The Presbytery of Kingston is like The Little Engine that Could. Sandwiched between two presbyteries (Lindsay-Peterborough and Seaway-Glengarry) whose numbers and geography dwarf it, Kingston has watched its membership dwindle.
Old, well-established churches like St. Andrew's, Belleville (1830), and St. Andrew's, Kingston (1820), each had more than 800 members 50 years ago, compared to about 160 and 340 today. Overall, the presbytery has dropped from 3,000 communicant members 35 years ago to about 1,800.
The presbytery has 14 charges, three of which have two points and only one of which sits vacant. The western part of the presbytery is becoming home to younger retirees from Toronto, searching for the region's picturesque landscape and slower pace. Their migration offers potential prospects for growth. Trinity, Amherstview, is the only Protestant church in western suburban Kingston. Thanks to a lottery winner in the congregation, they're building to become bigger and better.
Perhaps one of the greatest hopes for growth lies in the presbytery's attention to children and youth. St. Peter's, Madoc, has the largest number of children in the presbytery, with about 60 children in Sunday school. Nine years ago, only 12 were on the roll. Subsequently, the congregation contains numerous young couples and families — many of whom were drawn there by the church's young minister, Stephen Thompson, who coaches hockey.
When Thompson came in 1996, about 30 adults came to worship. Today, there are between 70 and 80. "We had a desire to fill the church, and bring in new kids and families and grow the Sunday school," said the minister's wife, Carolyn. Their commitment to family and the community was highlighted in 2004, when a fire consumed the home of a local family. St. Peter's orchestrated a fundraiser and supported them through prayer.
St. Andrew's, Tweed, has had a recent push to involve youth in church life thanks to its minister, Teresa Charlton. "My strategy for growth is to start with youth," she said. "If kids find a safe and comfortable place where they get excited to learn about God, parents will likely come too."
On board full-time since June of last year, Charlton has made children an integral part of St. Andrew's through varied opportunities. The cooperation of the Sunday school and music committee has spawned numerous activities, including a child and youth-only Christmas cantata, a March break camp focused specifically on mission, a community-oriented summer vacation bible school, monthly activity days for church and community children when classes are cancelled, music camps that prepare youth to lead worship, and monthly youth and child-led worship services. The building now houses a vibrant ministry — more than 40 years after local wisdom "stressed the folly of keeping St. Andrew's open," according to church historian Evan Morton. "My hope is that by doing a range of activities, we'll hit a lot of different interests, and it will encourage kids to come," said Charlton.
Hoping to appeal to a younger generation and to people less comfortable with tradition, St. Andrew's, Trenton, is embracing new technology and creative ways to worship. Since only eight per cent of the area's population attends worship at any faith community regularly, St. Andrew's uses multi-media to draw a crowd, projecting its worship services on large screens and incorporating contemporary music. The congregation is also committed to outreach, running an evangelism weekend that featured a businessman's luncheon, guest speakers, and a free dinner at a neutral location for those uncomfortable with church.
The presbytery's ability to press on has been buoyed by several long-running, committed ministers. St. Paul's, Amherst Island, enjoyed the leadership of Rev. James Cumberland for 39 years. The lure of that congregation brought back Rev. Zander Dunn, who began his ministry there in 1962, and recently returned on a part-time basis. Formed in 1849, the stone for St. Paul's was quarried by inmates from the Kingston Penitentiary, who used sleds to transport it over the ice.
The two-point charge of St. Andrew's, Picton, and Church of the Redeemer, Deseronto, were led by Rev. Robert Jones from 1967 until his retirement in 2004. Deseronto was the town's first church building. Presbyterians, Anglicans and Methodists used to worship there at staggered times. The current building houses what is believed to be the last double-bellowed pipe organ in Canada. St. Andrew's, Stirling, has had so many long-serving ministers that only 20 have led the congregation in its 150-year history.
The commitment of congregations to each other is also helping ensure a bright future. "There's a lot of cooperation," said Rev. Doug Kendall, St. Andrew's, Gananoque. "We're fairly diverse theologically, yet there's a lot of things we have in common." Despite set-backs, the presbytery is pressing on, full steam ahead, just like the little engine that huffed and puffed along the journey but eventually made it to the mountaintop.
