St Peter's, Lakehill

St. Peter’s is a warm and energetic church and we would be very happy to have you join us in prayer and worship at any of our services.

We are a liturgical tradition, and use the Book of Common Prayer and the Book of Alternative Services to lead us in our prayers. Our regular weekly Sunday services happen at 9am and 10:30am . The 9am service is a 'said' Eucharist (no music) using the form of Holy Communion from the Book of Common Prayer 1962. (beginning on page 67 - you can see this online at anglican.ca ). Our service at 10:30am uses the form of Holy Eucharist from the Book of Alternative Services 1985 (beginning on page 185 - you can see this one too at the same page found at anglican.ca )

Once a month on the second Sunday of the month at our 10:30am service we have a family service, which is a shorter service, and more directly involves children and youth - there is no Sunday School on those Sundays, as the aim is to have everybody stay in and be a part of the service!

Also once a month we have a Spanish language Eucharist! So - si ustedes hablan Espanol, y desiren un servicio en Espanol, vienen todos a la ilgesia San Pedro!

La Eucaristia en Espanol estara:

Febrero 5               Marzo 5 and  26,                Abril 9
Mayo     7                Junio 4                                  Julio  2
Agosto  7                Setiembre 10                      Octubre 8
Noviembre 12      Diciembre 10

Everyone is involved with the services, by being there, praying, singing, and taking part in any and every way. Some specific roles that you will see people filling are members of the choir, communion assistants, servers, greeters, readers and in the healing ministry.

Refreshments (tea, coffee, juice, cookies, et al) are served each Sunday after the 10:30 service and on the first Sunday of the month after the 9:00 am service.

We have a modern building with beautiful surrounding grounds which are easily accessible and accommodating. We are handicap accessible and serviced and equipped with an excellent sound system for the hearing impaired.

Anglican worship and community life in the Lakehill neighbourhood had its beginning in 1944, when a Sunday School was opened in the home of Harry and Janet Borden, with 6 pupils and 1 teacher present.

Church services began in 1946, the first three years in Lakehill Women’s Institute and, from 1949 – 1958, in a converted house on the present property where Abbeyfield Home now stands. As an offshoot of St. Luke’s (Cedar Hill), St. Peter’s first came under the supervision of Canon Pike, Roger Bray (Lay Reader) followed and then the Rev. Dr. Kenneth King officiated at services. Under the guiding hand of Rev. Dr. King, St. Peter’s moved from ‘mission’ to ‘parish status'.

In December 1948 the ‘temporary’ worship facilities were dedicated. These facilities were surplus buildings from the military camp on the current property of the University of Victoria. A dedication leaflet notes that proper facilities would soon follow: “We welcome you this morning to St. Peter’s and are glad that you have been able to attend the Opening Service in our new church building. In due course, we hope to erect a church proper.”

Forty nine and one half years later on the 29th of June 1998, (St. Peter’s and St. Paul ’s Day) the ‘church proper' was dedicated. With this new facility, the parishioners continued to strive to clear the church debt of $166,000.00 (Dec. 2001).The debt was paid off in November, 2004 and the church was consecrated on November 30th, 2004 (St. Andrew’s Day), by Bishop James Cowan.

The following is an article from the Diocesan Post, February 2005

Lakehill church consecrated on November 30, 2004

Only six years after the $814,000 St. Peter’s church, Lakehill, was built, the parish had retired the debt, making it possible for the church to be consecrated. (New churches can be consecrated only when they are debt free.)

Within the service of consecration, which took place on St. Andrew’s day, November 30, Bishop Cowan also confirmed, received, and renewed the confirmation vows of eight members of the St. Peter’s community.

"What a blessed night that was!" says St. Peter’s rector John Macquarrie.

The new church replaced the "temporary" quonset hut building the community had been worshipping in since 1958.

A single large donation in mid-November "to get the ball rolling" brought the debt down to $16,000.

That Sunday there were 16 rocks on the architect’s model of the church in the narthex.

John told the congregation that all that prevented the church from being consecrated was those rocks. He invited members to remove the stones for $1,000 each. In three days the debt was gone, so the Confirmation service for which Bishop Cowan was already scheduled became the service of consecration.