‘God Never Left; We Just Showed Up’

A new creation at St. George’s Grange Park

Posted Date : 2025-03-04 19:45:00

Photos: Rob Robotham

Description: Tyler Wigg-Stevenson (inset) said that, after being closed for years, the congregation had to be rebuilt completely, creating its culture from the ‘ground up.’

By Rob Robotham

THERE WAS so much joy and energy, and a strange mix of liturgy with informal evangelical enthusiasm. I had never attended a church quite like it anywhere, let alone an Anglican one. In September of 1984, I was a seminary student, new to Toronto, and wanted to return to my Anglican roots. A Church Army captain strongly recommended I visit the church of St. George the Martyr.

It was such a vibrant, unusual church, that I worshipped at St. George’s for many years, including completing some of my seminary field placement there.

St. George’s first service was held in 1845. It was one of the oldest churches in Toronto and many of the Anglican churches in this area were “high church” in their theology and practice. St. George’s, in the nineteenth century, stood out on the Toronto skyline and I was told that sailors would navigate their way into the Toronto harbour by finding St. George’s spire. By the early twentieth century, hundreds attended its weekly services.

In 1955, when Father Bill Riesberry was rector, a devastating fire burned most of the church to the ground. Services were then held in its rectory until 1957, after which services were moved to the church hall, which has been the church’s main building ever since. Today, of the original building only the bell tower survives, but is attractively restored, with a nearby garden marking out the church’s original location.

In the mid 1970s, Bill and Linda Riesberry had a powerful renewal experience. Fr. Riesberry, who was once opposed to evangelism, now became a strong proponent of it. When I arrived at St. George’s in 1984, the church’s charismatic renewal was in full swing. The church was a vibrant, exciting place where the Gospel was proclaimed, the worship was lively, and there was a strong liturgical atmosphere that provided a sense of church history. Many of us joked that St. George’s was an evangelical, charismatic, high church!

In recent years, St. George’s had been closed but I was delighted to learn that plans were afoot to relaunch St. George’s. In November, Tyler Wigg-Stevenson, St. George’s new vicar, shared with me how St. George’s was replanted last fall and outlined its recent history between the time I was there and now.

In the early 2000s, the congregation began to dwindle, many of its members were struggling financially, and the building and its bell tower increasingly needed costly repairs. Eventually, the congregation could no longer support the huge maintenance costs. Bishop Jenny Andison, then the area bishop overseeing St. George’s, made the reluctant decision to close the church, while the building was still rented out for concerts and to other churches.

In 2017, the church was placed under the pastoral care of St. Paul’s Bloor Street, a large, evangelical Anglican church in mid-town Toronto, where Bp Andison is now Rector and Rev. Tyler Wigg-Stevenson is Associate Priest. Staff at St. Paul’s have had a vision to re-launch St. George’s for many years.

Since the early 2020s, the much-needed maintenance work at St. George’s had been undertaken and the building and grounds were in good shape. In 2021, both Andison and Wigg-Stevenson were enthusiastic about planting a new congregation at St. George’s. In the spring of 2023, the staff and pastors of St. Paul’s had a prayer meeting about restarting services. A vision was presented to St. Paul’s in October of 2023 and, in November of that year, a core team was put together with a goal to restart services in September of 2024. Most of the staff at St. George’s also serve at St. Paul’s, the church that has replanted and is funding this venture. St. George’s had been Wigg-Stevenson’s sponsoring parish for ordination, and he was excited to be part of the team to re-open it.

When the congregation was closed, the church’s name had been changed to St. George by the Grange. But for the clarity and simplicity of the church plant, it was rebranded as “St. George’s Grange Park” – which also resonated with “St. Paul’s Bloor Street.” When I attended St. George’s in the 1980s and 1990s, about half the congregation came from nearby low-income housing and the other half from wealthy suburban families. But, today, the neighbourhood has changed considerably with the addition of several downtown condos where young professionals reside. Wigg-Stevenson says that their goal is to develop a multigenerational congregation from the surrounding area.

I’m also intrigued by this new replant because I have had previous involvement with church replanting but at an existing congregation. The St. George venture was a “cold start.” After being closed for years, the congregation had to be rebuilt completely, creating its culture from the “ground up.” The leadership’s goal is to “do old things in a new way.” With respect to its history, the church’s worship has sacramental, charismatic, and evangelical elements, and a blend of things both ancient and modern.

I returned to St. George’s on the fourth Sunday of Advent, not quite sure what to expect. As the service progressed, I thoroughly enjoyed worshipping in a church from my past. But this was a different St. George’s. Surprisingly, even though the staff have intentionally removed some formal practices such as vestments and processions, the service still seemed more formal than what I remembered. Lots of thought had obviously gone into the service – out of character with older St. George’s which could be more hectic or last-minute.

The smoothness and organization of the new St. George’s was appealing, and I was also delighted that Wigg-Stevenson’s sermon that evening was biblical and delved into church history. We learned about an Advent tradition from the Middle Ages that focussed on The Four Last Things: “death, judgement, heaven, and hell.” So that afternoon, Wigg-Stevenson was preaching on heaven and hell. I am fascinated with church history, the sacramental emphasis, and learning about ancient Christian traditions.

Today, I am actually low church and Reformed in my theology, although I do respect other church traditions. Interestingly, the new St. George’s also appears to be an evangelical, low church as well. I’m excited and encouraged to see a new congregation emerging at a church where I have so many fond memories. As Wigg-Stevenson says, “God never left; we just showed up!”   TAP

Rob Robotham has been the graphic designer for The Anglican Planet for 15 years and also serves with OMF International’s publications. He and his family attend the Church of the Resurrection in East York, Ont.

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