This book - Centro de Estudos Anglicanos

REORGANIZATION IN A NEW NATION 55A NEW CONSTITUTION AND A NEW PRAYER BOOKIn late September and early October of 1785, lay and clerical representativesfrom seven states (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania,South Carolina, and Virginia) met at Christ Church, Philadelphia, for the firstGeneral Convention of the Episcopal Church. The churches in North Carolinaand Georgia were too weak to send delegates, and none attended from the threeNew England states (Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island) becausethere were no provisions for Bishop Seabury to preside. In a 10-day meeting, the24 lay representatives and 16 clergy under the leadership of William White andWilliam Smith accomplished three major tasks:1. They produced a draft version of the church’s constitution. It was presbyterian in characterand included a plan for triennial meetings of the General Convention with lay andclerical representatives attending from every state. The church in each state was alsoto have its own bishop, who in addition to his liturgical duties (ordaining clergy andconfirming new members) would serve on an ex officio basis at meetings of the GeneralConvention.2. They drafted an American version of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer from whichall references to the British sovereign were deleted. The committee in charge of theprayer book revision also made several decidedly liberal theological changes. Theyeliminated the Athanasian Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the phrase “He descended intoHell” in the Apostles’ Creed; and in the baptismal service, they removed reference tothe concept of spiritual regeneration as well as the mandatory use of the sign of thecross. (Because these theological modifications were intended to please evangelicalEpiscopalians, Seabury and his high church colleagues in New England deemed all ofthem unacceptable.)3. They devised a plan to obtain the consecration of bishops from the Church of England.The convention sent a petition to the archbishops of Canterbury and York, asking themto support those in the United States who, professing “the same religious principles”as members of the Church of England, wished “to retain the venerable form of Episcopalgovernment handed down to them . . . from the time of the Apostles.” 13The General Convention met again in two sessions in 1786: at Philadelphia inJune and at Wilmington, Delaware, four months later. Although some delegatesat the first session attempted to have Seabury’s consecration declared invalid,William White sponsored a somewhat more irenic proposal that recognized hisepiscopal orders but prevented him from exercising ecclesiastical authority outsideof Connecticut. 14 At the second session, the convention received confirmationthat its earlier petition to the Church of England had been successful, for Parliamenthad at last passed legislation that allowed the archbishops of Canterburyand York to consecrate candidates for the episcopate who were not British citizens.In response to this parliamentary action, the convention authorized SamuelProvoost, the rector of Trinity Church in New York, and White to travel to London,where on February 4, 1787, they were consecrated by four English bishops.