Canada's oldest Anglican church marks 275 years amid reconciliation efforts

Within the wood walls of Canada's oldest Anglican church are many remnants of its past — from a velvet-clad pew for the Royal Family to a piece of metal blown into a wall by the Halifax Explosion.

St. Paul's Church has been around as long as Halifax — established in 1749 by the British colonial forces — and is the city's oldest building, celebrating its 275th anniversary this year. 

As the church reflects on its history, it's also reckoning with its relationship with the region's Mi'kmaq, who first inhabited the shores of Kjipuktuk, or "The Great Harbour," as the area was known.  

"You have to recognize the past. You can't ignore it," said Rev. Paul Friesen, who became the 16th rector of St. Paul's in 2005.

WATCH | This church has been around as long as Halifax: 

Canada's oldest Anglican church has an entangled history

2 months ago

Duration 5:37

St. Paul’s Church in Halifax is marking its 275th anniversary this year. But the congregation has a difficult past, having clashed with the region’s Mi’kmaq when British settlers arrived in 1749. The CBC’s Aly Thomson visited the church to learn more.

Halifax was a planned settlement chosen by the British for its proximity to the ocean and meant to counter the influence of the Fortress of Louisbourg in Cape Breton held by France, according to Stephen Augustine, a hereditary chief on the Mi'kmaq Grand Council.

Edward Cornwallis, a British-born military leader, was made governor of Nova Scotia in 1749 and was assigned to establish the new town. The new government also founded St. Paul's, which was established by royal proclamation by King George II, becoming the official church of the new government and the first church outside of Great Britain to be designated an Anglican cathedral.

In those days, the church and the colonial government were intertwined.

After Cornwallis arrived, a French-born Catholic priest named Pierre Maillard penned a letter in English, Mi'kmaw and French telling him he had no right to establish a settlement there. Maillard was a friend to the Mi'kmaq, having landed in Louisbourg 14 years prior and learning to speak their language.

"There was a strong connection between the Mi'kmaq and the French, religious-wise, marriage-wise, linguistically, trade-wise," said Augustine, who recently retired from teaching at Cape Breton University.

Maillard's letter to Cornwallis was taken as a declaration of war. Later that year following deadly conflicts between the settlers and Mi'kmaq, Cornwallis issued what has become known as the "scalping proclamation," meaning his government would pay a bounty for the killing of any Mi'kmaw adult or child in a bid to drive them off mainland Nova Scotia.

The bloodshed eventually subsided, and in 1761, the Mi'kmaq were in the process of signing a Peace and Friendship Treaty with the British, during which time Maillard had moved to Halifax and was a priest to the Mi'kmaq. He's believed to have been used as a translator during the negotiation process.

Maillard died soon after, and a funeral mass was held for him at St. Paul's Church, despite him being a Catholic priest.

"They wanted to honour him for his work," said Augustine, whose great-great-great-grandfather Michael Augustine was a signatory of the Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1760-61.

According to his extensive research, Augustine also believes Maillard was buried at St. Paul's, although a plaque erected at nearby St Mary's Cathedral Basilica purports that he was buried in that area.

This difficult history is front of mind as the church works toward reconciliation, Friesen said.

These efforts include regularly referencing and wholly supporting the apologies delivered by the Anglican Church of Canada and the Archbishop of Canterbury "for the way in which the community of faith did not distinguish itself from the British imperial project — it was wrapped up in it," he said.

As part of an exhibit at the back of the church, its history with the Mi'kmaq is detailed on placards, which were updated earlier this year. Friesen said the parish has also spent the past five years leading up to its 275th anniversary listening to Indigenous voices, in particular Christopher A. Harper, the national Indigenous Anglican archbishop, and Raymond Aldred, director of Indigenous Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology.

The church also provides grants to Indigenous organizations inside and outside the church, including several grants over the last five years to the Mi'kmaw Native Friendship Centre in Halifax.

"So we've been reading, listening and hearing on that entangled past and on possibilities of reconciliation," said Friesen in the gallery of the church, as light from stained glass windows glimmered on rows of centuries-old pews.

Halifax has essentially been built up around St. Paul's, which faces city hall and Grand Parade Square, a well-used public space that sees many events such as ceremonies, protests and concerts.

More recently, in the midst of the housing crisis, it was the site of a homeless encampment. Friesen said the congregation recognized these people as "neighbours."

"We're not interested in pushing people out or making grand political statements. There are some property things to consider, which we always have to consider here, quite apart from encampments — rowdy parties, events in [Grand Parade Square]. So we always have to be a little diligent," he said.

"Many of the folks here didn't have food security during the encampments, so we helped with that. Sometimes something as simple as water."

In that vein, St. Paul's runs a weekly outreach lunch program, hosted by Friesen, where sandwiches, soup and sweets are served and conversation is encouraged around a large table. The church also provides groceries to at-risk individuals on a weekly basis. 

Looking to the next 275 years, Friesen said his community of faith will continue to open its doors "to everybody who wants to come in."

"When you celebrate something, it's always an imperfect thing," he said.

"It's necessary to acknowledge that in the past of any institution, it's made mistakes and that it needs to be very thoughtful and creative in reaching out to the communities that it wronged.

"But the other thing is simply to celebrate the fact that our ancestors devoted so much time to so many meaningful things for the city, and that these things continue to be important to us today."