Religion: Duality at Trinity

It was Sunday, 11 a.m., time for services in Brooklyn’s Holy Trinity Protestant Episcopal Church. But, instead of one minister, two were on hand. One led the worship from the pulpit, the other stood at a lectern a few feet away.

The preacher at the lectern was the Rev. William Howard Melish, around whose name has swirled the most extraordinary fracas seen in any U.S. church for a long time. In 1949 Long Island’s Bishop James P. De Wolfe fired William Melish’s father, John Howard Melish, as rector of Trinity, because he would not curb the left-wing activities of his son and assistant pastor. But the vestry and congregation accepted the younger Melish to stay on as acting pastor. By last week, however, a majority of the vestry (now mostly composed of new members) had changed its stand and decided to fire Melish.

Melish did not take the edict lying down. The night before, the anti-Melish faction had changed some 40 church locks to keep Melish out. Melish partisans had countered by tearing off one of the locks. At the 11 o’clock service, the second minister, who had been sent by Bishop De Wolfe, retreated when it became apparent that most of the congregation was following the Rev. Mr. Melish’s conduct of the service. The reason that many parishioners back Melish is that they resent the bishop’s actions as “High Church” interference.

On the church steps afterward, William Melish shook hands with his embattled parishioners. An angry woman strode up to him from the street and said: “You are a disgrace to the church.” “I am glad you told me to my face,” said William Melish.