A Sermon Preached in York Minister, on St. Bartholomew's Day, Friday, August 24, 1877 on the Occasion of the Consecration of the Right Rev. Rowley Hill, Lord Bishop of — Themes and Context

A Consecration Crowd

The preface is the most vivid portion of the text. Hoare writes that he “longed to take them all in” when the door opened, but the place was already packed. He distinguishes the congregation from a mere sight-seeing crowd, observing that they listened with “fixed attention” and that most chose to stay for Holy Communion. The shortage of bread and wine is mentioned without drama, as a practical consequence of unexpected piety. These details—the special trains, the glass screen, the extra supply—are not embellished; they are reported with the precision of an eyewitness. For a reader approaching the sermon, the preface functions as a historical document in its own right, grounding the subsequent theological exposition in a real, crowded building.

The Text and Its Immediate Application

The sermon itself takes Acts 1:8 as its text: “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” Hoare applies this directly to the newly consecrated bishop, Rowley Hill, praying that he may be “like Stephen, ‘full of faith and power.’” The reference to Stephen, a deacon, is pointed: it links the episcopal office to the diaconate of the early church. Hoare expresses confidence that Hill’s desire is to “bear the same testimony as a Bishop which he has been enabled to bear as a Presbyter,” and to speak from his episcopal chair with “the same clear ring of Scriptural truth” as from his parochial pulpit. The language is direct and unadorned, avoiding rhetorical flourish in favor of plain parallelism.

Widening the Prayer Beyond the Bishop

After focusing on Hill, Hoare broadens his petition to include “all those faithful men who, hidden from the eye of the world, and without any prospects of the honours of the world, are toiling on.” He lists quiet country parishes, densely-peopled urban districts, and far-distant missions. The structure is cumulative: bishops, presbyters, deacons, laity. Hoare asks that the Church of England remain “true to her Reformation principles,—a faithful witness for Christ.” The repetition of “power” in successive clauses—power to bishops, presbyters, deacons, laity—creates a litany-like rhythm. This section shows how a consecration sermon can turn from a single figure to the whole church, without losing specificity.

Structure and Voice in the Excerpts

The surviving text is incomplete, breaking off before the sermon’s conclusion. What remains shows a clear three-part movement: a circumstantial preface, a textual exposition tied to the bishop, and an expansive prayer for the entire church. Hoare’s voice is measured and pastoral, not oratorical. He uses short, declarative sentences and avoids elaborate metaphors. The repeated phrase “full of faith and power” echoes Acts 6:5 and 6:8, linking Stephen’s diaconate to Hill’s episcopate. Readers should note that the sermon’s ending is missing; the final appeal for the church’s lamp to be burning “without reserve, and without compromise” may not be the original conclusion. The excerpts provide a reliable sample of Hoare’s method but not the full arc.

Because the sermon text is truncated, readers encounter a work that builds from a concrete historical scene to a broad ecclesial vision, then stops. The preface is the most complete and distinctive part; the sermon itself is a fragment. Approach it as a primary source for Victorian liturgical practice and Anglican homiletics, not as a finished argument. The missing ending leaves Hoare’s final application unknown, but the surviving portions offer a clear view of his pastoral priorities and his ability to move from the particular to the universal.

That St. Bartholomew's sermon speaks of the Spirit’s quiet power among a crowded congregation, much like the whispered certainty I find in The Bible: I. Authenticity II. Credibility III. Morality — Story, Setting & Ideas. Both rest on an old trust, the kind that doesn't shout. Their kinship is the hush after a benediction, a shared patience with the eternal.