether they are so or not. In every life such errors undoubtedly may be traced ; for infallibility is the sole pi-erogative of God. It belongs to his biographer to speak of these. My province is to notice his intellectual character only in general, as enhancing the claim of pious gratitude on aH, the members of that Church to which he was the instrument of so much good — ^his intellectual only as inseparable from his moral and religious character. Our review of this, however, brief and imperfect, can scarcely fail to have excited ia, our minds a sense of thankfulness to God who gave us this good Bishop, a desire to imitate him in those virtues which should be the constant pursuit of every Christian^ and an anxiety that the great Head of the Church would pity her in this day of her necessity. Let us pray often and fer- vently for our bereaved friends and fellow Christians. ^er. 13.] The Rev. Dr. Gadsden's Semen. 235 May He who is able and willing " to succour, help, and comfort all who are in danger, necessity, and tribulation," be ever with them ! Amen. This sermon contains no allusions to the last hours of the Bishop,' be- cause the Teiy interesting particulars \rere not known until after it was preached. APPENDIX. T/w last Illness and Death of the Right Rev. John Henry Hobaet, D. D. Bishop of tlie Protestant Episcopal Church in tlie State of Neici York. CFrom the {Auburn) Goipel Messenger for September 13, 18300 This Right Reverend Prelate and pious servant of God expired at the parsonage-house of St. Peter's Church, Auburn, the residence of his friend, the writer of this article, at four o'clock on Sunday morning, September 12, 1830, being 55 years of age. The' following article is not designed to draw the character of this distinguished ornament and defender of the Christian cause ; in it ther^ will be no attempt mode to delineate the features of that noble and energetic mind, nor will it be employed in ordinaiy obituary reflepjions. The writer is under the impression that the public, especiaHytthat portion of it which is attached to the Episcopal Church, will be impa- tient to have before them the particulars of the last days of thig exten- sively known and ardently beloved individual. Under the pressure of n(?cominon emotions-^ he deems; it .his duty to employ the first moments he has, after having finished his attentions to the body of the friend of nearly thirty years, in giving the afflicted members of the Church, and the weeping relatives and personal friends of the deceased, such par- ticulars.aMannot well be expected from another, and which a sense of ■painful ^sponsibility impels him not to delay. Should the task be f^ndii^Jierfeotiy performed, let his apology be read in that oppressive weight«f feeling which cai&ot be removed till time has reconciled him to the prevailing stillness and gloom of a dwelling visited by death, to the absence of assiduous physicians, the retiring of a^ixious attendants and inquiring friends, * ■" , • 238 ^ Appendu. Bishop Hobart^arrived at my house on the evening of Ai^^ednesday, the 1st inst. in ordinary health, with the exception of a sliglft cold, which he said made him a little chilly. He rested well that night, and com- plained of nothing unusual the following morning. H&ip^^^jed that moming in St. Peter's Church, and, administered ^gjjfenation to nine , persons. His sermon, alas ! his last sermon, was ujt^ied in hjs usually imfwessive manner, aA. listened toby a ■full congiegation,.with a pro- found stillness and attention. ," JQie text was Jgb xxviij.i23 — The fear OF THE LOKD, THAT IS WISDOM. - -.^ ,ri On returning to the parsonage-house, he complained of coldness, and of oppression at the stomach, from which his friends have loiown him to suffer very severely for more than twenty years. He ate little at din- ner, and shortly after retired to his room, where he slept some time. At tea he ate nothing, and soon after returned to his room, where he bathed bis feet in warm water, and went to bed. On enterii^ his room the next morning to hand him some fetters, I found, he-.complgined still more of 'being unwell. He was urg.ed to abandon, the j^|^ of meeting his appointments for the two next days, and take some active medicine. To this measure lie expressed great reluctance, though it was repeat' . edly pressed upon him by different memheis ^g|^ j^efamily. The Rev. Mr. Hollister, of Skaneateles,, called about twelve o'clock noon, with a conveyance to take the Bishop to Fompey, where there was a dhnrch t» be consecrated the following day. About half an hour before this. Dr.' MjrgEm, of this'village, called to pay -his respects. On discovering the Bishop's evident tendency to iudispositiqn, he seconded the remon- strance of the writer, Sgainst proceeding on his tour ofiduty. The-Bishop yieldedto his advice, and the Doctor went to his office to prepare some medicine, which he kindly offered to administer^himself, and proposj^ to remain till the operation was over. 