About Us
WE ARE A GROWING AND VIBRANT CHURCH COMMUNITY IN NORTH LONDON ROOTED IN WORSHIP AND COMMITTED TO FAITHFUL, LOVING SERVICE IN OUR COMMUNITY AND WORLD.
Our members continually live out their faith in their homes, places of work and with their friends and neighbours – so wherever you are on your spiritual journey you are welcome here – to learn and to grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
St. Jude’s is an Anglican church, which means we value and celebrate the historical Anglican expression of the Christian faith. We believe that the good news of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection is relevant to everyone and can transform lives. Wherever you are on your spiritual journey, you are welcome here to explore the diversity of our faith.
At St. Jude’s we believe that God calls us into the world to make a tangible difference in other people’s lives. We have many different outreach opportunities to help our community and our neighbours. From our commitment to collecting food donations for the Daily Bread Food Bank to our Nearly New Shop which sells gently used clothing, to our support of Refugee Sponsorship, St. Jude’s looks to have a local and global impact.
At St. Jude’s we believe that:
- The bible is the inspired word of God
- God is made present in the sacraments of the church
- From our abundance, we are to respond to human need
- Our worship services should be relevant and accessible to all people
- We must seek to transform unjust structures of society
- We all share responsibility in proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God
- We must respect the dignity and integrity of all people as created in the image of God and redeemed by Jesus Christ
- We are to strive to safeguard the integrity of all creation and renew the life of the earth
- In all we do, service, worship, prayer and praise, we do it for the glory of God
OUR VISION
God’s hope and dream for St. Jude’s is to be a vibrant community in faithful service.
OUR MISSION
We will allow God’s Life and God’s Mission to express themselves in and through us.
Specifically we will strive to express God’s life and mission through five particular marks of mission:
- Tell: We proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.
- Teach: We teach, baptize and nurture new believers
- Tend: We respond to human need by loving service
- Transform: We seek to transform unjust structures of society, challenging violence of every kind, and pursuing peace and reconciliation.
- Treasure: We strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and seek to sustain and renew the life of the earth.
OUR IDENTITY
St. Jude’s is a Spiritual, Inclusive, Caring, Musical, and Christ like Anglican Community of Faith!
LEADERSHIP
RECTOR – THE REVEREND CANON JUNE HOUGH
[email protected]
519-660-6198
Canon June was ordained a deacon on May 1st, 1986 and priested on December 17th.
She served the parishes of St. George’s, London and St. Peter’s, Dorchester. She continued her ministry in the dioceses of Nova Scotia and Ottawa before she came home to Huron in 2008 to lead the Anglican Parishes of East London and the Church of the Ascension, London.
Canon June has served as Regional Dean of Wellington and Archdeacon of Erie. She was named a Canon of the Cathedral on November 20th, 2011.
Canon June Hough retired on December 1, 2023 as the Rector of the Church of Ascension, London and currently is the interim priest at the Church of St. Jude, London.
LICENSED LAY READERS
St. Jude’s is fortunate to have three Licensed Lay Readers to share with the Priests in the Liturgical, Pastoral and Educational ministries of the Parish of St Jude’s. The Lay Readers have been given instruction in bible study, reading and worship, liturgical leadership, preaching practices, prayer, and developing a Statement of Faith. They preach on rotation through the year and lead Morning Prayer through Holy Week. Along with their Lay Reader responsibilities, Sharon Frank leads the Prayer and Pastoral Care Team, Cyndi Lockhart oversees the Safe Church initiatives, and Bryan Smith is interested in youth ministry.
MUSIC DIRECTOR
CHRISTINA WILLATT
[email protected]
Christina is a soprano, pianist, organist, composer and music educator. She holds a Master of Music Performance from Western University. She performs regularly in London, and has performed in numerous cities in Canada, the United States and Europe. She maintains a busy voice, piano, theory, and composition studio in London. Christina has been the organist and music director at the Church of St. Jude since the Fall of 2011.
OUR HISTORY
In 1952, the Anglican Diocese of Huron instituted a plan to construct a parish church in a sparsely inhabited area at the northern boundary of London Township. Although a mere 50 residences existed, the church had the foresight to recognize the growth potential. It was decided by the future parishioners that a “community church” would be most suitable and the Anglican Diocese undertook the responsibility for the building’s completion.
The parish minutes state “The first meeting of the church-going residents of the Northdale and Stoneybrook communities took place in the Northdale School, on Wednesday, the 28th day of October, 1953 at 8:00 p.m. chaired by The Reverend John Birch.” This same day also hosted the Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude. The Diocese approved the new parish dedication to the name of St. Jude.
The first service was held in the Northdale School, on the 1st November, 1953. Coincidentally, this was the same year as the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, which ultimately led to the church’s designation as a “Coronation Church” (only one of two) and now shares this distinction with St. Stephen’s in Brantford.
During this time, real-estate developers were demonstrating increased interest for development potential. The parishioners agreed to construct a church building capable of accommodating 200-300 worshippers. The Gerry Lumber Company concurred that the planned structure could be built for $35,000.00. This first building was designed as a temporary church, with plans to build a larger facility in the future, to accommodate the growth and the first building would eventually become a parish hall.
Although still under construction, the interior was sufficiently completed to host the first service on the 10th of June, 1954.
In 1954, The Rev’d John Birch was succeeded by The Rev’d John Henderson and on the 12th of September, Bishop Luxton led the Service of Dedication of the new church. Because of the halt on local development, parish growth was minimal and could not support a full time clergyman, so the incumbent remained a part-time appointment.
The parish continued to grow slowly. In August, 1956, The Rev’d John Henderson resigned and The Rev’d A.F. Wilkinson was appointed in his place in September. By now, local development and population growth made it possible for a full-time rector to be considered and a major figure in the parish’s subsequent life, The Rev’d Lloyd G. Cracknell, was appointed.
In 1961, the area was annexed by the City of London and development began in earnest – subdivisions to the west and east began and the population increased dramatically. Growth has continued and the parish is now at the center of a very large residential complex.
By 1965, the church was frequently filled on Sunday mornings. The building, designed to hold about 200 people, had been known to house 350 on occasion. The Sunday School, in December, 1966, had a registration of 197 children with an average attendance of 100 and new classrooms were desperately needed. In 1966, an addition was approved to provide three new rooms totaling 1,700 square feet of space, at a projected cost of $12,000.00. It was ready for occupancy in early 1967, Canada’s Centennial Year and became known as “the Centennial addition”.
In 1975, the church supported enjoyed a “mortgage burning celebration” on the weekend of the 21st of June. With the continued growth of the local population, a building fund was established to finance the upcoming construction of the new church.
In 1986, The Rev’d Lloyd G. Cracknell retired and the rector, The Rev’d John H. Chapman, was welcomed.
Understanding the estimated cost of 1.5 million dollars for the new addition, a special “Mission 1990” was organized to raise $400,000.00. The new space would provide a much needed larger sanctuary, meeting room and offices. Work began in 1992 and the corner stone was laid by Bishop Percy O’Driscoll along with founding member, Mrs. Marjorie Quint, on the 30th of May, marking the site of the new building.
On the 1st of June, 1993, with the completion of the new building, the Sunday service began in the old church and the congregation proceeded to the new facility to complete the liturgy and officially begin worship.