Charles W. Chesnutt to the editor of Church Life, 27 August 1922
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August 27, 1922.
Editor "Church Life",
Cleveland, Ohio.
Dear Sir:
Those who have attended Emmanuel Church1 during the past four months have been impressed by the exceedingly able manner in which the Rev. Dr. Alfred W. Arundel has fulfilled the duties of his office.2 His conduct of the various Services of the Church has been most impressive and his Sermons have been models of clearness and force and have dealt with the problems growing out of the great complexity of modern life. At the same time these Sermons have been permeated with a deep spirituality which was very uplifting and which carried home to the hearts of the hearers the lessons they were designed to impart.
This four months' ministry has left a lasting impression and there could have been no better preparation for us, as we look forward to the coming of the newly elected Rector.3
Dr. Arundel has always reminded us of the great expectations which should animate us and has urged deep preparation of mind and heart for the coming of our new leader.
The parish will miss Dr. Arundel not alone for distinguished ability but, as well, for his genial and lovable personality.
We wish him "godspeed" and a still larger field of usefulness; but, wherever he goes, none will have a truer appreciation of his talents than we of Emmanuel Church.
Sincerely, a long-time Communicant of Emmanuel Parish.4Correspondent: Church Life was a periodical published by the Episcopalian Diocese of Ohio. Founded by local Episcopalians in Cleveland in 1887, the paper appeared somewhat irregularly and under varying titles in the early 20th century, but was issued monthly in the 1920s. The September 1922 issue has not been located thus far, but likely included a notice about Arundel's temporary rectorship in Cleveland.-->
1. The Chesnutt family worshipped at Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Euclid Ave and E. 86th St. in Cleveland beginning in 1889. They maintained social connections through this integrated, but predominantly White church. Susan was a member of the church's Women's Guild, Chesnutt occasionally gave readings, and donated to its fundraisers. The involvement of Emmanuel Parish in social work likely contributed to the family's interest in the Settlement House movement. [back]
2. Alfred William Arundel (1855–1936) was a White Episcopal clergyman who was originally from the United Kingdom. He emigrated to Ohio in the 1870s and served in Akron, Ohio, before becoming rector of the Trinity Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the early 1890s, a post from which he resigned in 1911 when he became a public advocate of Christian Socialism. Most of his church appointments after 1911 (in New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and elsewhere) seem to have been of short duration. In the summer of 1922, he was interim rector at Chesnutt's church in Cleveland, Emmanuel Episcopal, before returning to New York City; in the fall of 1923, he served at St. Paul's Church in Canton, Ohio. Eventually, he returned to his native Yorkshire, England. [back]
3. Alfred W. Arundel served as interim rector of Emmanuel Church from May to September of 1922, when Kirk B. O'Ferrall became rector. [back]
4. For a draft version of this letter as edited by Alfred Arundel that served as the copy-text for this version, see the enclosure to Arundel's letter to Chesnutt dated August 21, 1922. [back]