'This Iffijdid. ^rtfeei" tt may be interesting to some, to be Informed of a coinciden^l^icb will be here stated. ^ On the 9th of September, 1826, t^e writer baring been Wit a few weeks a resident of fliis place. Bishop Hobart,|iel^pn- firmation in the church here. Towai'ds- evening of that'^^he j(}as taken suddenly ill while alone in his room ; a ypjmg main who has attended him lif his last illness, being in an^adjoining apartment^ heard him fall ; the writer was alEumed, and ran to his assistance, and found him lying onhisjface, faint, and somewhat, convulsed. Ordera were Instantly gi^n to call a physician; and j)rj Mor^a, then au entire Appendix. ' 239 stranger to all concerned, was providentially found in the street, and in a. few minntes was with the Bishop. By a timely prescription and careful attention the threatened illness passed over, and the next day found' opi Prelate consecrating a church at Moravia, pearly twenty miles fr5fii'tifBci. ating came, in the confession, to the Words, " by thought, word, and deed," the Bishop stopped him and said, " You know the Chttrch ex- pects us to pause over these words ^ pause now, repeating one of the words at a time, till I request you to go on." This was ^one, and the' pauses in each case were so long, that a fear passed over our miiid» Aat he had lost his recollection, or fallen asleep. This, howerer, praved t feott9 be so; h^Tepeated each word, and after the tiijrd pause ad(}ec^ " Fiueaed, I will intermpt yon no more." At the proper piace he requested to hear read the 93d hjmuu As soon as the reading was ended, he. stutg deaisl}? the seraud aod third reuses. Fr^Dt^^a time, which was abnixt mqe o'cloeh in the morning, Ihere was no yer^ important change. During ^e night he «pid very little^ and.fdr abont fanr hours before he expired was nearly, if not quite, insensible to what was passing around. He sunkinto the arms of death %U;hoat asbraggle; and hi8.^e-sooiias3Ucmedtta.t«ngagiages{iiessioa lyia^has inlife so often delighted those who loTed Mm. The most expeditiouspieparations were made for hisrremoval to lbs #t]r, &r iutement. A very respectable: body of) the iubAbilaiits (£ the village assemblad at the parsonage-house, wliere,. after a ibw remarks t^ the wiiiter, he perfbnned that service in the Glergymai]i's,Compaaiou^ prepared by the Bishop himself for eimilaT occa^ons. Thci body being plaiSed in a hearse, (Sunday, 3 o'ebekP.M.) a procession was &rmed; t^ writer and some memb@E$>.i%f his familyv 'with the wardens and Testryuteu of St, Peter's Church, with some other members of the congregation, Mowed the corpse in, C3rmges~-D». Hohart having previously tefcen Ws departoie. Thei hell of St. Peter's Church, was teUed till the procession reachedl.'lte edge of the vSiagCi when the people an ibot and some others jieturnedv, and several carrkiges proceeded with ths body to Weedsport, eight miles, where a caiud'^boat was.iareadiness ; stud it was committed to the care of the Rev. Francis H. Cuming, and Mri Thomas Y. How, jnn. who hadbeen the constanl attendants ^f 1^ Bishop night and day, the former from Ttnesday P. M. The qnalificlt^ tion of Ais gentleman for a nurse, and his -iimtiring assidui^ made him a most teportant aid to the writer and his fanaiiy daring, thosa trying days. He was so acceptable to &e^ Bishop, thai he was unwilling, tn , have him a moment from his room, except now and dien he would eonmwid him to go and get some rest. r. IShei ieregoiag ka$ been wijlilien to meet the supposed expectatioit of the distant publie, and the EMu^'s m<»e immediate friends, that the, wjdter. wmM n!>^ tbem Acquainted wiii the most prominent &cts and wcidents in the last days of that «aiiueiit man, whose death fills Ae Chuich vnitkinoiaraing. J0BN e. RU]>D. Appendix. 248 Farther Particulars in the last Illness ofBisltop Hobart, in a Letter from "' tftc Eev. Dr. Rndd, dated Auburn, Nonember ITS, 18301. The preceding account was written; as it states, fo^the purfSle of meeting the anticipated anxie^ of thfe public to learn the ptoiculars of the last days of one who filled a space unusually large in the public eye, and a still larger one in the affections of his people. It was a pleading aim of the writer in that account to present only the pronrinent points immediately connected with the mournful event. There were very many incidents in the illness of Bishop Hobart, which might have been related with propriety, but for the desire that the earliest possible information might be sent off, and brevity was requisite in- order to do this. • * ■■ -^■ The worthy publishers of " Memorials of Bishop Hobart"" have expressed a wish that I would extend the account already given, by adding a number of