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Life Sculpture
By peace | July 29, 2007
Life Sculpture
By George Washington Doane (27 May 1799 – 27 April 1859)
Chisel in hand stood a sculptor boy
With his marble block before him,
And his eyes lit up with a smile of joy,
As an angel-dream passed o’er him.
He carved the dream on that shapeless stone,
With many a sharp incision;
With heaven’s own flight the sculpture shone,
He’d caught that angel-vision.
Children of life are we, as we stand
With our lives uncarved before us,
Waiting the hour when, at God’s command,
Our life-dream shall pass o’er us.
If we carve it then on the yielding stone,
With many a sharp incision,
Its heavenly beauty shall be our own,
Our lives, that angel-vision.
George Washington Doane stands out in the life of the American church as one of the first ten great American churchmen of New Jersey (1832–59). He acted as rector of St. Mary’s Church, Burlington, N.J, and there he established a school for girls, St. Mary’s Hall, and Burlington College for boys. George Washington Doane was an educator, mission organizer and hymn writer. The Life and Writings of George Washington Doane (4 vol., 1860–61) was prepared by his son, William Croswell Doane(1832–1913). He was bishop (1869–1913) of the Episcopal diocese of Albany, and author of the well-known hymn “Ancient of Days.”
George Washington Doane studied hard as a boy and showed both conviction and courage. While preparing for college, he was beaten for refusing to memorize a catechism which was not the official catechism of his church. He stood firm. Other students joined him. They won the privilege to study from the text they preferred.
After he graduated from Union College, New York in 1818, he entered the ministry. His rise was steady — by 1821 he was ordained a deacon, by 1823 a priest. On October 3, 1832 a local convention held in New Jersey asked him to become their bishop. George worked hard as bishop. Statistics show that the church grew steadily and strongly under him.
He became ill with a fever believed to be typhoid. He recovered from delirium weak and longing for rest. One of the last things he said was, “I die in the Faith of the Son of God, and in the Confidence of his one Catholic and Apostolic Church. I have no merits–no man has–but my trust is in the Mercy of Jesus.”
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