Lipscombe had been consecrated a bishop by the Archbishop of Canterbury in London the previous July, but it was not until February 11, 1825 that he arrived in the island where he received a warm welcome.

According to him, the road from Port Henderson, where he landed to Spanish Town was "lined with the black population evincing their delight by the most graceful and heartfelt gesticulations".

On April 10, 1825 he was installed as Bishop in the then Parish Church of St Catherine. (It did not become the Cathedral until 1843). After the ceremony he returned to Kings House where he was staying. Referring to the crowds lining the route, he noted the "decorous behaviour of all classes, particularly the black population who have been so long anxiously expecting my arrival."

In welcoming the new Bishop, the black population undoubtedly felt that he would bring reform to the Anglican Church which had been operating in Jamaica since the beginning of British rule in 1660. Until the establishment of the Diocese in 1825 the Church in Jamaica was under the nominal authority of the Bishop of London, but in practice it was controlled by the government authorities in Jamaica which was dominated by the planter class. This meant that the Church was seen as an ally of the slave owning interest in the island.

This was a situation the British government could no longer afford to continue for by the 1820's as a result of the work by the abolitionists, there was a growing awareness in Britain that slavery was an evil institution and should be abolished. The government was also concerned at the growing influence which the Methodists, Baptists and Moravians ministers we having among the slave population in Jamaica. There were also frequent slave uprisings.

Whatever the reasons, the British government felt that it was time for the Anglican Church - which was the established church - to minister to the slave population. It realized that it could not do this within the existing ecclesiastical structure in the island, as members of the clergy were on the whole, allies of the planter class, which controlled both the central and local governments. The solution was to establish a Diocese and appoint a bishop with no previous ties to the island and provide him with the necessary funds and authority to carry out his tasks.

Bishop Lipscombe was therefore sent to Jamaica with specific instructions to improve the spiritual conditions of the slaves in the hope that this would make them more amenable to their lot in life. To assist him, the British government provided about 6,500 pounds (sterling) for the Bishop, an Archdeacon and six curates. The British government also told the Governor in no uncertain terms that "His Majesty confidently expects to receive every assistance from you in promoting the establishment of a system calculated to produce the most beneficial effects"

Bishop Lipscombe immediately set about his tasks of organizing the diocese. His brother Henry was appointed his Secretary and Registrar of the Diocese and in 1825 he appointed the Revd. Edward Pope as Archdeacon. In 1828 he divided Jamaica into three Rural Deaneries - Cornwall, Middlesex and Surrey

The Clergy Act was passed to regulate the new conditions for the administration of the Church. It stipulated that as far as the clergy were concerned, the Ecclesiastical laws and canons used in England were to apply to Jamaica. His task could not have been an easy one for although he brought with him six priests he found in Jamaica 19 rectors, 14 island curates and three missionary priests. These had not been accustomed to ecclesiastical control and some of them resented the new bishop.

However Lipscombe said that the clergy were "in general very respectable" even if there were one or two exceptions, notably a Mr Young known to be a "swindler and vagabond". Under the Clergy Act, provisions were made to regularize the conduct as well as the emoluments and accommodation for the clergy.

The first Church to be built and consecrated after the Bishop's arrival was that of Harewood in St Catherine which Lipscombe consecrated in 1826. Bishop Lipscombe was privileged to see that day when the abolition of slavery was proclaimed on August 1, 1834 and spoke off witnessing "a calm and settled religious feeling consecrating the glorious day of emancipation." Contrary to contemporary popular opinion, the Church had engaged itself in seeking to improve the welfare of slaves, working mainly through the Church Missionary Society which made provisions for missionaries to see to their "spiritual benefit."

Lipscombe's episcopacy is important for the history of the Anglican Church in Jamaica not only because he was the first bishop and he established the Church on a firm footing, but he made an attempt to minister to the needs of the black and enslaved population.

His pastoral work was impressive. During the nineteen years of his episcopacy he ordained 73 deacons and 66 priests. He consecrated 31 churches in Jamaica and licensed 41 other buildings for worship.

Ellis said in his History of the Diocese of Jamaica that Lipscombe created "Diocesan Order out of State-subsidized chaos" and as such laid the foundation for other bishops to follow.

Bishop Lipscombe died in April 1843. He was buried in the churchyard of the St Andrew Parish Church where he had conducted so many of his ordinations.

by John Aarons (originally published in The Jamaica Churchman, December 1999)