Missionaries & Visionaries

Missionaries and Visionaries. . , "Whether we live or die, we are the Lord's possession." (Romans 14:8), The quest for a holy life and a holy death has always been part of the human story and a core purpose of this faith community. We are inspired by the great lives of history and the ordinary lives of those we love. The lives of the living and the departed are linked through the communion of saints which the churchyard symbolizes., Charlotte Atlee Rowe (1782-1863) , Charlotte Atlee was baptized at Saint James. Orphaned as a young child, she joined the Baptist Church in Massachusetts in 1806 following the death of her first husband and baby. She became the first American woman overseas missionary when the Baptist Board of Foreign Missions appointed her in 1815. She taught in India, managed schools and led worship near Patna on the Ganges. She is buried in the churchyard close to her twin daughters., William Augustus Muhlenberg (1796-1877) , One of the most influential clergymen of the nineteenth century, Muhlenberg was co-rector of Saint James in 1820-26. He enhanced the worship of the Episcopal Church by reducing its formalism through new congregational hymns and more frequent sacramental worship. He was a key player in establishing the public school district in Lancaster in 1822 and inspired the Church School Movement which created boarding schools focused on Christian character. In New York City he established St. Luke's Hospital in 1858 and created an order of deaconesses to be nurses., Hong Neok Woo (1834-1919) , Born in Zhangzhou, China, Woo was educated by the American Church Mission established by the Episcopal Church. He came to America as a cabin boy. A faithful worshipper at Saint James, in 1860 Woo was the first Asian to be naturalized in Lancaster. He was a printer at the Lancaster Examiner and Herald. After serving in the Civil War, he returned to China in 1864 and became a priest, ministering as a hospital assistant, chaplain and teacher. He is buried in Shanghai., John Piersol (JP) McCaskey (1837-1935) , Born in Lancaster County, he served as a beloved teacher and principal of Lancaster Boy's High School for 50 years. As editor and publisher of The Pennsylvania School Journal he shaped the state's curriculum by advocating for music, art and astronomy. He introduced Arbor Day when students plant trees in Pennsylvania. A Republican, he was the 23rd Mayor of Lancaster (1906-1910) and served on the vestry of Saint James for 56 years. In 1938 Lancaster's new high school was named in his honor., In this churchyard a few yards from here you will find the graves of some of the great patriots, educators, business leaders and clergy of Pennsylvania. But it is important to remember that there are many unmarked graves of men, women and children., Among those without a headstone are many Africans as well as the pioneering missionary Charlotte Rowe. As our understanding of history deepens we learn how issues of class, race and gener make some lives more visible than others. We invite you to reflect on your own life journey in the churchyard.