ABSTRACT
James DeKoven was at the center of controversies that swirled around the catholic movement in the Episcopal Church during the nineteenth century. He urged a comprehensive and tolerant approach to liturgical and devotional questions in the church. DeKoven was described as 'the Pusey of the American Church'. DeKoven was a graduate of General Theological Seminary, at the time a "national center of High Churchmanship with roots in the teachings of American Bishops Samuel Seabury and John Henry Hobart and in the Church of England's Oxford Movement. DeKoven narrowly missed episcopal election in the Diocese of Massachusetts in 1873. Romantic religion was idealistic. Such romantic themes were evident in DeKoven's life and witness. DeKoven's romantic religion included special appreciation for the places and forms of sacred worship. The place of worship should be no barren meeting hall. DeKoven's appeal for a change of heart also points beyond the selfishness he found in the world around him.
