St. Andrew the Apostle Parish

St Andrew the Apostle Parish

1 Fallons Lane,  London ON  N5V 5C1
Phone:  519 455-8624     Fax: 519 455-4534
Email: [email protected] 
     
 Office Hours:   Tuesday and Thursday 
9 am - 12 pm  &  1 pm - 4 pm
Closed - Monday, Wednesday and Friday

History of St Andrew the Apostle Church

On August 1, 1965 a new parish was established in the northeastern part of London, with Father John K. McMaster as its first pastor (1964-1973). The Masses were initially celebrated at St. Stephen Anglican Church and Evelyn Harrison Public School, while the rectory was set up at 1295 Sorrel Road.  The new parish was named St. Andrew the Apostle in recognition of the many years of service to the diocese by Monsignor Andrew P. Mahoney as rector of St. Peter’s seminary and vicar general of the diocese.  The first Christmas and New Year’s Masses were celebrated at the Ontario Vocational School (now Fanshawe College) on Oxford Street.
Joseph J. Fallon donated land on Packs Lane for the new church and Philip Carter Johnson was hired as the architect.  On May 8, 1966, Monsignor Mahoney turned the first sod and on December 26, 1966 he blessed and laid the cornerstone.  The Ellis-Don Company was the general contractor. By this time, because of the large number of parishioners, Sunday Masses were celebrated at Huron Heights Public School.  Father McMaster moved into the new rectory in late February 1967 and on June 11, 1967 Bishop Carter blessed the new church.
The parish was saddened by the death of their beloved pastor, Father McMaster, on May 13, 1973, Father Marcel L. Leboeuf was appointed the second pastor.  In the summer of 1974, extensive repairs were made to the church and the parish hall was completely renovated.  The church organ was overhauled in March 1981. The spire was removed in November 1984 to solve an ongoing problem of leaking into the church.  Bishop Sherlock participated in the twenty-fifth anniversary celebrations, which took place on June 17,1990
In June 1989, Father Patrick J. Mellon succeeded Father M. Francis White as pastor, who served until 1993.  By November 1991, the parish had put a new roof on the church and rectory, replaced the entrance doors, repaired the furnace and kneelers, installed a new sound system and replaced the sign on the front lawn.  At the same time, the parish debt was reduced from over $93000 to $46000.  The debt was completely eliminated in April 1992.  In January 1993, Father Mellon suffered a brain aneurysm and died one year later.
Meanwhile, the Order of Discalced Carmelite Friars, who w ere established in the diocese on August 15, 1989, were given St Andrew’s parish effective June 25, 1993.  Father Manuel Schembri OCD assumed the duties of pastor from 1193 until 1996, with Father Raphael Bruzzone OCD as associate pastor. In recognition of the donation of the church property by Joseph Fallon, the street was renamed 1 Fallons Lane.
Father Dominic Borg OCD, who had been associate pastor since October 1994, was named pastor in June 1996 upon Father Manuel’s recall to Malta.  Later that same year, work began on additions to the church, rectory and a major renovation of the parish hall.  The cost was covered by the generosity of the parishioners and a donation of $137000 from the friars themselves within the diocese.  A major bequest in the amount of $40000 from the John Mestick estate was received in September 1998 and a new sound system was installed that December.  In 2000 the parish was debt free.
A high point, not only for the parish, but for the entire Catholic community of London, was the visitation of the major reliquary of St. Therese of the Child Jesus at St Andrew’s church on October 18-20, 2001.  The thirtieth anniversary of Father Dominic’s ordination was celebrated on July 9, 2002; this coincided with the visit of the Father Provincial of the Order, Father Alfred Grech OCD.

Sources: Information provided by Ann Anderson and Father Dominic Borg OCD

St. Andrew the Apostle

St. Andrew, also known as Andrew the Apostle, was a Christian Apostle and the older brother to St. Peter.
According to the New Testament, Andrew was born in the village of Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee during the early first century. Much like his younger brother, Simon Peter, Andrew was also a fisherman. Andrew's very name means strong and he was known for having good social skills.
In the Gospel of Matthew, it is said Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee and saw Andrew and Simon Peter fishing. It is then he asked the two to become disciples and "fishers of men."
In the Gospel of Luke, Andrew is not initially named. It describes Jesus using a boat, believed to be solely Simon's, to preach to the multitudes and catch a large amount of fish on a night that originally was dry. Later, in Luke 5:7, it mentions Simon was not the only fisherman on the boat, but it is not until Luke 6:14 that there is talk of Andrew being Simon Peter's brother.
However, the Gospel of John tells a separate story, stating Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist. When Jesus walked by one day, John the Baptist stated, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" It is then that Andrew and another made the decision to follow Jesus.
Little else is said about Andrew in the Gospels, but it is believed Andrew was one of the closer disciples to Jesus. It was he who told Jesus about the boy with the loaves and fishes, according to John 6:8. When Philip wanted to speak to Jesus about Greeks seeking him, he spoke to Andrew first. Andrew was also present at the last supper.
Per Christian tradition, Andrew went on to preach the Good News around the shores of the Black Sea and throughout what is now Greece and Turkey. Andrew was martyred by crucifixion in Patras. He was bound, rather than nailed, to a cross, as is described in the Acts of Andrew. He was crucified on a cross form known as "crux decussata," which is an X-shaped cross or a "saltire." Today this is commonly referred to as "St. Andrew's Cross." It is believed Andrew requested to be crucified this way, because he deemed himself "unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross as Jesus."
Andrew's remains were originally preserved at Patras. However, some believe St. Regulus, who was a monk at Patras, received a vision telling him to hide some of Andrew's bones. Shortly after Regulus' dream, many of Andrew's relics were transferred to Constantinople by order of Roman emperor Constantius II around 357. Regulus later received orders in a second dream telling him to take the bones "to the ends of the earth." He was to build a shrine for them wherever he shipwrecked. He landed on the coat of Fife, Scotland.
In September 1964, Pope Paul VI had all of St. Andrew's relics that ended up in Vatican City sent back to Patras. Now, many of Andrew's relics and the cross on which he was martyred are kept in the Church of St. Andrew in Patras.
St. Andrew is venerated in Georgia as the first preacher of Christianity in that territory and in Cyprus for having struck the rocks creating a gush of healing waters upon landing on the shore.
His saltire cross is featured on the flag of Scotland and is represented in much of his iconography. He is commonly portrayed as an old man with long white hair and a beard, often holding the Gospel book or a scroll.
St. Andrew is the patron saint of fishermen and singers. He is also the patron saint to several countries and cities including: Scotland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine and Patras and his feast day is celebrated on November 30.