Anglican Church of Canada worship at St. Matthew’s Abbotsford began again on Sunday, August 29th at 8am. The diocesan-led service was a said eucharist from the Book of Alternative Services. Rev. David Price was the celebrant and the Ven. Stephen Rowe, Archdeacon of Fraser was also present to greet worshippers and hand-out the order of service.
David in his sermon spoke of how this is a wonderful time to be an Anglican. He spoke of our tradition of turning to scripture, to reason, to the sacraments and to the fellowship of our faith communities as we joyfully and confidently embrace our uncertainties, our fears, our doubts and the many challenges raised by scientific insights. The size of the congregation more than met expectations. Some in attendance were visitors whose homes are not in Abbotsford. The service ended at 8:45am. At this initial service of renewed diocesan worship at St. Matthew’s a post service coffee time in the parish hall had not been planned, but members of the ANiC congregation which use the St. Matthew’s church building had thoughtfully set-up tables for a post service coffee time and had made the kitchen available. 17 of those in attendance at the service did go for breakfast/coffee at a nearby restaurant. Organizing and on-site “Coffee Time” will happen in the near future.
The ANiC leaders representing their community were cordial and cooperative and did an outstanding job of setting up the Parish Hall for worship. The ACoC congregation were not required to replace chairs or re-organize the space. Arrangements for future Sundays may differ. The ANiC leadership agreed to the use of the piano to add a musical component to the worship and that may come to pass in future weeks.
There is still much to do in organizing this fledgling community of worshippers but things definitely got off to a very good beginning.
A web presence will be available soon on the D of NW website but in the interim
please refer to the Announcements panel on the left side of the D of NW website homepage for current information about diocesan worship at St. Matthew’s or contact the Diocese of New Westminster by calling 604.684.6306.
St. Matthew's Parish Hall prepared for worship, August 29th, 2010