The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-11-20
A Man of God.

The funeral of the Rev. DR.. HoUGHToN
takes place to-day from the Church of the
TRANSPORTATION, of which for nearly fifty
years he had been the rector. This now
large Episcopal parish was organized by his
labors in 1S4S; and, long before 1t was made
famous as the Little Church Around the
Corner by a well-remembered incident, it
had become distinguished as one Of the
richest Of the Episcopal parishes of the
town in its spiritual endowment and one of
the most faithful in its obedience to the
practical p~recepts of Christianity.
When DIR. HoUGHToN consented promptly
to perform the funeral services over the
dead body of the actor and artist, GEORGE
HOLLAND. he followed simply a rule of his
ministry from first to last, and no one could
have been more surprised than was he when
the incident provoked popular attention
and applause. He simply did his duty as
he saw it, without thought of popular
opinion, and as he did it always. DR..
HoUGHToN was a man of great gentleness,
with a countenance which shone with the
radiance of spirituality; but he was also a
man OF uncompromising religious principle
and conviction, from which neither glorif-
cation nor persecution could have moved
him as by a hairs breadth. II the whole
town had cursed him he would have done
the same, for to him 1t was a duty imposed
on him as a minister of GOD.
DIR. HoUGHToN's prime idea and purpose
in organizing the parish of the Trans
fguration, as he explained from the very
beginning, was to make it a refuge and a
rest for the spiritually distressed and the
bodily afflicted. Accordingly, it was al
ways his aim to minister sustenance and
consolation to the infirm. both morally and
physically. In his Church doctrine and
discipline and ordinance he was unyield-
ing, but his Christian charity was I'M
bounded. He hated sin with the aversion
OF a character Of absolute moral purity,
but the greater the sinner the more he was
drawn to him as a victim needing his low
Ing succor. This spirit of DIR. HoUGHToN
cannot be 80 well expressed as in his own
words to his parish a few years ago:
"As the knowledge OF what the Church OF the
TRANSPORTATION was intended to be. and As ready
TO be, and was, in the personal ministry OF mercy and
blessing; that no sin. no degradation. no sickness. no
possible peril was or could be q barrier to that min.
iStry. The gambling house. the house of III repute,
the prison house were opened to iL. There was no
place that W as shut against 1t. There was no man or
woman who hesltated to seek It in time of need. And,
thanks be to GoD. during all these forty and nyo
years not so much as once has the foot OF that per.
sonal ministry from tho Church OF the Transngura.
tion withheld itself from crossing any threshold
through fear from possible personal peril. From the
dying IL has come out OF the gambling house at mid.
night and from the house OF Ill reputs at the dawn of
the day. And the hand OF that ministry. despite of
warning in the midst OF pestileuce. has held the
head. as II should. OF the pcstilnnce smitten for the
receiving OF the tody and blood OF the LORD"
All this is literally true. DIR. HoUGHToN
went about his priestly duties as averltabls