particulars, which have been related in private conversations. I am fully aware of the difficulties, and frequent impro- prieties attending the' detail of sick-room occurrences; and I am ad- Hionished on this subject iby the recollectiou of ttie lively sensibility witJi which h: was regarded by -my venerated fiiend. Still I conclude I should have done injustice to the public, to llim, and to myself, had I said less, and much more might doubtless have been expressed. In a case like the one which has filled'the Church with an uncommon degree of interest, it would be reasonable to suppose that, under the peculiar circumstaness of its occurrence, many incidents and remarks, - gratifying to be kno'wn to the public, or to the immediate friends, would tfe remembered. To the writer and his wife. Bishop Hobait, as had heen customary for> him for many years, had much to say in relation to his domestic affairs, and the different members of his family. On sudi topics it is well known tha^he was not in^'the habit of conversing much, dxoept with very intimate friends. On these subjects, during the eariier part of the Bishop's illness, and when none were in histroom hut Mrs.iRudd or myself, or both, he conversed in his usual way, expressing' all thstt ^tenderness and anxiety for vyhich he was disfinguished, regretting 344- ' Appendix. Repeatedly, that MrsiitHobart and her sister could not be with him, but at thesame^time always adding, with other expressions of piou3 resigna- tion to the good pleasure of his Lord, " God's will be done?' It was, I ; think, in the course of Saturday the 11th, that he talledme to his bedside and asked respecting the days upon which I had written to certaiSa per- iBons, and then moving Ijis firfgers in a calculation 'of the movements of the maM, he renlBrked, -'-' If I can hold oiVt for two ac three dajss Icmger, I shall undoubtedly see my dear wife ;"■ and then, with some ardent expressions of attachment, he added, " But if if be God's will that I jshould not sea her, I trust there is a place of meeting for us, where no separations will be known." This, and inany other particulars, have been detailed to the Bi^op's family and particular friends during oitr visit to the city of New- York in October. Very few men, under any eircumstances, ever evinced more gratitude for,.. 345 haviHg soared much from thia cause, in a manner so forcible, and yet' BO tender, that a-ttirillingeifect-was produced upon all presto. At one lime \^en he desired me to offer -at his bed-side certain prayer? that he named, he said, " Then add in your own language some.short suppliealiona for -my dear -wife and family." This was 'done in nearly the follow4ng words : — " We commend, O Heavenly Fatlier, to thy most gracious protection and 'blessing, the -wife und children of this thy sick servant; fit and prepare'them, >by "thy grace, for whatever , the wisdom of thy providence shall allot them, and give them an humble and pious resignation to the dispensations of'thy rigltteous"will,"throfugh Jesus Christ our Lord." Having uttered here an emphatic Auwn, the Bishop added, " That'* good'^-that's comforting — that's just what I wanted — God bless you, my dear oldfriend — ^thanli you — 'thank you — God be praised for"this and all his mercies." Expressions of this kind were continually proceeding from his lips, and very many might be liere ■presented, but that they would subject the writer to the charge of ostentation?- and vanity with those who do not know him. They will never tie obliterated from my recollection^ though TtoTnembrandum wastEtken. They ■were too deeply suilken in the'heart to -require that. '' -On-one -of Ohe*last days uf Us sickness, the Bishop, after -having ^ept for a short time, commenced singiagf some verses of Bishop 'Ken's Horning and Evening Hymns. He first sung the second and third verses of the Evening- Hymn-— Eaigive me, Lord, for thy 'dean: So», The ills that Itthis day have done ; Thstt-wifli the world, myself, and thee, 1, ere I sleep, at peScfe may be. Teach me to live, that I may dreaS The grave as little as my bed ; Teaph me to die, that so I may Triumphing rise at the last day. -'- After these Tie repeated tlie last Tine, " Triumphing rise at the last day,* and then added, " Through my Saviour's merit and grace may I be abJeto dffthat"— " Triumphiftg;4-ise at the last day." 246 Apptnilii%. After a mojDentarv pause, he desired to hear re^ the ninth verse of the Morning Hymn, which he cojild not distipotly recollect. This was done, and he sung in the same tune (Tallin) Direct, control, suggest this day, All I de^gn, or do, or say, ,. ^^,. , _ That all my.pgjY.'ra, with all their miglty ■,.