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Boston, having been appointed Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy in Washington College, has become a resident of this Di

ocese.

The pastoral connexion between the Rev. Benjamin Benham, and the Parish of Brookfield, being dissolved by mutual agreement, I have assented thereto, and that parish is now vacant. The Rev. Ezra B. Kellogg has resigned his charge of the Parishes of New Preston and Milton, and has been appointed a missionary for the eastern part of the Diocese. The Rev. James Keeler has taken charge of the Parish of Meriden, in connexion with that of Northford. The Rev. Peter G. Clark has accepted the pastoral charge of the Parishes of East Haddam and North Killingworth; And the Rev. William Jarvis has accepted the rectorship of the Parish of Essexborough.

The following Cures and Parishes are now vacant. The cure of Woodbury, Roxbury and Washington, by the removal of the Rev. Mr. Gilbert. The Cure of New Preston and Milton, by the removal of the Rev. Mr. Kellogg. The Parish of Brookfield, by the resignation of the Rev. Mr. Benham. And another Cure may be formed, by an union of the vacant Parish of Trumbull, with that of Weston, or Monroe. Besides these, there are several small Parishes which receive only occasional services, from the Clergy in their vicinity.

The following persons are now candidates for Holy Orders in this Diocese, viz;-Harry Finch, Charles W. Bradley, and William H. Judd, (who are pursuing their studies at the General Theological Seminary,) and William Croswell, Allen C. Morgan, John T. Adams, and Oliver Hopson.

Brethren ;-having laid before you this statement of the affairs of the Diocese, I will detain you no longer from the business of Convention.-May we enter upon it, in the fear of God, and with an earnest desire to promote his glory through the welfare of his Church. And may he, who by his Holy Spirit, did preside in the councils of the blessed Apostles, direct our deliberations, preserve us from the evils of prejudice, ignorance and error; and by the same Spirit, so sanctify and govern us in our present work, that the portion of his Church which he has committed to our care, may be built up in the most holy faith, and that the comfortable gospel of salvation may be truly preached, truly received,and truly followed,in all places,through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Norwalk, June 4, 1828.

THOMAS C. BROWNELL.

On motion of the Rev. J. S. Stone, William Dunning, Esq. a member of the Church in Litchfield, was admitted to an honorary seat in Convention.

The following rules of order were read by the Secretary, and adopted by the Convention :

1. The business of every day shall be introduced by prayer.

2. When the President takes the chair, no member shall continue standing, or shall afterwards stand unless to address the chair.

3. No member shall absent himself from the service of the convention, unless he have leave from the house.

4. When any member is about to speak in debate, or deliver any matter to the convention, he shall rise from his seat, and without advancing, shall with due respect address himself to the President, confining himself strictly to the point in debate.

5. No member shall speak more than twice in the same debate, without leave of the house.

6. A question being once determined, shall stand as the judgment of the convention, and shall not be again drawn into debate during the same session.

7. While the President is putting any question, no one shall hold private discourse, stand up, walk into, out of, or across the house, or read any book.

8. Every member who shall be in the convention when any question is put, shall on a division be counted, unless he be particularly interested in the decision.

9. No motion shall be considered as before the house, unless it be seconded, and reduced to writing when required.

10. When any question is before the convention, it shall be determined on before any thing new is introduced, except for adjournment. 11. The question on a motion for adjournment shall be taken before any other, and without debate.

12. When the convention is to rise, every member shall keep his seat until the President leave the chair.

The Rev. H. Croswell, corresponding Secretary of the Society, for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, read the following report of the proceedings of the Society, which was accepted :-

At the request of the President of the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, and in behalf of the Board of Directors, the Corresponding Secretary begs leave to present the following report: As the expenditures of the Society, have been confined, for several years past,to the support of Missions; and as the President is authorized, with the advice of a committee of the Board of Direction, to make the appropriations for this object; it has not been found necessary to call any special meeting of the Board.-From the report of the Treasurer, the Convention will perceive, that the annual receipts of the Society are still small, and inadequate to any extensive operations. With the exception of an allowance for a portion of the past year, to the Rev Mr. Beach, Salisbury, and the Rev. Mr. Kellogg, New-Preston-and $50 to the parish of Weston, the like sum to the parish of Middle-Haddam, and $25 to the parish of New-Canaanappropriations have been made for missionary labors only in the eastern part of the diocese.-In this section, the Rev. Mr. Peck labored, with encouraging prospects of usefulness, until removed by death;

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and his place is now supplied by the Rev. Mr. Kellogg.-With regard to appropriations for the special benefit of weak or decayed parishes, the Board fell persuaded that nothing can be done with any due degree of equity, unless the Convention can devise some measures for fixing and defining the limits of the respective cures in the diocese. Were all the parishes arranged in suitable and convenient cures, very few of these cures would be found unable to maintain a clergyman; and in these few instances, such aid might be afforded, as would prevent the officiating clergymen from seeking the residue of his support in a parish belonging to another cure.-Perhaps there are but few cases, in which a cure should consist of more than two parishes; and no more than three should ever be associated under the care of one clergyman.

The Board regret the necessity of saying, what they now feel bound to repeat, that the resources of the Society are too small to meet the fair demand for missionary labors within the diocese.-They venture to hope, however, that their operations, even with their very limited means, have been such, as to secure to the Society, not only the countenance, but the more liberal patronage of the friends of the Church, throughout the diocese.

On motion by the Rev. Mr. Croswell-Resolved, That a Committee be appointed to arrange the parishes composing this diocese into separate cures, and to report the same to this Convention, with such resolutions on the subject, as they may deem it expedient for the Convention to adopt.

