Lord Kenyon

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Kenyon discusses the Board of Trustees' recent decision concerning his seminary's relationship with the broader General Seminary, as well as the matter of obtaining further aid for the Ohio Diocese. Kenyon also discusses the health of Chase's English friends and his family.

Date

12-11-1825

Keywords

Bishop Hobart, Board of Trustees, General Theological Seminary, G.W. Marriot, Lord Gambier, Dr. Gaskin, Mr. Hoare, Mr. Wiggin, Mr. Pratt, Mr. Davids, New York, Adam Hodgson, Margaret Kenyon, Perl Hall

Transcript

Gredington

Dec. 11

1825

My dearest Bishop,

Now that our two services are over on this good day, I know no way in which I can more properly or more to my own gratification employ myself than in thanking you for your most kind [long] letter of Nov. 1st, occasioned by my annunciation of the proposal confidentially made me by Bp. Hobart. I am gratified by thinking that our joint reply as Trustees would be altogether satisfactory to you; and [hardly] without losing this [?], transmitted your kind letter rec’d this morning to good G. Marriott to be by him communicated to Lord Gambier Dr. Gaskin & Mr. Hoare as my Co-Trustees, & to our super-excellent friends Messrs. Wiggin & Pratt, I have no fear but our decision will be [accrued] entirely with your wishes. If you desire to connect a College with the Theological Seminary, I think all must approve, considering your remote situation, and the peculiar hands with wh. unhappily the foundations for education in America have fallen. They also who have found [fault] with the proposed Seminary on the presumption that the education there gives [want] [before] [?] cost, if consistent, ought to rejoice at so easy & fitting a means being provided to remove that objection, wh. I sh’d have considered a very serious one had it not been obvious that time must [necessarily] remove it in such an establishment as your Theological Seminary. I feel so thoro’ly [considered] that my colleagues (in a cause wh. as a [?] man I feel it the highest pride & distinction to belong) will substantially [?] in all your wishes, that I only regret that my letter should have caused your losing a night’s sleep, wh. after all your manifold & [?] exertions I would never have you to lose. I trust that you will between & the next Gen’l Convention of your Church communicate with those of your Bishops who seem but to deserve your confidence, that so you may be enabled to have arrangements made in it assured permissible for the annual establishment of Theological Seminaries where the realities of [Dioceses] may seem to their Bishops to require them. If in England Oxford & Cambridge require the aid of Mr. Davids College & that of Mr. Bees, it is impossible that ever were Ohio Theol. Seminary made a Gen’l one for Diocese West of the mountains, & that in New York retained for the like purpose of the Eastern states that such two Seminaries would beyond a short time, if ever so long, at all suffice for the growing wants of the Prot. Episcopalians of the United States. What may become the case in time it is impossible, at least for me, to pretend to foresee, but I should think it [little] for the interest of your Prot. Episcopacy to secure the [?] & the Eastern Church. For some [?] indeed to obtain the full benefit of advanced [?] among your [?] it appears to me that the closer the [fund] of [?] is drawn between all your states religiously & the better; not however to such extent as to preclude any Diocese from providing as far as sums necessary for its wants in religious & especially clerical education; but by retaining as far as practicable in addition to that such benefits as the Gen’l Theo’l Seminary in New York proposed to supply, & as far as Ohio is concerned lending aid from it to the Western population, as soon as its establishment shall enable it to extend such a blessing beyond its own state & Diocese. You my dearest Bishop may think me presumptuous in offering advice on a point on which I am little capable of judging; but something has confidentially come to my knowledge which prompts me to do so. We your humble Trustees here can never think you presumptuous; on the contrary we ever think that your sentiments offered us the best light by which our reasoning powers can be enlightened. I am very anxious you should communicate as fully you can, as I before said, with your Episcopal Brother before your next Gen’l Convention; as I cannot like expressions which I hear were made use of by Bishop Hobart respecting his uniform attachment to the G.Th. Sem’y, & his regret that it was not thought to be all sufficient. I have not heard from him since his return to New York, tho’ he was pleased to express as I understood at least such intention. To him I sent, as I thought I ought the decision of us Trustees on his confidential proposal for our consideration. I have not yet thanked you for your most kind letter dated 12 Oct, tho’ my precious children & I have read it & rejoiced in the blessed tidings it brought of your prosperous proceedings, of your most kind affection to all of us, wh. is invaluable to us, & of the good health of you all, wh. is also very dear to us indeed. Your kind intention as to the name of Kenyon will be adding a distinction to a family ever devoted to the [?] Prot. Episcopal Church wh. I trust will always be recollected with gratitude & be considered as an add’l [study] incitement to prove the sincerity of an attachment to that most precious of God’s blessings to social man to enable him the better to profit by His grace by the one great blessing the mediation & sacrifice of His Beloved Son. Still however I am sure there is no one who bears our name who would not prefer another [?] adopted if your views or gratification cd. thereby be the better promoted. Good Mr. Hodgson is I trust very happily married to a near connection of Earl Derby’s, a religious amiable Lady I am told; and I am glad to find that he himself is becoming daily more & more respected. You will have heard of our good friend Wiggin having undertaken to become a grand American Banker. I trust it will not engross his time to the risk of his health or to incapacitate him from attending to concerns bringing a much higher reward than increased wealth can give. He has not I am sure decreased in attachment to your sacred cause, & I have no fear that he will to that or to yourself to him by God’s mercy he owes so much. I was glad to hear a good account of his appearance from our excellent friend G. Marriott. I rejoice to find that good man is quite [?] again now. Next Wednesday my precious Margaret tells me will be your Birthday most unitedly & fervently do we pray that your health may be preserved & your life prolonged many years as the highest earthly blessing wh. can be granted to your Episcopal flock. We are all gladly obliged by your affectionate remembrance of us, & of all most dear to us, not forgetting my venerable Aunt who desired me when I wrote to say every kind for her, when I wrote, & to assure her how sensibly on her memory & on her [servants] in your kind visit, & pious exhortation at Perl. My precious Margaret means to indulge herself by writing to you on the 14th. Ever my dearest Bishop believe me your most affectionate and grateful friend,

Kenyon

Letter to Philander Chase

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