December 15, 2011
To
the Clergy and People of Anglican Province of Christ the King
Dearly Beloved,
In the early morning hours of December 15, the Right Reverend James Pollard Clark entered eternal rest following a long illness.
Bishop Clark was a kind, gentle man who deeply loved God and His Church. That love also made him a fierce defender of the Faith and protector of the Bride of Christ. Archbishop Morse called him a true hero of the Church for his steadfastness in the face of many of the challenges we encountered in the early days of the Province. In thinking of Bishop Clark I am reminded of the “great cloud of witnesses” from the Epistle to the Hebrews. Those witnesses give us the example we need to “run the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith”. I am grateful to Bishop Clark for the example he set.
James Pollard Clark was born in Sheffield, Alabama. After taking his degree from the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee, where he later served on the faculty, he attended graduate school at Yale and at the University of Michigan. In 1960, he became Director of the Redstone Scientific Information Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
James Clark and his wife, Cruse, were founding members of St Charles, King and Martyr Anglican Church in Huntsville and joined the then Diocese of Christ the King. He was ordained a deacon and priest by the Most Reverend Robert Sherwood Morse and made Rector of St Charles. As the Diocese continued to grow, Father Clark was elected and consecrated Suffragan Bishop to assist by serving congregations in the South. After the formation of our provincial structure, Bishop Clark was elected as the first Bishop Ordinary of the Diocese of the Southern States.
The Bishop is survived by his wife, Mary Cruse Patton Clark; his son, James Pollard Clark, Jr. and wife, Jenny Whitmire Clark; two grandchildren, Anne Patton Clark and Sarah Whitmire Clark, and his brother, Douglass King Clark. Irene Nolen Clark, his daughter, preceded him in death.
Several years ago, Bishop Clark asked his long-time friend and successor, Bishop William Wiygul, to offer the mass at his funeral. That mass will be offered on Saturday, December 17th at three o’clock in the afternoon at St Charles. Bishop Clark will be buried in the University Cemetery at Sewanee on Monday.
The Anglican Province of Christ the King is richer because James Pollard Clark was among us as a clergyman, defender of the Faith and as a friend. Please remember him and his family in your prayers and at your altars. May he rest in peace.
Yours in Christ Jesus,
The Most Rev. James E. Provence
Archbishop