- r In thy sole glory may unite. _^,~ »T ■ V- ■ At the end he said, " O let me keep this in^m^nd through the day/* ■ repeatii^ the verse with great emphasis, and then saiig,.the last verse^ j« Praise God, from whom all blessings fl|).w„ Praise him, all creatures here below : ^. Praise him abovg, y' angelic host; .rty Ptaise Father^ Son, and Holy Ghosts . ^ J^e then remaned silent for some time.. Incidents like the foregoing might be multiplied, but a sufficieef number have been mentioned to show the collectedness and composure of die Bishop's mind, as well as his resigyiation % the Divine will, and the pious and ardent affectiou^^t iiUed bis bosom.^ BesohaUms of the Veslr^ of Trimtii Church. At a meeting of the Church Wardens and Vestrymen of-the Corpoi Kition of Trinity Churdh, in the city of Ne*-York, on Wednesdayf , September 15, 1830, the following resolutions were adopted: — That we shall ever hold in the iriost grateful and respectfifl remem> brance the truly Christian arlfe apostolic character and eminent services ef our deeply lamented Rector. That as a part of the diocese of New->Ybrk, and of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States, we feel it a duty to our vener- ated, and beloved Eriend and Pastor to express, as we do hereby express, onr hjgh sense of his promptitude, unexampled zeal, and unwearied exertions to promote every object conjiefi|ted with the best interests of Appendix. ' %^ religion zmd of the Church, of which he was one of the most able, disinterested, and indefatigable servants. ■ . •• That the tesjoetful and affectionate condolence of the Vestry be tendered to the afflicted relict and family of the deceased. Thajt, with the concurrence of the family of the deceased, the funeral- be conducted under the direction of the Corporation of this Church i and that Mr. M'Evers, the Hon., Judge Irving, Mr. Hone, Mr. Law- rence, and Mr. Johnson, be a committee to make such arrangements in relation thereto as they may think best suited to manifesll the feelings of this Church' on this melancholy event. That in further testimony of our high respect for the memory of our late Rector, the members of this Vestry Will attend his funeral as mourners, and wear the usual badge of mourning for thirty days. That Trinity Church, and St. Paul's and St; John's Chapels, be hung in customary mourning until the festival of Christmas. ' - * That a certified copy of these resolutions be delivered to Mrs. Hobarfr, the respected relict of our late Rector-tf' NEHEMIAH ROGERS, - Chairmam and Church IVarden? W^- Johnson, Clerk, pro. tem. * Vrota the New-TorTe American of September 17, 183*0. ,,, Funeral of Mshop Hobart. TsE remains of the lamented Bishop of this diocese reached th^ city yesterday morning, in the, steam-boat Constellation, froin Albany, ^d ■ were interred with the appropriate ceretnegjfis la^t evening, beneath the chanpel of Trinity Church. The procession formed at his late residence in Varick-street, in the fijllowing order :— . . * , • The Clergy. ' Pall Bearers,], CORPSE. [Pall Bearers. ^ -J ' Mourners. ;, ; • "The Assistant Ministers of Trinity Church. Thp Qhrirch Wardens and Vestrymen of Trinity Church, aSjpiovntei'?. ->»,,,.. . physjcjan to the Family. 343 Appendix. -'An^ig GovecnoT of the State.t^^lll,? Ibe FacHl^'mid Students^ of the GeneralTlieelagu^. gfsiipi^r}-. The J'aculty and Trustees of Columbia -poUege. ^.^ TJie I^eaidetittpf-the Senate,.and fbe Court for the. Coriection|)f,£iTors. .. The Judges of the several Courts. •. , ,., .; The Veatrios.of the-eesteral'E^^sectpal^hui'ehes. Societjr J(lBj?FQm^qg JEle%ioii jind Lsacvw^grinj^ <%dtei|f New-Yock. Tte^Weg-Yprk Bible -and Common Pcay^r jB»)k Sseiety. The Auxiliary New- York Bible amd Common Prayer Book ■Society. The New- York Prdtestant Episcopal Missionary ^Beieljy. „ Tiie.iTtew-Yotk ProtestMit Kpiacopal Tract Sociegr.. * The Ksw-Yiork Protestant ^liscqpal Sunday School Soeaetf. The Trastees of .the New-Yoik Protestant ijpiaeopsd J^uijBe School. iSe Trustees of the New- York Protestant Cpiasopal^ess, .-f j,„ The I,it^rary and Philosophical Sooialy. The New-Yp5|^Jiistorical Se^eiety. . TMisteeB of the City Libraiy. ,- Citizens. The procession moved at a qui^^r befbre five, sind arriTed at STrinit^ Church about half-past six. It was preceded by jiearlytrtghty cler^- men, and extended about a mile -in Jeijgth — the. number of persons belonging to the^arious societies to>whom places were assigned being about 7Q0. The ehuieh, ^ud the -streets Jjirougbwiuch|iie procession passed, were thronged to excess. The burial, service'j was read by Bishop Moore, of Virginia, assisted by. the Rev. Dr.'Xjielt'and the Rev. Mr. Schioeder. After the service, an, impressive "and effecting dSBcoorse was pronounced bythe Rev. Dr. Ouderdotik, &Wn the 35th Verse of the fifth chaptiBrttf John: — ' ~"^.