Welcome to the website of the Anglican Parish of Prince William, Dumfries, Queensbury, and Southampton. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and discovering a little bit about our parish. The Parish of Prince William follows the Safe Church polices as outlined by the Dioceses. Father David Mercer, Priest in Charge 454-9998 dmercer98@bellaliant.net
To find out more about us, please click on the About us link. News & EventsAttention: Due to the problems in Zone 5 the Province has said that Church Services that were scheduled for May 31 must be postponed until June 7. This means that there will be no Church Service in the Parish of Prince William as previously announced. All things being equal there will be a celebration of the Holy Eucharist on June 7. Sincerely, Father Mercer THE PRIEST’S CORNER Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, although the Parish of Prince William will have a celebration of the Holy Eucharist on this Sunday, May 31, there are those among us that will not be able to be with us for medical reasons. I want to assure all of you who find themselves in that situation that you are continually in the prayers of the Parish. Warden Michael wrote to me the other day that one of the things that the Church offers to the members of the Church Community and the community at large is hope. This is not the first time that I have been told much the same thing and it is one of the important themes that should and does guide and direct the things that we do in our Parish. When you think what the founders of this Parish faced when they arrived here and settled the area our problems are really very insignificant. The Church buildings are a witness to their faith in the future and it speaks to their character that the first thing that they did was set aside land upon which to build the Church and the School. In other words, God and the education of the young were of the highest importance. When I enter any of the Churches in this Parish I am reminded that these Holy Places stand as a witness to the builders faith in the future. All of our Churches should remind us of the fact that those who have gone before had a faith in God and in us. Many of us can honestly say that our ancestors build this place and in addition that our people have been here since the beginning. It is to the credit of this community that those of us who not have deep roots here have been welcomes by the Body of Christ in this place and are now on a part of the Body in this place. On this Feast of Pentecost it is important to remember that we are the Community of Faith and we act in Faith. St Peter stood up on this day and proclaimed the truth of God’s Love expressed in his Son Jesus Christ. He did this inspire of the fact that the Authorities of his day did everything in their power to destroy the Faith Community and yet inspire of what seemed to be insurmountable obstacles, the Body of Christ transformed the Western World. Remember that Our Lord began with only 12 Disciples and a handhold of followers. I do not want any of you to discouraged about the future of this Parish. The fact that we are here inspire of the fact that the culture in which we find ourselves sees little or no value in the Church should not deter us from our witness to the Love of God. There is a Church dedicated to St Martin in a place called Old Mardin in Southern England that stands in a farmer’s field in the middle of nowhere that has been there since Saxon times. I had occasion to attend a Service there in the 1970’s. There are no homes for miles around and I asked the Priest what happened to the village that I thought should be there. He said that there had never been a village and that the builders of the Church had acted in Faith. He rang the Church Bell an hour before the service began and then said to me that we should sit and wait. In that hour people began to appear and by the time the Eucharist began the Church was full. Saint Mary le Strand stand on an island in the middle of one of the busy streets in London. Marlene and I were walking by at noon one day and heard the Church Bell above the noise of the traffic. We went in to the Service and after the Service the Lady who rang the Church Bell asked us why we came and how we knew there was a Service. Marlene said, “We heard the bell”. The Lady turned to the Priest and said, “See, I told you that if we rang the Bell they would come ”. What does all of this mean to us? That we should be faithful. That we should believe and trust in God.” That tomorrow is none of our business in the sense that we cannot and do not know what the future holds, but that should not discourage us. What will happen if we give up? There will be no Church community here as we understand it. What happens if we do nothing and give up? Why the Church Community here will die, the Church will not die, but the community may well do so. If we are not here when the greater community need us, and make no mistake, the time will come when they will, we will not be here to respond with God’s Love. Our task in to stand fast, to be faithful, to love inspire of the fact that we may well not be loved in return. |
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