Chap. 9. 



RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS. 



201 



EPISCOPAL CHURCH. 



ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. 



signing the testimonials of the Bisliop 

 elect. Thus was happily accomplished a 

 measure, that in the anticipation had oc- 

 casioned much solicitude. The next thing 

 after securing his acceptance, which was 

 in due time communicated to the stand- 

 ing committee, was to procure the con- 

 secration of our Bishop. This was done 

 in General Convention in the city of 

 New York the 31st day of October, ]H3'2. 

 In three weeks from this time Bishop 

 Hopkins with his family took up his res- 

 idence in Burlington, where he became 

 Rector of St. PauTs, and where he has 

 continued to the present time. 



Bishop Hopkins has visited the church- 

 es in his Diocese once to each year. Dur- 

 ing the ten years of his Episcopate he 

 has consecrated ten new churches — ad- 

 mitted twenty-one persons to the order of 

 Deacons, and thirteen to the order of 

 Priests. The whole number of persons 

 confirmed by him during the same period 

 is twelve hundred and four. The whole 

 number of communicants in the Diocese 

 does not vary much from fifteen hundred, 

 allowance being made for scattered indi- 

 viduals not included in the Reports. 



Episcopalians have taken an interest, 

 much beyond what might be inferred from 

 their pecuniary contributions, in the 

 cause of missions both foreign and domes- 

 tic. The Convention of 1834 passed a 

 resolution recommending the General Do- 

 mestic and Foreign Missionary Society 

 of tlie Protestant Episcopal Church to the 

 attention of the parishes in the Diocese. 

 But to do much in this good work our 

 parishes have been too feeble. Church- 

 men love the Missionary principle, and 

 only differ sometimes with respect to the 

 approj)riate field of its operation. 



The Convention of 1836, was one of 

 great importance. It had been thought 

 for many years, as experience extended 

 and churches multiplied, that the Consti- 

 tution and Canons of the Diocese were in 

 some respects very imperfect, and need- 

 ed a thorough revision. A Committee, at 

 the head of which was the Bishop, ap- 

 pointed two years before, made an elabo- 

 rate report to the Convention this year. 

 The Constitution and Canons thus re- 

 ported, after being considered and amen- 

 ded, were adopted by a unanimous vote. 

 In these scarcely an)^ change has yet been 

 made. 



From the time of his first entering the 

 Diocese, it has been an object of much 

 solicitude with Bishop Hopkins to estab- 

 lish a school for the instruction of candi- 

 dates for Holy Orders. So essential has 

 he considered it to the interests of religion 

 in general and to the prosperity of the 



Ft. n. ae 



Church in particular, that he has submit- 

 ted to very great sacrifices in order to ac- 

 complish the object, which, nevertheless, 

 is far from being attained. How soon it 

 will be attained it is impossible to foretell. 

 Such candidates as have not the pecuni- 

 ary means to carry them through a course 

 of theological studies at the General Sem- 

 inary in the city of New York, resort to 

 the good old-fasliioned way of private in- 

 struction with the pastors of churches. 

 The Bishop has communicated to the 

 Convention the fact, that there are funds 

 in his hands, collected by him in England 

 for a diocesan school, to the amount of 

 ,>|3700 ; also, a valuable donation of theo- 

 logical books from the same source. 



In all our parishes much attention is 

 paid to the instruction of the young in 

 Sunday Schools. It is a subject of con- 

 stant and untiring attention among all 

 our pastors; and has been so for more 

 than twenty years. Some of our parishea 

 have libraries of great and increasing val- 

 ue, which are doing much towards the 

 general diffusion of knowledge both sec- 

 ular and religious — a knowledge of the 

 constitution, discipline and worship of 

 the Ciiristian Church being, certainly, 

 not a neglected department. 



According to the journal of the last 

 Convention there are, at this time, in the 

 Diocese of Vermont twenty-four Clergy- 

 men, and 37 churches or parishes.* 



-M^ 



St. Mnry's (.'liurcli, UiirlingUin. 



Section X. 

 Roman Catholic Church in Vermont. 



BY REV. JEREMIAH o'CALLAGHAN. 



Vermont could cotmt but a iev,^ scat- 

 tered Catholics within her borders until 



* Ciicumstances, whicli il is not necessary hereto 

 mention, oblige us to transfer the remainder of the 

 Kev. Dr. Chase's viuuiiblo ronliihiilioii to the third 



