Special Note: Anniversary Sunday – June 23, 2024
We’re celebrating our 186th anniversary with a couple of special guests:
Rev. Mikal Schomburg will be our guest speaker. Mikal was our minister from 2013 to 2016 and we’re excited to reconnect! He is now the minister at St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church, Simcoe.
Rev. Larry Schneider will be providing special music with his baritone voice. Larry is the minister at Dunwich United Church, and formerly served at Dorchester United Church after a number of years as an educator and school administrator.
The service is at 2:00 PM, with refreshments and a time to visit with friends and neighbours to follow. There is no morning service this week!
What We’re All About
Bring Us Your Passion
We’re a small church, but we make a big difference. We rally with enthusiasm around causes that our individual members and other partners are passionate about. From hands-on mission work in El Salvador, to maternal health, to children’s cancer charities – we’re happy to roll up our sleeves to help bring an idea to life. We love to collaborate. We have talent, time, facilities and resources to share.
Talk to us about your passion and projects.
Good Food
Food is central to our mission – Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” Located in the heart of the farming community, we love to grow, prepare, and share good food. From dinners that bring the community together, to meals delivered to isolated seniors during the pandemic, we know how important food is for fellowship and connection. Our fundraisers to help address hunger invariably feature our famous pies and full meals. Our support reaches as near as our local food bank and as far as agricultural programs in Malawi and Guatemala.
A Hub for the Community
Between the cows and the corn St. James is a gathering place for Belmont, St. Thomas, and importantly, the surrounding rural community. We’re at the crossroads of Ferguson Line and Yarmouth Centre Road, and love to host all sorts of events for the neighbourhood. We have become a meeting place for service groups, agricultural associations, charitable work, musical groups and family dinners – we’ve even seen weary cyclists and impromptu picnics appear in the shade of our trees. St. James provides a welcoming environment that serves our community. If you need to bring people together, let us know how we can help!
Everyone is Welcome Here
St. James is here for all – and we all have different needs. Distance and health issues can be isolating, but we look to include everyone in the work we do. We’ve adopted a unique phone-in system to ensure that folks can participate in worship services, meetings, and special events – interactively! – no internet or computer required. We offer hybrid in-person/telephone worship on Sunday mornings at 9:30 AM and a telephone-only devotional service on Wednesday evenings to accommodate different schedules and remain connected during the week. Each Sunday we are nourished spiritually and challenged intellectually, and then we gather around the big wooden table to nourish our bodies and our friendships with tea and treats, stories and laughter.
Our Minister
Rev. Gord Brown
Pastor Gord Brown has worked as a journalist, editor, public affairs consultant, human resources manager, academic and teacher. He is enjoying his third year at St. James with 20 years prior experience as an itinerate preacher. He is completing a PhD on the rhetoric of the Bible and mission. Other academic interests are theology in pop culture, and the state of the church. He has two adult children, a son and a daughter, who live in Toronto.