-. " He was a burning and a shining light; and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light." ' v ■ The earth which closed oyer the remains of this venerated individnal has seldom held one more deeply deplored within its bosom. Beside the irreparajjle losslo the religious somety of -which be was the head, and the bitter bereavement to the circle of his immediate friends, the public at large have sustained n lamentable deprivation in the with* drawdtrfsp active a charscter from the scene of his usefulnBSB. "Be ye wise as seqiepts, yet harmles^j as doves," jis the precept Appendiz. 249 which seems to hSve guided the conduct of Bishop Hobart throughout his arduous career. Bland, frank, %nd affable, he mingted with the world like one who knew that the cure of rfouls is not incompatible with •the courtesies of society ; and the amenity of his manners conciliated as many as the candour of their avowal taught to respect his opinions. It was these features that gave an almost apostolic colouring to his char- acter, and enabled -him, wherTwalking among men in the zealous anA indefatigable promulgation of hi^religious tenets, to claim the reverence even of those opposed to them. But one of the most niarked charac teristics of Bishop Hobart — and it is one that caimot be too highly honoured — was the noble, the almost romantic spirit of patriotism that animate(f his bosom. His country, her institutions, and her national, character, was ever- with him a theme of the most glowing enthusiasm : nor was it a bliftdidevotion, a mere instiuctiv^fbndness for the land of bis birth. ■ His was a cast of mind, above all others, whose",observatioa and research would le^d the possessor to scrutinize the structure, and enable Mm to measure the value of such a political fabric as onrs. He had studied the nature of this government in his closet ; he'had watched its influenee upon the character of the people, while in the pursuance of his official duties ; h6 had contrasted it as a whole with the establishments ef Europe, and compared it in its details with that from whence it sprung. When to these he had added personal observation, and had witnessed the operations of other systems from the nearest vantage groimd, %teed we remind the reader how energetically and feelingly he poured forthihis convictions on the subject l We need not dwell upon the'accSmplishments of Bishop Hobart as a^holar and a divine, nor assert^that, with hia talents, they were such as became his eminent and responsible station. The ability and dili- gence with which he laboured in his vocation are too well known to need commemorating here. But, in addition to the official care and general interest in the welfare of his fellow-men, so unceasingly mani- fested by Bishop Hobart, there was in him a warmth of disposition, that, blending as it did with both his personal and professional character, and giving equal fervour to his friendships and his faith, added ardour to sanctity, and enforced pieOrTvith affection. The disappearance of ,sach a man from the accustomed places where his friendly hand ivaa ever stretched out to wai* or to support, where' his exhortations were aliVays near V) admonJBh, his prayers ever ready to console, is a nioumful ^50 Appendix, tmA a solemn subject far-reflection. "We Tvonld notlnvade the holiness of sorrow by drawing frMh suehr a cause of "grief the usual trite conso- lations ; yet surely if men realize in the spirij' a reward for deeds done in the body, hcTias now flie recompense that all would attain. He died in the immediate exercise of his duties ; and though called at so brief a wamiDg-Minljke the sou of Aaron, who was struck from heaven for putting strange fire into his cBHser — the mandate that bade him thither found him kindling'the true flame tijlon.the altar. J, ■ ■ ■ *- From tlie Saff-TTork Evening Post of September 18, U3(V Letter from Bishop White. Extract of a letter from the I^ght E,ev Bishop White, of'Penhsylvauia, to a clergyman in this city, written in reply to one announcing to that truly venerable prelate the melancholy event of tlie death of Bishop HOEAKT. " During my long life, Sir, I have not known any work of death, exterior to the circle of my own family, so afflictive to me as the present. I have known, and have had occasion to remark, the character of my now deceased friend, from his vray early boyhood ; and I can truly say, that I have never known any man on whose integrity andconscientious- ness of conduct I have had more frdl reliance than on his. iS contem- plating what must be the brevity of my stay in this valley of tears, it has been a gratification to me to expect that I should leave behind me a brother, whose past zeal and labours were a pledge that he wauld-?fedt Cease to be efficient in extending ouf Church and in the preservation of her integrity. But a higher disposal has forbidden the accomplishment of my wishes; much, as I verily believe, to his gain, although greatly t» «Mr loss, and to that qf the Church." T9E ENB.