CONSECRATION OF ST. PETER'S CHURCH, RICCARTON.

Lyttelton Times, Volume IX, Issue 567, 10 April 1858, Page 4

CONSECRATION OF ST. PETER'S CHURCH, RICCARTON.

Tho above-named event, the second of the kind which has occurred in this province, took place on Tuesday last, the 6th instant. Shortly after 11 o'clock, the Lord Bishop of Christchurch was met at the door of the church by the Minister and Churchwardens of the Parish of Riccarton, and several of the clergy of the province habited in their surplices. The petition for 'consecration vt&& read by the minister.

he Rev. Croasdaile Bowen, and the Bishop, having assented to the same, moved tip the aisle followed: by the clergy and repeating alternately with them the 24th Psalm. As soon as they had taken their seats within the communion rail, the Deed of Conveyance was read by C. H. Wyatt, Esq. Solicitor. This deed disclosed the fact, perhaps not generally known, that the site of the' church and of a schoolhouse to be built in connection with it, .the burial-ground surrounding the church,.the site of the parsonage-house, and the glebe, amounting in all to twenty acres of exceedingly valuable land, were the munificent and unconditional gift of the Venerable Octavius Mathias, Archdeacon of Akaroa, to the church. The land is conveyed to the Bishop of the diocese and his successors, with power to reconvey the same to any future incorporation of the diocese. After the" reading of the deed, the Bishop proceeded with the special service of consecration, after which morning prayer, with special psalms and lessons, was read by the Rev. C. Bowen, the hymns being chanted by the congregation, with the accompaniment of a harmonium of good power and tone. The hymn Veni Creator and the 100 th Psalm were also sung in the course of the service. , A sermon, truly admirable for its beautiful simplicity and appropriateness was preached by the Bishop, from 1 Kings viii. 18; after which the holy communion was administered by his Lordship, assisted by his chaplain1, the Rev. H. Jacobs, to nearly fifty communicants. The collection made at the offertory in aid of the Building Fund amounted to upwards of £23. After the conclusion of the service in the church the burial-ground was consecrated according to the usual form. The clergy present, besides those already mentioned as assisting, were, the Yen. Archdeacon Mathias, the Revs. C. Mackie, H. Fendall, W. W. Willock, and H. W. Harper. The Yen. R. B. Paul, Archdeacon of Waimea, was also present among the congregation. The very pretty and English-looking edifice, with its handsome spire surmounted by a cock, is conveniently situated at the angle formed by the divergence of the Harewood and the Upper Lincoln or Spring's roads, about 4| miles from Christchurch. The interior had been tastefully and beautifully decorated for the occasion with evergreens and flowers by some of the ladies of the parish; the effect of the ferns surrounding the columns was especially admired. One of the principal permanent ornaments of the church is due to the liberality and skilful execution of Mr. Isaac Luck, the architect; we refer to the" texts painted in the" illuminated style round the curve of the chancel arch and the arches separating the nave from the side aisle. The service books, the harmonium, and the bell, which last, being too large for the spire, is suspended from a bell-cote in the churchyard, are, we understand, the gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Watts Russell, assisted by contributions from their friends in England. The weather was everything that could be desired for such an. occasion, and the church, which is calculated to accommodate about 100 persons, was accordingly quite full. We may add that all the seats are free and unappropriated. We must not. omit to mention that about 50 persons were afterwards hospitably entertained by Mr. Rowley, of Middletori, who kept open house on the occasion in the true old English style. Thus ended a celebration which those who were present will long retain among their most pleasing recollections of Canterbury.