LAYING THE FIRST STONE OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, LYTTELTON.

Lyttelton Times, Volume II, Issue 69, 1 May 1852, Page 5

LAYING THE FIRST STONE OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, LYTTELTON.

The weather which for two or three days previous, had been damp and gloomy, cleared up on Saturday morning into one of those warm and brilliant days which are nowhere seen in greater perfection than in New Zealand. A large congregation assembled at eleven o'clock at the Temporary Church in the barracks. After the ordinary service for the day had been performed, the procession was formed to proceed to the site of the new Church. The school children, walking two and two, led 'by Mr. Toomath, the schoolmaster, were folkSived by the four officiating clergy—the , two commissaries of the Lord Bishop of New Zealand, the Hey. H. Jacobs, and the Rev. B. Dudley—in surplices. Next followed the assistin sr clergy, the Rev. E. Puckle, the Hey. W. Willock, and the Rev. J. Wilson in academicals, Mr. Mountfort, the architect, and Mr. Luck, the builder, Mr. Godley, the layer of the stone, followed in order, with the Church Building Committee two and two, whilst a large body of ladies and gentlemeu, comprising most of the principal inhabitants both of Lyttelton and of Christchurch and the neighbourhood, accompanied the procession. The arrangements at the New Church had been admirably made under the superintendence of the contractor. Boards had been laid so as to lOi'm a flooring over a great part of the area of

the building, forming a platform, upon which benches were provided for the clergy, the committee, and ladies. The site of the new church is upon the spur of hill which runs down the centre of Lyttelton to the sea, commanding a view of almost the whole of the town and the harbour. It is much to be regretted, however, that the reserve did not comprise the adjacent section on the crown of the spur now belonging to Dr. Donald. Had this been the case, the church might have been built upon comparatively level ground, and much expense, both of building, and excavation would have been saved. The rapid descent of the ground on the west side fronting on Canterbury street has compelled the erection of a stone wall at least twelve feet in height, which has materially added to the labor and expense of the undertaking. Upon arriving at the ground, the service commenced with the Psalms, the 132 nd, 122 nd, and 127 th, which were chanted by the school children and a great part of the congregation. Several prayers were then read, according to a form which had been drawn up and printed for the occasion, after a form compiled, as we understand, by the Bishop of the Cape of Good Hope, and used by his Lordship upon similar occasion. The first lesson was from Ezra iii. 8. to the end ; the Secretary then read the inscription on the Stone, written by the Rev. Henry Jacobs, the Head Master of the Grammar School as follows:— In honorem, Sanctae Trinitatis, Patris, unigeniti filii, et spiritus sancti, Personarum trium, unius dei, Ponitur hie lapis, Supra quern exstruenduin suscepimus, Qui Lytteltoniam hanc incolimus, Aliique coloni Cantuarienses, Si placebit Illi omnium bonoruin operum Auctori Perfectorique, Templum pro viribus nostris, ut parvulorum Exiguis, haud omnino indignum : Quam quidem oedium sacrarum apud nos quasi matrem atque originem Maxime adorandum Sanctae Trinitatis Nomen In omne tempus referre volumus, Scilicet haud jmmemores Quod nos per Oceanos duos, tarn iinmensum maris spatiuin, Usque ad ultimum orbis terrarum fin em, Novam quasrentes patriam, Salvos traduxerit Ille Oinnipotens Deus ; Inceptisque nostris benigne adhuc annuerit, Viresque, ut speramus, perennes afflaverit: Necnon et strenue precantes, ut favor Ulius Apud nos posterosque nostros Constans usque ac firme stabilitus permaneat, Neu unquam propter peceata, vel eorum vel nostra, Aut omnino abstrahatur, aut imminuatur ; Sed ut felicitas nostra, velut hoc templum, In saxum fundetur, Nempe constantis ac nunquam labentis fidei, Qu32 Sempiternum patrem, Per Intercessorem filium, Anguli Caput, Spiritus Sancti motu atque auxilio, Aspectet, colatque, imoque ex corde amplectatur. Positus est hie lapis A Jobanne Roberto Godley, Armigero, Colonorum Cantuariensium ductore, Ad octavum Calend. Mai. AD. MDCCCLII. LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THE LATIN INSCRIPTION. To the honour of the Sacred Trinity, the Father, the only-begotten Son, and tie Holy Ghost, Three Persons and One God, this Stone is hud, whereupon we inhabitants of this to.vn of Lyttelton, and others of the Canterbury Colonists, have undertaken to rear up, if it shall please the same God, who is the Author and Finisher of all good works, a sacred edifice, such as shall not be altogether unworthy, considering our strength, which is young as yet, as that of young children. This building however, as the mother, so to speak, and first beginning of churches amongst us, we would lnive to bear throughout all time the most adorable name of the Holy Trinity, in token that we are not forgetful, that it was that Almighty God who brought us safely across two oceans, that immense region of waters, even to the farthest boundary of the habitable world, seeking a new country ; and that He has hitherto benignautly favoured our endeavours, and endued them, as we hope, with lasting strength : with an earnest prayer moreover, that His blessing may ever remain fixed »nd surely established to us and to our posterity, and that it may never, either for their sins or ours, be either entirely withdrawn, or even abated; but that, our prosperity, like this Church, may he founded on a rocis., the rock namely of a constant and never-failing faith, which shall lead us up to the Everlasting Father, through the Son, our Mediator, the Head-stone of the Corner, by the motion and the aid of the Holy Ghost,

