Kirkman George Finlay (October 1, 1877 - August 27, 1938) was the first

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina The Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina (EDUSC) is a diocese in the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church. Originally part of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina, Diocese of South Carolina, it became independent on October 1 ...

Background and early ministry

Kirkman George Finlay was born on October 1, 1877, to James Finlay and Marian Ponsonby Gun. A few years prior to his birth, Finlay's family came to

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

from

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by way of

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. Within months of arriving in Greenville, five of the eight Finlay children died of

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

. James Finlay was financially well-off and, "as a gentleman farmer", operated a farm in Greenville named The Cedars. Finlay attended a

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

in Greenville, and later attended

Furman University Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...

, receiving a

Bachelor of Literature A Bachelor of Literature (; B.Lit.) is one of thirteen statutory undergraduate academic degrees in China. The basic duration of study is four years. The undergraduate Literature degree course consists of three major categories, with a total of ...

degree in June, 1899. Finlay's older brother, John, had studied for the ministry and had been ordained to the

diaconate A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Catholi ...

, but died before he could be ordained to the priesthood. Soon after his graduation from Furman, Finlay left for Sewanee. While at Sewanee, during the summer of 1901, Finlay met his future wife, Lucy Reed of

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

; they married on April 22, 1903, in

Clemson, South Carolina Clemson () is a city in Pickens County, South Carolina, Pickens and Anderson County, South Carolina, Anderson counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Clemson is adjacent to Clemson University, - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university pr ...

. Finlay's first

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was Holy Trinity, Clemson; additionally, Finlay was responsible for St. Paul's, Pendleton; Ascension, Seneca; and St. John's, Walhalla. The couple's first son, James Alexander Finlay, was born in 1906, but died in October, 1907. Finlay was called as rector of Trinity Church in Columbia in 1907; he remained there for thirteen years. During his time at Trinity Church, he helped move the parish away from the renting of pews as a source of income, and instituted "the Every Member Canvass as the chief source of parish support". In June, 1918, Finlay was granted a leave of absence to serve in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

with the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

; he served for a total of seventeen months. Finlay returned from France in 1919, and was active politically when social justice concerns were debated in the state legislature. In 1920, Finlay was elected

bishop coadjutor A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of the

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, and he ended his term as rector of Trinity Church on December 31 of that year. He was

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bishop on January 20, 1921, by Bishops Williams Alexander Guerry (South Carolina, and acting for the Presiding Bishop), Frederick F. Reese (Georgia), and Joseph B. Cheshire (North Carolina).

Episcopacy

As bishop coadjutor of the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina, Finlay was responsible for the

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

region of the state. The diocese was divided in October 1922, and he became bishop diocesan of the

. During the 1920s and 1930s, Finlay was responsible for many endeavors to create churches and schools for

African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...

. In 1928, he became

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the

Board of Trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of the Voorhees Normal and Industrial School for Negroes at

Denmark, South Carolina Denmark is a city in Bamberg County, South Carolina, United States. The population at the 2010 census is 3,538. Geography Denmark is located in northwest Bamberg County at (33.321173, -81.142289). U.S. Route 78 and U.S. Route 321 cross in De ...

. By 1934, all but the two South Carolina dioceses afforded African Americans representation with a vote in diocesan affairs, and Finlay was working hard to change this; though the change was not approved in the 1934 diocesan convention, it was approved in the 1947 diocesan convention. Finlay was one of the church leaders instrumental in the creation of the Kanuga Conference Center in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Finlay died at Kanuga on August 27, 1938. He is buried in the churchyard of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Columbia, SC.

References

External links

Episcopal Diocese of South CarolinaEpiscopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finlay, Kirkman George 1877 births 1938 deaths Clergy from Greenville, South Carolina Episcopal bishops of South Carolina Furman University alumni Episcopal bishops of Upper South Carolina Phi Delta Theta members