History:
In 2026, St. John’s will celebrate 132 years of worship and witness in the Cresswell community.
St. John’s, Cresswell was founded by Congregationalists around 1877. Services of worship were held for a number of years. When they could no longer meet the living needs of a minister, they ceased to exist as a congregation.
On November 18, 1894, the church was re-opened as St. John’s Presbyterian Church, Cresswell with Rev. P.A. McLeod from St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, Sonya, conducting services in both venues.
In 1902, the Presbytery of Lindsay joined St. John’s with Sunderland Presbyterian Church, making us a two-point charge (2 congregations that share a minister).
In 1925, the Sunderland congregation became affiliated with the new United Church of Canada. Following that change, St. John’s was officially made a two-point charge with St. Andrew’s, Sonya as both congregations remained with The Presbyterian Church in Canada.
The first wedding recorded in the church building was in 1963. This was also the year that the first addition was started.
In 1987, St. Andrew’s, Sonya was sold and St. John’s became a two-point charge with the Presbyterian congregation in Wick.
In 1990, an addition to the church building was needed as a result of the growing Sunday School. This was dedicated on April 7, 1990.
From 1991 to 1994, the two-point charge of Wick and St. John’s were joined with Knox Presbyterian Church in Cannington, making us a three-point charge.
In 1994, after a worship service to celebrate our 100th anniversary, the ceiling of the sanctuary caved in. By the grace of God, everyone had left the building so no one was hurt. Pews were damaged; the pulpit and communion table were untouched. After many hours of volunteer labour, the Sanctuary was re-modelled to its present state. On May 28, 1995, a service of re-dedication was held.
In 2007 a fire occurred at Knox Cannington and the building could not be saved. The cluster was re-evaluated. Two years later, Cannington chose to leave. Wick and St. John’s made the decision to separate and function as independent congregations.
In 2010, Rev. Virginia Brand accepted a call to be the minister of St. John’s.
In 2013, Kathy Firth, a member of St. John’s, was ordained. Rev. Kathy then accepted a position at Knox Presbyterian in Oshawa. However, in 2019, Rev. Kathy became the minister of St. John’s. The induction service was held on June 9, 2019.
In 2022, after Rev. Kathy left, the congregation re-evaluated their financial position. We concluded we could no longer support a minister. Believing we were still called to be a witness in the Cresswell community and having a strong desire to continue, St. John’s opted to continue under the leadership of the Session and an interim moderator. We chose to have worship led by a roster of capable clergy and lay people, who have done an excellent job for the congregation. In the last months, we have 5 months we have had a few people join us for worship and we are financially stable. Who, but God, knows what the future will hold?
We are thankful to the many people who have been a part of the congregation over the years and for all they did to build us up and honour Christ. We are particularly grateful to God for the dedicated people who participate and give leadership to St. John’s now. We look forward to another 132 years of worship and witness.
THE COLORS OF THE GOSPEL
These five colours give us a simple way to summarize and remember God’s plan, love and hope for all people
Gold –The Realm of God
“And God saw all he had created, and behold, it was very good.” Genesis 1: 31
Black – Separation from God
“For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do [because] sin dwells within me.” Romans 7: 19 & 20
Red – The Cross of Jesus Christ
“Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that free from sin, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds, you have been healed” 1 Peter 2:24
White: Forgiven and made new
“But God, being rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our sin, made us alive together with Christ, and raised us up to life with him… By grace you have been saved, through faith, and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God.” Ephesians 2: 5 -8
Green – Growing by the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit gives us gifts “For the work of ministry and the building up of the body of Christ (the people who make up the Church) until all of us come to unity in faith and to know the Son of God, fully mature Christians who can measure up to Christ” Ephesians 4: 12 – 13
Forgiven and transformed, we live in and for Christ to once again create the realm of God on Earth.