Thanks Giving Service Held For Restoration Of St. Pauls Church in Mussoorie

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Thanks Giving Service Held For Restoration Of St. Pauls Church in Mussoorie

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  MUSSOORIE: Nov 10

Thanksgiving Service was held at St.Pauls Church,Landour Cantt to celebrate its restoration yesterday. The Christian Community gathered in large number at the church premises to offer their prayers.Sunday school for the Woodstock children was also held on the occasion in which the children were given assignment of drawing the church on a paper with crayons. The Hymns and Songs were sung by various Groups from the community. The Church choir from Woodstock also enliven the occasion. Rev. Erik.Templeton read out verses from The Holy Bible and blessed all on the occasion. He said that this was a splendid moment for Mussoorie and the community as the historic and Heritage site has been restored to its full glory. He thanked the Almighty and the donors for the restoration work.he also thanked the major contibutors Sanjaya Narang an Alumnus Woodstock School.

He also thanked Sanjaya Mark secretary Pastorate Committee of St.Pauls Church of this preface and the skilled and unskilled labour who worked through extended monsoon, day in and day out.

Sanjaya Mark secretary Pastorate committee at St.Pauls Church was delighted with the outcome and thanked all the contributors, workers and well wishers of the church speaking to Garhwal post she recalled that the roof was leaking and the church had a gloomy look but now the glory has been revived once again.

She also stated that past 15 years have been eventful years for the St.Pauls church and have been influenced greatly by the nature of the staff members Woodstock School. She added that “Until about the end of the last millennium there were a significant number of the children and so we had a strong Sunday School Program. It was wonderful to see that that remodeled Sunday school program now called Sunday school classroom is currently running at the church. The church has separate room for the Sunday School Classroom now”.

Sanjaya Mark and Rev Erik Templeton disclosed that the church in its outreach program has reached out to the communities in many ways. They added  that “One major service is rendered on Christmas season when the message of Christmas is shared with the Landour community through nativity plays presented at the church. During this time the congregation also takes gifts and spends time with the children at the KARISA a home for children whose parents are affected with AIDS and with workers who have leprosy.    

Rev.Templeton also informed that the Church will remain open everyday from 10 AM to 4 PM for the tourists and residents alike provided the sanctity of the church is maintained.

Ajay Mark Physical Education Instructor at Woodstock said that his Joy knew no bounds today and he reminisced that it is the same Church where Tom Alter Eminent Bollywood Actor was married as he was the best man on that day.

Dr.Ganesh Saili was also happy at the work done in restoring the Church. He commended the efforts of all involved in the restoration work. He also said that the church has history attached to it as it was premiere church for the British Cantonment during The British Raj.This fact is corroborated with the evidence of clamps for the rifles in the Hall.  

Sanjay Narang was immensely pleased with the outcome and said that the workers have done the tremendous Job of restoration. The carving work on the stained glass windows has been done to perfection and the heritage look has been maintained in the process. He said for him personally it was time to give back to the community and there was no better way than this. He reiterated that fact that this work has provided him immense spiritual satisfaction. He thanked the Rev.Templeton and the Church members for accepting his small contribution to the Gods work. He further said that today his dream has been fulfilled.

The children Woodstock School along with other members of the community were present for the celebration. Later in the day a dinner in honour of the 60 workers at the church was also held.

History of St.Pauls Church

According to Gopal Bhardwaj expert on Mussoorie St.Paul Church was first consecrated 168 years ago, on Friday May 1, 1840, by Daniel Wilson, Bishop Calcutta, on his second visit to Mussoorie.the exact date is not known but it is assumed that shortly after completion of the British Military Hospital now ITM building above Kilmarnock in 1838.Apart from the military establishment, a number of buildings were built above Kilmarnock in Landour at about the same time.St.Pauls Church was  four years after Christ Church Mussoorie.In 1855, the first renovation was completed. Walls were raised to present level; the east end –Choir and the sanctuary, plus vestry were added.1882 marked the second major renovation and sheet metal roof replac3ed thatch with new Deodar plank ceiling and Sal support beams. In 1906, the present stained glass window was placed at the east end of the church, replacing an earlier one installe3d in 1870, from 1840 to 1947; the church was revered by military Chaplains: primarily for the British residents of the Landour associated with cantonment and the British Military Hospital.

The church was consecrated 17 years later 25 yeas after the annexation by the British at the end of Gurkha War. The records of marriage are available from 1927 to the present in complete form.

As the records suggest the period coincides with the sikh wars and with what the church record refers to as the “insurrection” of 1857 which the Indian historians call as first war of Independence.Rev.W.J.Jay was the chaplain during the years 856 and 57 and regular services were held during this period.

Chaplain J.W. Shaw In 1883 /84 commented about the church, Owing to the cold and damp, I was obliged to purchase three iron stoves to warm the church and vestery room. The books in the latter, forming the Sunday lending library, much injured from damp. The covers in many cases having come completely off There were two harmoniums-one useless and the other far from good. I succeeded in getting a very good instrument with 14 stops from Mr.Hunter, the music master in Mussoorie for Rs. 500, giving him two old instruments as part of my payment, which is valued at Rs.175.The church walls are saturated and damp in the rain that instrument cannot be kept in proper after lighting fire.

One of the earliest notations, from a letter from the Archaedeacon of Calcutta,dated,June 24,1840,gives something of the flavour of that period He lists the following, “establishment of the church at Landour:a clerk salary of Rs 12/mo;a bearer on Rs 5/mo;a chowkidar on a salary of Rs 5,sweeper Rs 4 in addition to monthly allowance of Rs 4 mo, for sacramental bread and wine and other contingencies.”

Jim Corbett’s Father Christopher and Janet were married on 13th Oct.1859 in this church.

In recent years, St.Pauls has been administered by the Church of North India (CNI).

Until 1993.Rev.I.B.Dass war the Presbyter in Charge and Rev.R.C.Alter assisted him.Jatti Singh served the churches of the parish from 1993 to 1995.The rev.Bali Sheperd took over charge from 1995.In June of 1997, the revs. Erik and Anita Templeton, having recently completed their theological training at Bishops College, Calcutta came to Landour-Erik as Presbyter-in-charge of the Mussoorie Parish, including St.Pauls Church. Anita Templeton assisted the church in addition to major responsibilities to the Dices of Agra. They continue to serve the three churches of the parish and the community of Landour and Mussoorie in countless ways along with the responsibilities in relation to the Diocese of Agra.

Three years ago the Pastorate Committee discovered that the entire roof of the Church needed to be restored because it was leaking. The congregation rose to the occasion by raising money through fetes and sales but it was not enough for the restoration and it was at his time when the members were pondering over the issue that Sanjay Narang former student of Woodstock offered to do a complete restoration of the building. The pastorate committee decided to take the generous offer.