Metropolitan United Church
Encyclopedia
Metropolitan United Church is a large neo-Gothic
church in downtown Toronto
, Canada
. It is one of the largest and most prominent churches of the United Church of Canada
. It is located on Queen Street East at the corner of Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.
The congregation, originally Methodist
, was founded in 1818. It was originally housed in a small chapel on King Street. In 1833 a larger structure was completed on Adelaide Street and it moved to its present location in 1872 when the building was dedicated as the Metropolitan Wesleyan Methodist Church.
, who was to draw "the ubiquitous cloak of decorous gothicism over the face of Ontario in the 1870s" the church became known as
It played an important role in the city that was occasionally nicknamed the "Methodist Rome
".
Its immediate neighbours are St James's Cathedral (Anglican)
and St Michael's Cathedral (Roman Catholic) and the trio of similarly designed churches are a striking Christian witness immediately adjacent to Canada's financial hub. The church's website describes the building in customary evangelical Protestant terms, regarding the nave rather than the altar ("communion table") area as its "sanctuary."
installed the largest pipe organ
in Canada in the newly refurbished building. The church is also known for its 54 bell carillon
that is regularly heard throughout the neighbourhood.
A very important part of the church is the Carillon. A carillon is a set of 23 or more bells which are played from a keyboard. The collection of bells at the Metropolitan United Church has been growing since April 2, 1922, when Chester D. Massey dedicated 23 bells in memory of his wife. In 1960, Charles W. Drury and his wife donated twelve smaller bells, and by 1971, the collection was complete and brought to a total of fifty four bells. When the church was first built in 1872, it was designed to accommodate a future carillon. The tower was designed to support the addition of bells by being able to withstand the immense weight of the bells, over forty four thousand pounds, by having seven foot thick walls at the base which tapered as they went up, and by having air flow through the tower to created space from where the music could be expelled. The church also had Canada’s largest pipe organ installed in 1930 following the fire which destroyed the previous organ. This instrument plays an important part in leading the church choir and ceremony every week, however when it was first installed there was a weekly recital which was widely known in the neighbourhood, and which received a great deal of recognition in the local papers. These two instruments are an important part of the church’s image and are enjoyed wherever they are heard and especially by the patients of the St. Michael's Hospital.
. The church also offers a wide array of services for the poor and homeless.
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
church in downtown Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is one of the largest and most prominent churches of the United Church of Canada
United Church of Canada
The United Church of Canada is a Protestant Christian denomination in Canada. It is the largest Protestant church and, after the Roman Catholic Church, the second-largest Christian church in Canada...
. It is located on Queen Street East at the corner of Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.
History
Methodist Church of Canada
The Methodist Church of Canada was a united church formed in 1884 and comprising most former Methodist denominations in Canada including some that had been active along Canada's eastern coast and north of the St...
, was founded in 1818. It was originally housed in a small chapel on King Street. In 1833 a larger structure was completed on Adelaide Street and it moved to its present location in 1872 when the building was dedicated as the Metropolitan Wesleyan Methodist Church.
Design of the Metropolitan Methodist church building
Designed by Henry LangleyHenry Langley (architect)
Henry Langley was a Canadian architect based in Toronto. He was active from 1854 to 1907. Among the first architects born and trained in Canada, he was a founding members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 1880 and was instrumental in establishing the Ontario Association of Architects in 1889...
, who was to draw "the ubiquitous cloak of decorous gothicism over the face of Ontario in the 1870s" the church became known as
- the "cathedral of Methodism...a monument to ... energy, magnetism and culture....No church in Toronto has such great advantages of position....The handsome grounds of this church form one of the finest spaces in this city....The entire building is of white brick, with abundant cut stone dressing. It is a modernized form of the French thirteenth century Gothic, with nave, transepts and choir."
