It has been my privilege to know a few great men. One was Rev. Spencer Morgan Rice, who passed away on January 15, 2014.
In 1989, a friend who was active in Trinity Church in Boston, Massachusetts suggested that I attend an Inquirers’ Class. This was a good idea. After Rev. Rice’s presentation, I was hooked. I was an active member of the church through 1992, when Rev. Rice retired. I became fond of Rev. Rice as well as his wife Harriett, who was a wonderful, gracious person.
The Boston Globe obituary captures Rev. Rice well. He was a gifted, passionate, and charismatic preacher. His sermons were brilliantly woven, and his delivery was masterful. He made each of us in the congregation feel that he was speaking directly to us. He understood our struggles and conveyed his own struggles. A friend observed, “Rev. Rice extolled us to face the fear, the pain, the suffering in our lives, to accept the tension and the uncertainty, and to thereby open ourselves up to spiritual growth and ultimately wisdom.”
Rev. Rice drew people to Trinity not only through the quality of his sermons but also through ensuring the excellence of the music. My friend who introduced me to Trinity remembers that Rev. Rice considered the music “a gift to the people,” and obtained private funding for special music. “This meant, at least once a month, either a string and wind ensemble or a brass and timpani ensemble.” Rev. Rice knew the power of music to reach hearts.
Trinity Church, a National Historic Landmark, is a “masterpiece of American architecture.” The worship services were themselves masterpieces.
Rev. Rice’s leadership was recognized in a documentary by the U.K.’s ITV (Independent Television). The documentary explored churches in the U.K. and the U.S. and included Trinity as a striking example of a vibrant and successful church.
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As the Globe obituary noted, Rev. Rice “first visited Trinity Church as a 19-year-old in the Navy when his minesweeper docked in Boston.” Rev. Rice shared with people that, when he attended the Trinity service, led by the legendary Rev. Theodore Parker Ferris, he found his calling. He determined to go to divinity school and to someday return as the Rector of Trinity Church in the City of Boston. And this was the path he followed, to the benefit of many. He would be glad that Trinity continues to flourish.
In this brief, edited clip from Rev. Rice’s final sermon as Rector of Trinity Church, in June 1992, he speaks of hope, patience, and heeding a call.
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After Rev. Rice’s retirement from Trinity Church, I attended as many of his summer services at St. Aidan’s Chapel in South Dartmouth, Massachusetts as I could. It was a great pleasure to continue to hear Rev. Rice preach, to see him and Harriett, to visit with friends from Trinity, and to meet other parishioners.
I also attended a handful of Rev. Rice’s services at historic St. John’s Church in Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. Twice I took the train down to Washington for Rev. Rice’s Christmas morning services. Rev. Rice remained a gifted preacher.
Harriett’s passing away in 2001 was extremely sad, a terrible loss.
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One of Rev. Rice’s themes was, “You have no idea the effect you have on others.” Rev. Rice touched more people than he could have known.
We are blessed that the young man who came ashore in Boston heeded the call, giving so many hope, wisdom, and compassion.
A great man has passed away.
[Updated link to “masterpiece of American architecture”: March 12, 2018]
