St.Matthews Anglican Church

at 135 Wilson Road South, Oshawa , L1H 6B9 Canada

1. Organization

"A Warm and Welcoming Church with Heart"

Description

A History of St. Matthew's Anglican Church St. Matthew's Anglican Church began in May 1955 when the Bishop of Toronto sent Ronald Sharp, a young theology student from Wycliffe Theological College in Toronto to conduct a survery on community interest in an Anglican Church. There was an empty field at the corner of Wilson Road South and Orchard Avenue (later to be called Hoskin Avenue), which was considered to be an appropriate site for a church. Over a three month period, Mr. Sharp visited approximately 1200 homes in the immediate vicinity. One hundred and seventy-eight families expressed interest and support for the establishment of an Anglican Church in the area. Mr. Sharp was then appointed as the first minister of the church. During the autumn of 1955, a small wooden portable was constructed with most of the furnishings and required items being donated from other congegations within the Toronto Diocese. The portable held approximately 56 people. There was no electricity and it was heated by an oil space heater. It was extremely cold on Christmas morning in 1955. Overnight the pipes had frozen and burst. The men rolled up their sleeves and got busy cleaning up all the water! Father Sharp called a special meeting for the congregation to select a name for the parish. One lady said she "liked St. Matthew because it was the first book of the Gospels" and that she had attended three other churches named St. Matthew. Someone else felt that "St John was a good choice", but as both our neighbouring towns had parishes named St. John, it was decided that it would be too confusing. Father Sharp wrote to the Bishop stating that St. Matthew was selected and the congregation would like his approval. The woman who suggested the name St. Matthew has never been seen since. In 1958, a building committee was formed and an architect was hired to build the basement of the future church. Father Sharp made up a time capsule using a tin box containing coins, postage stamps and the signatures of the parishioners who attended the first service held in June 1955. It was inserted behind the conerstone as the church was being built. On Easter Eve, 1958, people were busy preparing the basement church in readiness for the opening worship services on Easter. The men had put in many hours laying the floor tiles and at 2 a.m., the ladies from the Altar Guild were still washing the floor and preparing the elements for communion. That morning the parishioners had to "walk the plank" to enter the church as there were no sidewalks and no grass. The church building, as we see it today, was completed in 1966. Father Sharp retired in December 1986 after ministering with St. Mathew's for 31 years. He died in March 2002. The Rev. Roger Maggs, was inducted as our incumbent on August 16, 1987 and served the church until June 1994. The Rev. Richard Miller became the parish priest in 1995 and was with us for 11 years (until September 1996). In 1995, the church celebrated its fiftieth year with many celebrations held throughout the year. We are very excited to welcome our new parish priest, The Rev. Lisa Newland, as of September 2007.

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Summary

St.Matthews Anglican Church is Oshawa based place and this enity listed in Organization category. Located at 135 Wilson Road South ON L1H 6B9. Contact phone number of St.Matthews Anglican Church: 905-725-9841