It played an important role in the city that was occasionally nicknamed the "Methodist Rome
Methodist Rome
Methodist Rome was a nickname sometimes given to the city of Toronto, Ontario in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The moniker implied that Toronto was as central to Canadian Methodism as Rome, or more specifically Vatican City in Rome, is to Catholicism.Methodism was never the...
".
Its immediate neighbours are St James's Cathedral (Anglican)
Cathedral Church of St. James (Toronto)
Cathedral Church of St. James in Toronto, Canada is the home of the oldest congregation in the city. The parish was established in 1797. The Cathedral was begun in 1850 and completed in 1853, was at the time one of the largest buildings in the city...
and St Michael's Cathedral (Roman Catholic) and the trio of similarly designed churches are a striking Christian witness immediately adjacent to Canada's financial hub. The church's website describes the building in customary evangelical Protestant terms, regarding the nave rather than the altar ("communion table") area as its "sanctuary."
Metropolitan Methodist becomes Metropolian United
In 1925 the Methodist Church of Canada merged with the Presbyterians and Congregationalists to form the United Church of Canada. Metropolitan then acquired its current name. The first General Council of the United Church was held there in 1925. In 1928 the church was almost destroyed by fire, but it was quickly rebuilt keeping the same design with the help of the Methodist Massey family, of Massey-Ferguson fame. In 1930 Casavant FrèresCasavant Frères
Casavant Frères is a prominent Canadian company in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, which has been building fine pipe organs since 1879. As of 2008, they have produced over 3800 organs.- Company history :...
installed the largest pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
in Canada in the newly refurbished building. The church is also known for its 54 bell carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
that is regularly heard throughout the neighbourhood.
A very important part of the church is the Carillon. A carillon is a set of 23 or more bells which are played from a keyboard. The collection of bells at the Metropolitan United Church has been growing since April 2, 1922, when Chester D. Massey dedicated 23 bells in memory of his wife. In 1960, Charles W. Drury and his wife donated twelve smaller bells, and by 1971, the collection was complete and brought to a total of fifty four bells. When the church was first built in 1872, it was designed to accommodate a future carillon. The tower was designed to support the addition of bells by being able to withstand the immense weight of the bells, over forty four thousand pounds, by having seven foot thick walls at the base which tapered as they went up, and by having air flow through the tower to created space from where the music could be expelled. The church also had Canada’s largest pipe organ installed in 1930 following the fire which destroyed the previous organ. This instrument plays an important part in leading the church choir and ceremony every week, however when it was first installed there was a weekly recital which was widely known in the neighbourhood, and which received a great deal of recognition in the local papers. These two instruments are an important part of the church’s image and are enjoyed wherever they are heard and especially by the patients of the St. Michael's Hospital.
Organists and choir directors
- (Alfred) Melville CookMelville CookMelville Cook was a British organist, conductor, composer and teacher.- Biography :Alfred Melville Cook was born in Gloucester. He was a chorister at Gloucester Cathedral and articled pupil there under Herbert Sumsion . He also studied with Herbert Brewer and Edward Bairstow...
1967-1986 - Patricia Wright 1986-Present
Today
Today the church is known for its progressiveness. It has long played an important role in Toronto's Gay and Lesbian community that is centred just to the north on Church and WellesleyChurch and Wellesley
Church and Wellesley is an LGBT-oriented community located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street to the east, with the core commercial strip located along Church Street from...
. The church also offers a wide array of services for the poor and homeless.
See also
- List of oldest buildings and structures in Toronto
- List of United Church of Canada churches in Toronto
External links
- Official site
- Metropolitan United Church's Sermon Website
- Mystery Worshipper Report at the Ship of Fools websiteShip of Fools (website)Ship of Fools is a UK-based Christian website. It was first launched as a magazine in 1977. The magazine folded in 1983 and was resurrected as a website on April Fool's Day, 1998. Subtitled "the magazine of Christian unrest", Ship of Fools pokes fun and asks critical questions about the Christian...