The Rev. H. Croswell, the Rev. Ashbel Baldwin, and Stephen Betts, Esq. were appointed on this Committee.

On motion by the Rev. Mr. Humphreys-Resolved, That the part of the Bishop's address, which relates to Sunday Schools be referred to a Committee.

The Rev. H. Humphreys, the Rev. D. Burhans, and Col. Daniel Putnam, were appointed on this committe.

On motion of the Rev. B. G. Noble-Resolved, That the part of the Bishop's Address, which relates to the Episcopal Academy at Cheshire, be referred to a committee. The Rev. Messrs. Noble, Croswell, and Wheaton, and Wm. R. Hitchcock and Wm. H. Imlay, Esqrs, were appointed on this committee.

On motion by the Secretary-Wm. R. Hitchcock, Esq. was appointed assistant Secretary of the Convention.

The following report of the proceedings of the Standing Committee, during the last year, was laid upon the table by their Secretary the Rev. N. S. Wheaton.

Abstract of the proceedings of the Standing Committee, between the Conventions of 1827, and 1828.

HARTFORD, June 7th, 1827. The Standing Committee, consisting of the Rev. H. Croswell, Rev.

N. S. Wheaton, Rev. R. Sherwood, Rev. D. Baldwin, and Rev. E. Rutledge, met, and chose the Rev. N. S. Wheaton, Secretary.

The chairman submitted certain documents, relative to the election of the Rev. H. U. Onderdonk, Assistant Bishop of the Diocese of Pennsylvania-which document being found satisfactory, the testimonials, required by the Vth canon, were signed by each of the members.

Adjourned without day.

HARTFORD, August 1st.

At a meeting of the S. C. all the members being present-John Turrill Adams was recommended to the Bishop, as a candidate for holy orders; and Nathan Kingsbury, a candidate, was recommended to receive the holy order of Deacons. Edward W. Peet, a candidate for Deacon's orders, also presented his testimonials, which were approved.

Adjourned till the following day.

August 2d.

The S. C. met-the whole number being present; and recommended Edward W. Peet to receive the holy order of Deacons.-Adjourned till the evening.—At a meeting in the evening-all the members being present-the Rev. George C. Shepard presented the requisite testimonials, and was recommended to receive the holy order of Priests. Adjourned.

Nov. 7th.

At a meeting of the S. C. held in Stratford-present, the Rev. Messrs. Croswell, Sherwood, Baldwin, and Rutledge :

The chairman submitted a communication from the Secretary of the Domestic and Foreign Church Missionary Society, announcing the appointment of Jacob Oson, a man of colour, and a candidate for holy order in this Diocese, as a Missionary, to serve in Liberia ;

Whereupon it was unanimously resolved, If the said Jacob Oson shall accept the appointment, that the committee will recommend him to the Bishop for holy orders.

The following document, signed by one of the Presbyters, and a layman of the P. E. Church in Connecticut, was received, and laid before the S. Committee.

Whereas it is commonly reported and believed, that the Rev. Menzies Rayner, a Presbyter of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Connecticut, is in the habit of countenancing and disseminating opinions, which are contrary to the Doctrines of the Protestant Episcopal Church, in the United States-and also, that the said Rayner is in the habit of public preaching, without using the liturgy of the Church-and further, that his conduct, for some time past, has been unbecoming the character of a Christian minister :

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Now, therefore, we the undersigned, earnestly desirous that the truth of the said reports should be investigated, agreeably to the fourth

canon of the Convention of the State of Connecticut, do hereby charge the said Menzies Rayner, with the above recited offences, and present the same for the consideration of the Standing CommitSigned &c.

tee.

Nov. 7th, 1828.

Whereupon, the S. Committee having been informed by the Rt. Rev. the Bishop of the Diocese, that the said Menzies Rayner had given him assurances that he would immediately make the declaration required by the seventh Canon of the General Covention of 1820, to enable the Bishop to suspend him from the ministry of the church without a trial-it was unanimously resolved to postpone all proceedings on the charges, until further information be received from the Bishop. Adjourned.

NEW HAVEN, Jan. 15th, 1828,

The S. C. met in New Haven, all the members being present.Jacob Oson, a man of colour, offered testimonials of his qualifications for the ministry, which were approved :

Whereupon, he was recommended to the Bishop, to receive the holy order of Deacons, and also of Priests ; for the purpose of labouring as a missionary in Liberia, or of exercising the ministry among the people of colour in the United States of America.

The Rev. William H. Lewis, Deacon, presented the requisite testimonials, and was recommended to the Bishop to receive the holy order of Priests.

Information having been received from the Rt. Rev. Bishop Brownell, that the Rev. Menzies Rayner has been suspended from the ministry :

Thereupon, Resolved, that all further proceedings in reference to the said Menzies Rayner be for the present suspended.

Adjourned.

NORWALK, June 3d.

The S. C. met-all being present: William A. Curtis laid his testimonials before the S. C. which were approved; and the said Curtis was recommended to receive the holy order of Priests.

Adjourned.

I certify that the above is a true abstract of the proceedings of the Standing Committee.

Attest,

N. S. WHEATON, See'y of the S. Committee.

On motion by the Rev. A. Baldwin-Resolved, That the Standing Committee be now chosen.

Agreeably to the above resolution, the Convention went into the election of the Standing Committee for the ensuing year; and the Rev. Harry Croswell, the Rev. N. S. Wheaton, the Rev. Reuben Sherwood, the Rev. David Baldwin, and the Rev. Edward Rutledge, were chosen.

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