From the Archives

Church of S. Thomas, Toronto

PARISH MAGAZINE

Vol. IV, No. 2.                         February, 1893.            75 cents per Annum.

DEDICATION FESTIVAL (pp. 3-4)

Our Dedication Festival has come and gone, and it is difficult to express the joy with which we find ourselves in actual possession of our new Church. May God accept the work and bless our use of this building to the glory of His Holy Name.

            It is not too much to say that all are more than content with it. Perhaps the use of the word “temporary,” to describe it, prepared people for a smaller and less substantial building. The word is used because we are not able yet to build a noble and costly permanent church—such as would express our sense of what is due the Majesty of the presence of God in His Sanctuary. Some day it will be possible for us to build in the spirit of the words: “I will beautify my sanctuary, and make the place of my feet glorious.” When the time comes, we shall be able to build the permanent church piece by piece, as we can afford it, beginning from the east end. Meantime, we need a temporary home with as much room in it as we can obtain for the least cost. Our architect has succeeded in giving us this abundantly and beyond our expectations.

            The building, with all its necessary furnishings, will cost well within the $10,000 which was the limit set when we resolved to build last year. For this we get a seating capacity of 700, with plenty of height, and breadth, and length, both for dignity and for the needs of ventilation. The total length from font to altar is 127 feet; the breadth in the nave and chancel, 27 feet; in the transepts, 58 feet; the height from the floor of the nave to the ridge of the roof is 40 feet.

            The east end is necessarily a little bare looking at first. We hope, before very long, to see the altar extended from seven, to nine feet wide—the reredos in its place behind it—and the wall above decorated in some way to relieve its whiteness. This last may be done, to some extent, so soon as the plaster is dry enough to allow of colouring. We should also like to see some sanctuary lamps in their place, and perhaps a little dignifying of the Baptistery with some curtain hangings. [Ed. note: This does not refer to our current baptistery, which was completed as a First World War memorial in 1922.] It has been proposed that the children of the parish might save and collect a sum sufficient to provide an oaken canopy for the font.

            A word of caution ought, however, to be added here. Although every economy has been observed, and subscriptions have been generous towards the Building Fund, when the cost of the land and of the new organ ($3,000) is added to the cost of the building, the debt upon the whole will amount to a very considerable sum. There will be need of much self-denial and many generous gifts yet before all is paid for. Please do not forget that many small offerings towards the Building Fund, continuously coming in, soon mount up to large sums, and that all offerings, however small, will, for some time to come, be urgently needed for this purpose. We hope to be able to acknowledge many every month.

            The basement is not yet in order, and until it is our Sunday School must be to some extent disorganized. The guilds can still meet in the old guild room. When complete, the basement will contain a morning chapel immediately under the sanctuary, a boys’ choir-room to the south of it, and a men’s room to the north, a guild room, a very large Sunday school, with plenty of height and light. Part of this space will probably be cut off by a movable partition, for an infants’ class-room. The basement suggests all sorts of possibilities for the expansion of our parish work, and for the comfort of the workers.

            The whole building is beautifully compact, and just what we need. The speed of its construction is remarkable. It was thought of in June, designed in August, begun on 14th of September, and ready for used on the 17th of January. It is a matter of great happiness to many that our old building will be taken down, and the greater part of it, all that is of value, will be built up again as a Mission Church, at Fairbank.

            The choir and orchestra, quickly organized to supply the place of the organ, contributed in no small degree to the success of the opening services, and, notwithstanding all the difficulties incidental to a hastily organized orchestra, and the impossibility of knowing thoroughly how to cope with the needs of a new building, the services were certainly dignified and musical. The music for the Celebration was the same setting as that sung on Christmas Day, and so was not wholly unfamiliar to the congregation. It was very good of so many new friends, both in orchestra and choir, to give so freely of their time to the practices and the services. Indeed, everyone seemed impressed with the desire to make the services as good as possible. The choir of S. Simon’s Church sang Evensong for us on Friday, 20th January, the music of the service beings Tours in F. The singing was excellent.

            It was a great pleasure to welcome the choir of S. Matthias’ to complete the octave of our opening services on Tuesday, the 14th. No choir could be more welcome, for we owe a very great deal to S. Matthias’ Church, where for many years services such as we now enjoy were to be found alone in Toronto. All were glad to hear the Magnificat sung to music of the Rev. F. G. Plummer’s own setting.

            The Quiet Day this year was conducted by the Rev. R. T. Nichol, and to many of us was a great help, and incitement to a higher lift. His meditations were founded on the three Christian and supernatural virtues of Faith, Hope, and Charity, as distinguished from those virtues such as prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude, which are attainable by the natural man, as yet unregenerate in Holy Baptism. Mr. Nichol was very earnest in his aim to uphold before his hearers the whole sacrifice which the love of God demands from all the baptised. A sacrifice, piercing to the very inmost being of man; a cross truly borne, truly felt to be heavy to bear, and yet in very truth the only means of our claiming the full love and power of God [to] transform mean things into channels of His grace, transform our strivings, our weakness and inability, our great ignorance and blindness into victory and strength.

THINGS TO BE REMEMBERED FROM DEDICATION SERMONS  (p. 6)

That our Bishop wishes us God-speed, and commends the principles upon which our building has been undertaken, and bids us remember that while we “lengthen the cords” of the tent for our increase of numbers, we are to be mindful that we “strengthen the stakes,” by sound doctrine and holy lives.

            That Dedication witnesses to a faith in God who manifests His special Presence within limits of the sanctuary. That this faith rests upon a belief in the incarnation wherein God the Son is pleased to act towards man through the limits of a Human Form. That the fruit of such faith should be found in the entire consecration of ourselves, to live within the limits of God’s revealed will, and in the setting apart of places, and of material offerings as gifts for God’s sole use.

            That [to] these must be added a message that all the success of our work and its gladness depends on the fact that it is God’s foundation; a call to manly courage in the defence of the deposit of the Faith, and in its continued and extended proclamation; and an appeal to let our own increased privileges stimulate us to supply the urgent needs of others; and especially of God’s poor whom we have always with us.