John Williams (August 30, 1817 – February 7, 1899) was the eleventh presiding bishop of the

Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop of ...

Early life

Williams was born at

Deerfield, Massachusetts Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Settled near the Connecticut River in the 17th century during the colonial era, the population was 5,090 as of the 2020 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachu ...

, the son of Ephraim Williams and Emily (Trowbridge) Williams. He was educated at

Deerfield Academy Deerfield Academy is an elite coeducational preparatory school in Deerfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1797, it is one of the oldest secondary schools in the United States. It is a member of the Eight Schools Association, the Ten Schools Admis ...

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

and at

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Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

, where he graduated in 1835.Batterson, 165 Although his parents were Unitarian, Williams's time at Harvard convinced him to join the Protestant Episcopal Church. He was ordained deacon in 1838 and priest in 1841. Williams held the

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

ship of St. George's Church,

Schenectady, New York Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

, from 1842 to 1848, after which he became president of Trinity College, and at the same time professor of history and literature there.

Bishop of Connecticut

In 1851, Williams was elected Assistant Bishop of Connecticut.Batterson, 166 He was the 53rd bishop, and was consecrated by Bishops

Thomas Church Brownell Thomas Church Brownell (October 19, 1779 – January 13, 1865) was founder of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, and Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church from 1852 to 1865. Biography Brownell was born in Westport, Massachusetts ...

John Henry Hopkins John Henry Hopkins (January 30, 1792 – January 9, 1868) was the first bishop of Episcopal Diocese of Vermont and the eighth Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He was also an artist (in both watercolor an ...

, and

William Heathcote DeLancey William Heathcote DeLancey (October 8, 1797 – April 5, 1865) was a bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America and the sixth Provost of the University of Pennsylvania. DeLancey was known as a High Churchman, and served as t ...

. In 1854, Williams founded

Berkeley Divinity School Berkeley Divinity School, founded in 1854, is a seminary of The Episcopal Church in New Haven, Connecticut. Along with Andover Newton Theological School and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, Berkeley is one of the three "Partners on the Quad," ...

at Middletown, and held the office of

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as well as being principal instructor in Church history and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

at the School. On the death of Bishop Brownell in 1865, Williams succeeded him in the sole charge of the diocese, remaining Dean of Berkeley Divinity School also.

Presiding bishop

Williams succeeded Alfred Lee of

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as presiding bishop in 1887, and earned the reputation of a wise conservative leader in ecclesiastical affairs.Johnson In 1896, he was acknowledged as the senior bishop in the Anglican communion.

Works

Among his published works are: * ''Thoughts on the Gospel Miracles'' (1848) * ''The English Reformation'' (Paddock Lectures, 1881) * ''The World's Witness to Jesus Christ'' (Bedell Lectures, 1882) * ''Studies in the Book of the Acts'' (1888)

Notes

References

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External links

Documents by Williams
from Project Canterbury * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, John People from Deerfield, Massachusetts Harvard University alumni Trinity College (Connecticut) faculty American religious writers 1817 births 1899 deaths Presiding Bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America 19th-century Anglican bishops in the United States Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni Episcopal Church in Connecticut Presidents of Trinity College (Connecticut) Episcopal bishops of Connecticut