Edina Hall
Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Today we celebrate the life of Thomas Bray for whom we have to thank, in part, for founding libraries in early America.
Born in Shropshire, England in 1656 and ordained in 1678, he was called by the London Bishop in 1696 to support the new church as the Commissary to Maryland. He was only able to find young, poor clergy willing to go to the new colony and realized they did not have books and references to sustain themselves. Most public libraries, at that time, were housed in a handful of universities.
With funds from the British royalty and other followers, Thomas Bray established dozens of lending libraries in the colonies and across England. Originally envisioned for clergy to “warm each other’s hearts to the affection of things above,” over time these libraries “expanded in scope and patronage.”
Thomas Bray, in laying the ground work for his library mission, founded The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK). Still active today, the SPCK has “distributed over 30 million books and provided the means for translating the Book of Common Prayer into more that 200 languages.
“SPCK sent the first printing press to India, opened the first British schools for the poor children, gave equal education to girls, sent the first printed books to Australia, established libraries for clergy and missionaries in many countries, and published the first braille books.” (https://spckusa.org/)
Dr Bray also founded The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, now the United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (USPG). It was created for the “pastoral ministry and education among British Settler communities in North America and the Caribbean… and has sent over 15,000 missionaries worldwide, tackling slavery, championing women’s rights, and opposing racism.” (https://uspg.org.uk/)
Not to be satisfied with these two societies, he founded the Trustees of Parochial Libraries (1710-1730) and The Associates of Dr. Bray (1723-1900)—dedicated to converting “blacks and natives” to the Christian faith.
While a faithful servant of God, we must pause to remember the impact that Thomas Bray’s mission and his schools had on society. Not only were students instructed in manners, discipline, knitting, sewing, reading and writing, but the schools were used to eradicate indigenous culture and replace it with Christian doctrine, justify slavery and encourage the enslaved to accept their “destiny.”
Visit https://uspg.org.uk/history/ for a look at what reparations are being done today by USPG.
—Edina