Celebrating 160 years of faith in Camperdown

A SPECIAL service was held last Sunday to commemorate a milestone year for the St Paul’s Anglican Church, with a special guest attending the service.

By wd-news

A special sermon: Bishop Mark Burton spoke about the significance of St Paul to the congregation to mark 160 years of the St Paul’s Anglican Chruch.

The church celebrated its 160th anniversary with a Thanksgiving service attended by residents from Camperdown and surrounds, as well as families of those with ties to the church and Bishop Mark Burton.

The foundation stone for the church building was laid by Barbara Manifold on April 27, 1864, with the building going through many renovations and alterations throughout its history.

Many of these changes were funded by the Manifold family, including the 130-year-old organ the church still uses today.

Reverend Matthew Jones said the attendance to the service was “fabulous”.

“We’ve got people here who have travelled quite a long way and have had a long association either personally or through their family,” he said.

“It’s wonderful to catch up with them and for them to experience an anniversary like this.

“We’ve had really good feedback.

“We had a lot of apologies from people who very reluctantly couldn’t make it and were very disappointed, which I think is an indication that this is a very special part of the wider community.”

The service included the opportunity to take communion and was followed by a buffet-style lunch of sandwiches, soup, cakes and biscuits.

Attendees were also able to view some of the church’s history with a display put together by volunteers in the hall, which included newspaper articles, photos and documents.

Bishop Mark Burton said he was proud to be able to pay the church a visit for the service.

“It was my privilege to come and stand in for Bishop Garry Weatherill, who’s the Bishop of Ballarat,” he said.

“It was a great privilege to come down here as part of the celebration.

“I’d only been here once before as a tourist, and the thing that really impresses me is that after 160 years, this place looks loved and lived in as an important part of the community.

“I think this parish has got a great future because the people of Camperdown have a great treasure in their midst. I expect big things.”

Rev. Jones said he was thankful for the interest shown by the community in the service and the history of the building.

“To be able to have people from the wider community taking part in the service, not just the regular Anglicans, but people from other churches and other parts of the community, that shows it’s well-supported,” he said.

“Thank you to the community for looking after this building for 160 years, and we’ll continue to do our best to make it a vibrant place for this community in the future.”