Reflections on the heritage, life & work of faith communities in Ottawa and Eastern Ontario
Few churches can say that their cornerstone was laid by Canada’s longest serving prime minister. Yet that’s precisely St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church’s claim to historic fame. Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King laid the church’s cornerstone in 1947 and the congregation held its first service at the new 579 Parkdale Avenue location in October 1948….
St. Luke Lutheran Church is a lasting reminder of New Edinburgh’s historic German community. The village east of Bytown founded by a Scotsman, Thomas MacKay, became home to waves of German labourers, the descendants of Prussian serfs, near the end of the nineteenth century. Established in 1915, St. Luke served the local German community. Evidence…
Extraordinary music, both in its quality and diversity, and this congregation’s living connection to its Scottish heritage are what struck me the most during my visit to St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church on Remembrance Sunday. Built in 1872, St. Andrew’s — located on Parliament Hill — is Ottawa’s flagship Presbyterian church. The Gothic Revival church is…
Anglicanism encompasses a rich diversity of liturgical expression. My visit to Trinity Anglican Church in Old Ottawa South on All Saints Sunday served as a good example of this. On November 2, I attended Trinity’s 4:00 pm service — a contemporary liturgy featuring praise and worship music, as well as opportunities to connect with others…
I visited Almonte United Church on a breezy, brisk Sunday and met Reverend Heather Kinkaid who took the time to greet every single person in the pews before beginning the service. Her interaction with the faithful was more than a passing hello. She exchanged a few sentences with everyone, she listened, knew about what was…
I will never look at pretzels the same way after my visit to St. John’s United Church in Kemptville on October 19 — an unseasonably warm day that was as bright as the mood of this cheerful congregation. Built in 1869 to serve as the spiritual home of local Methodists, a fire in 1888 destroyed…
The lyricism and aesthetic qualities of the Anglo-Catholic tradition, as seen in song and prayer alike, were on glorious display at the Church of St. Barnabas during Evensong on Sunday, October 19. Evensong — and the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament that followed — was an immersive experience at this downtown Ottawa church. The sense…
Alexandria United Church in North Glengarry is precisely what this publication is all about: discovering historic churches about which there is very little information online, and encouraging our readers to explore these hidden gems for themselves. I visited Alexandria United Church on Thanksgiving Sunday and attended their 9:00 AM service. A plaque next to the…
Epiphany Anglican Church at 1290 Ogilvie Road is a truly twenty-first century church. The community celebrates its 25th anniversary this fall and the warm, welcoming building incorporates the colours of nature all around it, thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows of its round sanctuary. I visited their 9:30 am liturgy on October 5th, the Feast of…
On Sunday, October 5th — as a rich, amber sun was beginning to set on an unseasonably warm fall afternoon — I had the chance to attend an Evensong service at St. Matthew’s Anglican Church at 217 First Avenue, in the Glebe. St. Matthew’s takes a high church approach to liturgy, which made Evensong —…