to look to Him, to worship Him, and with all our hearts to embrace and cleave to Him. This Found ition Stone was laid by John Robert Godley, Esq., the Leader of the Canterbury Colonists, on the eighth day before the calends of May, in the Year of our Lord, 1852. The inscription, written on vellum, was placed in a bottle and deposited beneath the stone, which was then lowered into its place, Mr. Godley saying the following words— " Through our Lord Jesus Christ we lay this stone in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, in faith that this place, hereafter to become the House of God, may be consecrated to Prayer and the Praise of His Holy Name, and that all things may be done in the doctrine and discipline of the Church, unto the continual glory of the everlasting Trinity. Amen." The second lesson was Irom the first Epistle of Saint Peter, ii. to 11 verse. After the conclusion of the prayers, the 100 th Psalm was sung. Mr. Godley then addressed those present in an earnest and impressive speech, of which we much regret that we were unable to procure a report. The service concluded by the singing of the 149 th Psalm. A collection was made on the' ground, which amounted to 15/. The plan which has been designed by Mr. Mountfort for this church, is one which would be esteemed singularly beautiful, even in a country in which superabundant capital and leisure from labour have combined to bring Art to a piigh state of perfection. All Architecture is to a great extent formed upon and modified by the materials available for building. After much enquiry and consideration, the Committee determined that the best materials which could be procured in Lyttelton, at a moderate expense, were brick and wood. A building-wholly composed of wood, was thought] to be of too fragile and temporary a nature for a church. Stone could not have been obtained on.the spot except at a cost beyond the means at the disposal of the Committee : and, were it otherwise, it is questionable whether a stone building would be advisable in a country, subject like New Zealand, to slight movements from earthquakes; especially where the walls have to be carried to a considerable height. It was, therefore, determined to build "the Church with a heavy framing of wood, filled in with brick work, coated with cement; the wood work appearing on the outside, and being made subservient to the architectural decoration of the building. Mr. Mountfort has most ably fulfiled the intentions of the committee, by his design. The ancient types of ecclesiastical architecture, which have grown up in the course of time, because they were akin to and have been ever esteemed to awake those solemn and devotional thoughts which a sacred edifice should suggest, are happily translated into a form of structure which has hitherto been used in England chiefly for domestic buildings alone. The whole church when completed, will hold more than a thousand persons; and the steeple with a richly ornamented spire of wood will stand on the south side of the nave, towards the Harbour, from which it will form a commanding and magnificent object. It is at present contemplated to build only the west end and four bays of the nave; which will contain about five hundred sittings. The rest of the nave, the chancel, and above all, the spire, we leave to be accomplished by those who shall come after us. We leave the work in the full and perfect faith, as Mr. Godley so forcibly expressed in his speech at the ceremony we have been describing, that it will be completed in good time. The wood used is totara and rimu, the most datable of all the New Zealand woods ;and has been supplied by contract by Mr. Wuitt, of Wellington. It is said to be almost the best lot of wood which has ever been cut there. The bricks have been made in Lyttelton. There is one other feature in this undertaking which we cannot forbear to notice. It is that ' the work is designed and executed by Canterbury Settlers. It is a local work. We have seen many drawings and plans tor churches and schools designed in England for the Colonies. We never saw one which can be compared witu Mr. Mountfort's. The reason is obvious-. Mr. Mountfort possessed local knowledge, he had to adapt his design to the nature of the site, the surrounding scenery and to the materials at his disposal. Therefore he has succeeded. This is one more lesson in the Local question. _j££jtt7~/", (For Christchurch news see last F)oe')/yWAj>'