The Newtown bee. (Newtown, Conn.) 1877-current, 1899-03-03

He occupied that high office for more
than fOrty-seven years. With what firm
hand he administered the affairs of the
diocese! With what practical WELDON
he decided questions in dispute and gave
advice to those who sought it He show.
81 this power, to my personal knowledge,
80 within few days of his death.
With what dignity he presided over the
many diocesan gatherings, and how
eagerly all listened to and waited for his
words of wisdom and announcement !!
HOW HELPFUL He has BEEN TO THE
CHURCH
in times when it required far-seeing wis
dom to determine what was the best
course to pursue, for example, in dealing
with such questions as arose at the &C.
cession of the Reformed Episcopal
Church, and in the more recent difficult
ties with the Church in Mexico.
So, as we think of Bishop Williams as
man, scholar, a teacher, Bishop, we
think of him in eacn respect as master.
But we can not thus separate his person
atty into four distinct parts. In him
were combined the masterful qualities of
man and scholar and teacher and Bishop.
The man was scholar, a teacher, a
Bishop. And the Bishop was manly
Bishop, a scholarly Bishop, Bishop who
was a horn teacher. Bishop Williams
was not only born teacher but q born
leader. He was born to command.
Others always felt his pre-eminence. He
did not assert it, but it made itself felt
in spite of himself.
We can rot now estimate his great
work, we can not measure the extent of
his Influence. Perhaps it is too soon to
| Judge Of his exact standing in the life of
the Church in this 10Th century in these
United States. But we who have known
| him well may find some profit in fixing
our attention to-day upon certain leading
characteristics of his theological position
/ and Churchmanship. He was never an
extremist. He did not belong to any
party in the Church. BE could not be
| identified with the extreme right or the
extreme left. One newspaper which
happened to see the other day called him
low Churchman. He was anything but
q low Churchman. He certainly was not
a Broad Churchman, he had strong dis
| like for that school of thought. He was
once regarded as a high Churchman
though Of late years that term has had
such an uncertain meaning that we might
be misunderstood in applying it to him.
He was not pleased with the recent de-
velOpment of increased ritual and was
opposed to some modern practices and
some recent teachings which have crept
into the Church.
So, 1 would say, that Bishop Williams
could not be classified with any party in
the church. He may rather be called q
| thorough Churchman, or as he used to
be styled,a Come cticut Churchman. He
was born and bred in the Unitarian de-
nomination but he came into the Church
| in his young manhood as a result of
| reading and study and upon strong con-
victlon. He was in opinions and convic-
| tione, as he was in actual succession, the
linea1 descendant of Bishop Seabury.
The first Bishop of Connecticut, and the
fourth Bishop, were strongly imbued
with the Church idea. To them both the
CHURCH WAS THE BODY OF CHRIST,
an organism with Divinely impaired
life, in distinction from the sectarian idea
that the church is voluntary society of
like-minded men.
The late Bishop was very positive and
strong In his idea of the sacred ministry.
He believed thoroughly and without
qualification or compromise in the Divine
authority OF the Apostolic ministry. He
believed that all valid ministerial author
ity comes from Christ, the living head OF
the Church, down through the Apostles
and their successors In office, the Bis
hops, being the gift af the Holy Ghost
through the laying on Of hands by the
Bishop. The late Bishop taught en-
phatically the sacramental idea OF the
Christian religion, that God has mapped
out for men the way OF salvation, that
the Church is that way of bringing men
to Christ the Savior, that the first step
in that process is the Sacrament Of Holy
Baptism, and that the means of nouriah-
ment therein ia the Holy Communion,