Wednesday, July 17, 201*

                              . ____Psalm 38:9__ .

  

   O 

   Lord, 

   you 

   know 

   all 

   my 

   desires,

   and my sighing is not hidden from you. 

* William White  

Born in 1747

in Philadelphia, 

he served as chaplain of the Continental Congress 

from 1777- 1789  

and then the U.S. 

Senate until 1800. The architect of the Constitution of the American Episcopal church after Independence he served as the Presiding Bishop  at its organizing conven-

tion and again in 1787 and again from 

1795 until his death in 1836. 

                  ______________+++______________

      Read this onlyif you liek history! Otersie, ignore it!

      Interestingly,  a website about White said that he was both ordained and  consecrated in England (a 6 week sea journey at the time, each way!) which led me on a merry chase because I had  incorrectly assumed that he had had to go to Scotland to be consecrated, as had our first American bishop elected after the Revolu-

tionary War. Samuel Seabury HAD had to be consecra-

ted in  in Scotland because, now an American,  he could not  he wouldn’t swear allegiance to the crown. After a  year in England he ended up being consecrated by the  “non-juring” bishops in Scotland (THAT story I didn’t peruse!)  thus preserving the Apostolic Succession.  In return he agreed to use the Scottish consecration prayer which used through the1928 BCP.) 

From that bit of history, I had long assumed that all 3 of the first American dudes elected were  consecrated in Scotland, but not so. (After those 3, Seabury, White and Samuel Provost, we could consecrate Bishops on our own soil, since you alwasy have 3 consecrating bishops, as a kind of  failsafe!)

 (Our Bill  aclaimed that when the consecrtors sur-

round the bishop-elect and lay their hands on them, they are really removing his- or her, now -spine, but that may be apocryphal.)  

After poking around online I discovered that by the time White  was consecrated in 1787, only 3 years after Seabury, the English had come around and he was consecrated at Lambeth Palace in  London.  The Anglican History Blog wrote about the church’s “lengthy process of rebuilding itself following the Revolutionary War. The church had lost a significant number of its members, around 40%, during the War and many of its clergy fled to Canada or returned to England. Where the old Church of England had been the established Church,…  legislatures quickly dis-established the Church, causing a loss of assets.” 

Imagine the disruption to one’s loyalties! 40/60 hmmm…unsettling, ushering in a significant period of rebuilding.  Especially since White had been ordained to the priesthood in London in 1772. it must have been a comfort   him to be able to be consecrated in London. 

           ______________+++______________

While wandering around I found a site listing  ALL the American bishops and found our own new Diocesan listed and a few newer ones even and a few still in  the pipeline. And the best goes on, whether in times of  disruption or tranquility! Cheers!