Charles James Stewart (13 or 16 April 1775 – 13 July 1837) was a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

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, and politician. He was the second Bishop of Quebec from 1826 to 1837, and in connection with this was appointed to the

Legislative Council of Lower Canada The Legislative Council of Lower Canada was the upper house of the Parliament of Lower Canada from 1792 until 1838. The Legislative Council consisted of appointed councillors who voted on bills passed up by the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canad ...

. Stewart at one point was on the Legislative Councils of both Upper and

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Canada and on both the Executive Councils (the

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

above Legislative) of Upper and

Canada, however the appointments were more likely due to Stewart's position as second Anglican bishop over any sort of political want or desire (evident by Stewart never going to any legislative meetings in Upper Canada, and "limited meetings" in Lower Canada, and never really participating within the clergy reserve's Anglican issue regarding equal shares of the clergy land profit the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

or education

secularization In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

). Stewart was instrumental in the introduction of a scheme involving Anglican laypeople within a diocesan synod system, necessitated by the arguments within the government regarding the clergy reserves and the potential elimination of clerical salaries and stipends coming on behalf of government money from the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. This influence within the scheme on Stewart's part came to because he involved the

laity In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all Church membership, members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-Ordination, ordained members of religious orders, e ...

with the

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. Stewart "supplemented the labours of the clergy by appointing catechists to act as

lay readers In Anglicanism, a licensed lay minister (LLM) or lay reader (in some jurisdictions simply reader) is a person authorised by a bishop to lead certain Church service, services of worship (or parts of the service), to preach and to carry out pastoral ...

". The SPG was initially sceptical but nonetheless funded the scheme, which became a success and "one of Stewart's most effective creations." Ten lay-readers were subsequently

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

in the Anglican priesthood. Stewart founded the first Anglican church in the Eastern Townships in 1808, now called "Bishop Stewart Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity", in Frelighsburg in Saint-Armand. Saint-Armand is supposedly home to the first establishment of the Eastern Townships in Quebec, and was a site of skirmish during the

Rebellions of 1837–1838 The Rebellions of 1837–1838 (), were two armed rebellion, uprisings that took place in Lower Canada, Lower and Upper Canada in 1837 and 1838. Both rebellions were motivated by frustrations with lack of political reform. A key shared goal was r ...

which reflects the original name of Saint-Armand, Moore's Corner. Stewart would establish some 23 churches in the Eastern Townships before becoming the second Anglican Bishop of Quebec and some 40 churches and 25 missions in total. Stewart was also critical in protesting the elimination of clerical stipends in Canada period, as it was only due to the protestation of Stewart and the SPG that stipends stayed - but were ultimately reduced by some 15%. He "was said to have been somewhat ungainly and at times lacking in political and business sense" but he was "deep in his religious faith,

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, generosity of spirit and purse, and his genuine care for the spiritual interests of pioneer immigrants and native Indians ( Indigenous)". Stewart is historically remembered as "earning the affection of his clergy and people" and as having "a secure place among the builders of the (various) church(es) of Canada". Stewart is accredited with "raising the level of education from

Sunday school ] A Sunday school, sometimes known as a Sabbath school, is an educational institution, usually Christianity, Christian in character and intended for children or neophytes. Sunday school classes usually precede a Sunday church service and are u ...

and Primary school, elementary school to university."

Birth, education, and works

Born in

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, England, the third surviving son of John Stewart, 7th Earl of Galloway and his second wife, Anne Dashwood, Stewart was a member of

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517 by Richard Fo ...

when he graduated Bachelor of Arts in 1795 and a fellow of

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: The College of All Souls of the Faithful Departed, of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full me ...

when this matured to a

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in 1799. He was ordained to the Anglican ministry in the

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in December 1798 and to the priesthood in May 1799. From 1799 to 1826, he was Rector of Orton Longueville in

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. In 1807, he arrived in

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

as a missionary, settling in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. He soon moved to Saint-Armand and helped to build Trinity Church, Frelighsburg, the first regular place of Anglican worship in the Eastern Townships. In 1826, he was appointed Bishop of Quebec. He died in London in 1837, and is buried there in

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

. Stewart published a 20-page book in 1815 after "seven years of intense labour and close observation of the asterntownships" called ''A short view of the present state of the Eastern Townships in the

Province of Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec a ...

, Bordering on the Line 54° with Hints for their Improvement'', which "intended to provide prospective immigrants with a concise description of the climate, topography, economy, and population of the region." Within the book, Stewart argues for the immigration of

Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...

(his first

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mission in Lower Canada in the

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of Saint-Armand was about 5 kilometers from the American border with

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) as well as what "the most effective means of acquiring their loyalty (to

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over the American Republican structure)" would be (that being "to ensure their welfare and prosperity"). Stewart argued that the Americans would be “in many respects . . . the best settlers in a new country”. Frelighsburg-Eglise Bishop Steward

Stewart published a diocesan work during the controversy in the clergy reserves regarding the

and rampant conflict and complaint regarding the Anglican church (such as being at "the top" of the system and of possessing privileges other institutions and therefore people did not, like "

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

" being assumed as "Anglican") in order to "strengthen the Anglican Church in face of attacks." Much of this contention came from the prominent influence of

John Graves Simcoe Lieutenant-General (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General John Graves Simcoe (25 February 1752 – 26 October 1806) was a British army officer, politician and colonial administrator who served as the lieutenant governor of Upper Canada from 1791 u ...

. This work to defend the Anglican church was called the ''Christian Sentinel and Anglo-Canadian Churchman’s Magazine'' based out of

, edited "in part for its short life" by another Anglican clergyman and journalist, Brooke Bridges Stevens.

References

* * 1775 births 1837 deaths Anglican clergy from London Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Anglican bishops of Quebec Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery 19th-century Anglican Church of Canada bishops Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford Members of the Legislative Council of Lower Canada Anglophone Quebec people Younger sons of earls {{ChurchofEngland-bishop-stub