Robert Smith (bishop)

Robert Smith (August 25, 1732 - October 28, 1801) was a prelate of the Episcopal Church who was the first Bishop of South Carolina between 1795 and 1801.[1]

Early Life, Education, & Ordained Ministry

St. Philips Church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Smith was born on August 25, 1732 in Worstead, Norfolk, England to Stephen Smith and Hannah Press. He was educated at the Norwich Grammar School, before enrolling at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, from where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in 1753. He was awarded a Doctor of Divinity from the University of Pennsylvania in 1789.Smith was ordained deacon in the Church of England on March 7, 1756, and then priest on December 21, 1756, both by the Bishop of Ely Matthias Mawson. He then emigrated to the Province of South Carolina, where he became assistant minister of St Philip's Church in Charleston, South Carolina in 1757. In 1759 he became rector of the same church. He was also a supporter of the American Revolution. He fled from Charleston after in 1780 to the Province of Maryland after the former became occupied by the British. While there, he served as priest-in-charge of St Paul's Church in Brandywine, Maryland. In 1783, he returned to serve as rector of St Philip's Church in Charleston.[2] On February 10, 1795, Smith was unanimously elected the first Bishop of South Carolina and was consecrated on September 13, 1795, the sixth bishop in the American Episcopal succession.

The 1775 Humiliation Sermon & Other Notable Sermons

Bishop Robert Smith was known for his sermons relating to topics surrounding the Colonies and the American Revolution. On February 17, 1775, it is noted in the official sermon brief that Smith "Preached Before the Commons House of Assembly, and the Members of the Provincial Congress- at the request of the House, & Members of said Congress on February 17th 1775- Observed as a day of fasting & humiliation, on account of the unhappy differences between Great Britain & her Colonies."[3] The importance of this sermon stems from Smith's vocabulary. Smith did not refer to any "colonies" or any possible threat of a "civil war," but rather referred to the ability of self governing colonies not as a right of man, but as a "right of man's duty to God."[4]

"The President's House" 6 Glebe Street, Charleston, South Carolina.

Robert Smith's Humiliation Sermon of 1775 in its simplicity, allowed for an audience to be motivated in a religious sense. Smith insinuated that what the colonists were doing was in their divine right. There is no evidence of Smith's St. Philips congregation disapproving of this sermon.

The Right Reverend Robert Smith D.D.
Bishop of South Carolina
Church	Episcopal Church
Diocese	South Carolina
Elected	February 10, 1795
In office	1795-1801
Successor	Theodore Dehon
Orders
Ordination	December 21, 1756 by Matthias Mawson
Consecration	September 13, 1795 by William White
Personal details
Born	August 25, 1732 Worstead, Norfolk, England
Died	October 28, 1801 (aged 69) Charleston, South Carolina, United States
Buried	St. Philip's Episcopal Church (Charleston, South Carolina)
Nationality	English
Denomination	Anglican
Parents	Stephen Smith & Hannah Press
Spouse	Elizabeth Paget (m. 1758; d. 1771) Sarah Shubrick (m. 1774; d. 1779) Anna Maria Tilghman (m. 1782; d. 1792)

In other sermons, Smith was noted to become an apologist for his involvement within African enslavement. He was a wealthy member of the planter elite in South Carolina. Because of his status, this allowed Smith to be equivalate to other distinguished South Carolina families, such as the Draytons', Middletons' or Pickneys'. Bishop Robert Smith's sermon style was to keep his audience eagerly waiting. He would take brief pauses in between paragraphs, building suspense, allowing for the audience to be at the edge of their seats. Smith purposely aimed his sermons at the individual level, that whatever an individual does, God should be at the center of their intentions.[5]

College of Charleston

Bishop Robert Smith, amongst several revolutionary leaders of South Carolina, signed the charter of the College of Charleston in 1785.[6] A few months later on February 6, 1786, Robert Smith was voted as the first president of the College of Charleston. Alongside Smith, Thomas Bee served as vice-president, Daniel Bourdeaux as treasurer, and William Loughton Smith as secretary. The college began classes on July 3, 1785 inside the home of Bishop Robert Smith, located on 6 Glebe Street in the Harelston Village neighborhood.[7] The building today still stands and serves as the residential home for the presidents to the college. Robert Bishop Smith retired from the presidential role in 1797, leaving the college to its second president, Thomas Bee Jr. Bishop Robert Smith's legacy to the College of Charleston is still noted and revered. The "Bishop Robert Smith Award" is the highest achievement that a undergraduate student can earn.[8] The award recipients are presented a plaque, a monetary award, and recognition during the commencement ceremony.

On October 29, 2020, the College of Charleston made the decision to no longer use Robert Smith's name in its highest graduating student honor. The reason being for Smith's involvement within enslavement. The current president of the College of Charleston, President Andrew Hsu, said that his decision came when the discovery was made that "at the time of his death, smith enslaved more than 200 people."[9] This decision by the College of Charleston also effected the "Aiken's Fellows Society," a group reserved for the groups highest performing students within the school's honor college. The group is now known as the Charleston Fellows.[9]

Consecrators

• Samuel Seabury, 1st bishop of the Episcopal Church, serving Connecticut, and 2nd Presiding Bishop.
• Samuel Provoost, 3rd bishop of the Episcopal Church, first bishop of New York
• James Madison, 4th bishop of the Episcopal Church, first bishop of Virginia

Notes and references

1. Listing for The American Revolution and Righteous Community: Selected Sermons of Bishop Robert Smith, edited by Charles Wilbanks
2. Smith, Robert (2007). The American Revolution and Righteous Community: Selected Sermons of Bishop Robert Smith, p. 12. University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, SC. ISBN 1570036659.
3. Smith, Robert, and C. P. Seabrook Wilkinson. "A Declaration of Dependence: Robert Smith's 1775 Humiliation Sermon." The South Carolina Historical Magazine 100, no. 3 (1999): 221-40.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Easterby, J.H. "A History of the College of Charleston, Founded 1770." Charleston, S.C. 1935. Pg.43
7. Ibid.
8. "The Smith, Stern, & Connelley Awards". CofC.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
9. Schiferl, Jenna. "College of Charleston renames scholarship programs, awards that honor former slave owners". Post and Courier. Retrieved 2020-11-23.

External links

• Web site of the Diocese of South Carolina
• Episcopal Church in the United States of America
• College of Charleston