Brantford ON †Saint George the Victorious Orthodox Mission 2015-2020

Brantford, Ontario, †Mission of Saint George the Victorious, 2015-2020

Mission development ; purchase of the Temple, 2015

In late November, 2015, renovations were undertaken to the newly-purchased building in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, which was formerly Saint Luke’s Anglican Church. Archbishop Irénée (Rochon) blessed the mission dedicated to Saint George the Victorious, to provide a new, English-language Orthodox parish hub for Orthodox Christians, and for potential Orthodox persons who live in the 3 counties surrounding the city of Brantford : (Brant, Haldimand, and Norfolk).

The mission was supported by All Saints of North America Church in Hamilton, Ontario. The parish executive at the Hamilton parish, overseeing the development of Saint George's, divided the work on the new Brantford parish into 3 stages : structural renewal, interior renovations, and adornment/furnishing.

Reader Sean Reid, parish warden, began the work with 2 contractors to restore the church roof and repair some water damage. As well, support rods were installed across the width of the nave. Deacon Mark Luimes led a team on their first forays into demolition, in order to level the Altar area, in preparation for the new walls and floor-work to follow. The team was also planning for the relocation and adapting of existing church woodwork into a new icon-screen, in keeping with the interior of the Temple.

With God's help, it was hoped that stages 1 and 2 would be completed by January, 2016, at which time the adornment and furnishing of the new parish might begin. Already, Father Geoffrey Korz had begun assembling the necessary liturgical materials. The Lord provided. One of the brother clergy made contact with a used Orthodox liturgical items distributor in the USA, and he brought some fine liturgical items to be used at the new parish. Several parish priests also were in touch with the parish's team, and they offered liturgical implements, vestments, and icons to the mission. These helped to equip the Temple.

With these efforts well underway, several tasks remained : exterior landscaping and cleanup was needed, before the winter snows set in ; a full interior painting job to refresh the building was scheduled to take place before the first services would be offered ; in the springtime, the hardwood doors of the Temple would be refinished in order to withstand seasonal temperature changes. With the completion of an icon screen, a Holy Table and other Altar furnishings had to be constructed or secured. Altar covers, icon stands, and icon stand covers had to be completed by volunteer or commercial efforts. Additional vestments had to be completed or found, so that the Temple could be more fully equipped for worship services. Articles about Saint George’s in the local newspapers greatly helped to make the local residents aware of the new mission’s presence.

All the months of preparation were a challenge to all concerned. There were unexpected renovations, and long waiting times for contractors. These resulted in delays for volunteers, and the cost pressures borne by the existing parish. Yet in all this - again and again - God provided exactly the help that was needed to complete His church, and by early 2017, it was nearly ready. The only thing the parishioners understood that had to develop in them all was patience (which is sometimes the most difficult).

During 2017, new icons of Saint Nicholas and Saint John the Baptist were added to the iconostas of the Temple. Some wood for the iconostas came from the wood of the original pews in this building from a century previous.

On 19 March, 2017, the construction of the iconostas and the Holy Table was completed. The kitchen with all its appurtenances, and the entry steps were completed also.

First services in the Temple, 2017

On 6 May, 2017, Great Vespers was served in the Temple for the Feast of Saint George. This was the very first service offered in this Temple.

On 7 May, 2017, the inaugural Divine Liturgy was served in the Temple. It was followed by a reception.

On 20 September, 2017, Archbishop Irénée (Rochon) made a pastoral visit to the Mission of Saint George in Brantford. The visit included the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy. This was the first time in the 114-year history of the Canadian Archdiocese of The Orthodox Church in America that one of its bishops has visited a parish in Brantford. Father Geoffrey Korz commented that "At a time when the world is in such flux, it's important for people to have the chance to witness and be part of timeless things, to encounter ancient Christianity that doesn't change".

Divine Liturgy

On Sunday, 6 May, 2018, Archbishop Irénée (Rochon) served the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy in this parish on its Altar Feast-day.

Altar Feast-day Divine Liturgy, 2018

On 5 May, 2019, Archbishop Irénée (Rochon) again made a pastoral visit to the Mission of Saint George in Brantford. By this time, the Archpriest Nicolas Boldireff (a retired cleric living in the Toronto region) was serving this community on alternate Sundays.

Archbishop Irénée serving with the Archpriest Nicolas Boldireff

Parishioners participating in the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy

As sometimes occurs with missionary outreach, the obstacles that presented themselves proved to be insurmountable. Of the three greatest of these, the first was the sudden withdrawal of a substantial subsidy, together with possibly more reliance on the subsidy than on the personal commitment of those directly involved. The second was the lack of a resident and regular priest to lead the mission. The third was the very small number of people in Brantford who had so far found the mission. The third factor, the lack of local people, could well have changed, but such a change would have required a long-term presence in the city.

In almost every other missionary venture which has grown, it has been necessary that there be enough time for the mission to become known, for people to embrace the Orthodox Christian Faith, and for the community to have enough time to arrive at having a solid foundation. Therefore, this particular mission may be likened to some extent to the seed of the Parable of the Sower (see Matthew 13:1-23 ; Mark 4:1-20 ; Luke 8:4-15), in which the seed falls on rocky ground, but has not the strength of roots to grow and to flourish. Had the financial support not been withdrawn, the mission could well have persevered (even without a resident priest) for rather longer, and perhaps even long enough for a solid foundation to be established. However, all the other plans for the mission had been developed while expecting this financial support.

The rector encouraged his people to learn about patience and perseverance through this experience, and others who read this brief history may learn also as they consider establishing a mission in one or another place.

The last Divine Liturgy for the mission was served on 1 March, 2020, after which the mission was officially closed.

Particular parish details

This mission parish was a part of the Deanery of Ontario, of the Archdiocese of Canada, of The Orthodox Church in America. The dean was the Archpriest Geoffrey Korz. The bishop was Archbishop Irénée (Rochon).

The mission followed the Old (Julian) Calendar.

The Altar Feast-day of this mission was the Feast of the Great-martyr George, 6 May.

In 2020, the pastor of the mission was the Archpriest Geoffrey Korz.

Archprist Geoffrey Korz

Former address :

Mission of Saint George the Victorious

130, Elgin Street

Brantford, Ontario

N3S 5A5

Directions :

Brantford is situated 42 km (26 mi) west of Hamilton.

From Hamilton or Toronto, drive on Highway #403 west towards Brantford, and exit at Wayne Gretzky Parkway. Drive south past 2 traffic lights to Elgin Street ; turn right at Elgin Street. The Temple was 4 blocks along, on the right.

Archpriest Geoffrey Korz

Home telephone : 905-387-6907

E-mail : korzg@hotmail.com

Reflections

In his annual report to the parent parish of this mission, the Archpriest Geoffrey Korz explained the situation which led to the closure :

 Five years ago, our parish took a leap of faith, building on our missionary success in Hamilton, 
 to purchase and build from nothing a mission parish in Brantford dedicated to St. George.  At that 
 time, we enjoyed a generous grant from an Orthodox foundation - $30,000 a year for mission work - 
 and the promise from a local deacon (now a priest) that he would serve in this new mission.  We took 
 every careful, prayerful precaution, raised the funds we could, then took that leap of faith.  
 
 One year later, the foundation pulled its grant, the potential priest had left us, and our community 
 was once again left alone in its missionary endeavours - but for God's help.  For another four years, 
 great efforts - both personal and financial - were poured into the mission of St. George's, and indeed 
 just like St. Paul did, we robbed other churches, taking wages from them to minister to our mission 
 (cf. 2 Cor 11:8).  Each and every year, for five full years, our ability to afford this mission work 
 exceeded our ability to pay - but we did it, for the love of Christ and His Gospel.  
 
 In 2019, it became clear to us that our ability to pay for two parishes had long past run its course. 
 We had no choice but to close St. George's, and sell the property.  The final Liturgy will take place 
 on Forgiveness Sunday.  
 
 Brethren : in offering me some consolation over the difficult events of the last couple years, my 
 confessor said, 'Never regret doing what is right, and never regret doing what is good'.  
 
 While we are far beyond our financial ability to continue to operate two churches with the income 
 from only one, we should never regret having done what was right for the sake of the mission of the 
 Gospel of Christ and His Church.  Nor should we let past difficulties deter us from doing such good 
 again.  It is one thing to learn from our experiences - we must do that - it is quite another to let 
 them paralyse us.

There are yet other things to be considered with regard to this particular missionary attempt, which may help us all in our missionary zeal to share our Orthodox Christian Faith with others.

It should be kept in mind, first, the good word given to Father Geoffrey : "Never regret doing what is right, and never regret doing what is good".

Next, it is very important to try to avoid "putting the cart before the horse". It is difficult to discern this clearly, but it is a caution.

In addition, in this case, it is possible that, had the financial support remained in place, the community could have survived and even thrived.

General missionary experience in Canada has shown that for the most part, it takes the hard work of dedicated and Christ-loving persons over a long period of time to lay the foundations both of the initial community, and of a visible place of worship. Moreover, initial missionary ventures often grow more slowly until the physical place of worship begins to appear "normal" to other Orthodox Christians ; and to those who have become interested, it seems to be stable, with a potential for permanence. Greater growth tends to come at this stage. However, there is no certain way of proceeding, mostly because human beings are so unpredictable.

What is predictable is that a missionary community cannot develop properly unless the very foundation is the love and service of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ. This love and commitment must be firmly in the hearts of those who begin a mission, because it will be greatly tested as they proceed. It is this love which will work together with the Grace of the Holy Spirit. It is this love that will reveal our hope. It is this love which will keep the initiators united in their sense of purpose. It is this love which will attract those who meet this Christ-loving spiritual flock or family. It is this love which will welcome others to the spiritual hospital that is the Church, and in which they will find the hope, joy and healing that the founders have experienced and wish to share. If this love is not alive, active and evident, then there is great danger.

In this situation, even though there was an existing parish which sponsored the mission's foundation, there was a perhaps too great dependence on the initial financial support that was expected from outside either community. Correctly, the stable and reliable financial commitment that would foster a missionary venture must be evident both in the "parent" community and in the "child" community. In this situation also, the impetus for establishing the mission in Brantford (a praiseworthy intent) did not at first arise from the Faithful in Brantford itself. Nor were there yet enough Brandfordites asking for such a mission to begin. Moreover, there were unexpected circumstances within the parent community which further limited the resources. There are no doubt many reasons why the situation arose in which the mission could not persist. Nevertheless, may the Lord grant that in the future another attempt be made, and that this time it will grow to maturity.

It is useful, in the context of "zeal" that we all keep in mind the comments of the Fathers. In the context of the necessary unity of the mind in the heart, and the priority of the heart, we are cautioned about zeal of the intellect. The intellect works in logic and various thoughts ; but, disunited from and unguided by the heart, it is very much subject to fear. It is in the heart that we encounter and experience the Lord and His love. It is the mind (the intellect) in the heart, thus informed, which properly guides us. It is crucially important that we take care to be certain that we are not being motivated by the intellect alone.