The
There have been three churches of St Matthew in
St Mary’s Church in
This left ‘an outlying part of
the parish known as
In 1895 an
iron church, dedicated to St Matthew, was built at the corner of
In
‘This marks a new epoch in the history of the Church at this
flourishing
One of Canon Bell’s first reforms
was to introduce Catholic practice at St Matthew’s – the first step to Anglo Catholic
tradition which has been the main focus of our worship ever since.
On Trinity Sunday, 1903, the
first Sung Eucharist was celebrated at St Matthew’s, the celebrant wearing
vestments, the two servers surplices. These developments were not universally
popular. The men of the choir resigned,
leaving only the choirboys. One of the
Wardens also resigned, saying that the service was to all intents and purposes
the Latin Mass! Other influential members
of the congregation resigned too. The
local press reported that this form of worship ‘jarred painfully on those who
had been accustomed to simple Evangelical worship’.
Even more distressing was the
behaviour of a man who took extreme exception to these
‘EJECTED FROM ST MATTHEW’S
Mr George Winn, the open air preacher and Kensit
crusader, who has gained considerable noteriety by
his open-air meetings and other movements in Wimbledon, was ejected from St
Matthew’s Church at Cottenham-park last Sunday.
According to the statements which he subsequently made, he had attended
the solemn Celebration in that place of worship that morning, and during the
singing of the closing hymn, walked up the aisle to see ‘if there were any
fresh ritualistic innovations,’ as he put it.
His statement was that he was standing in the chancel near the altar,
and although he had not spoken a word, two gentlemen walked up to him and asked
him if he had lost anything. He replied,’What’s that got to do
with you?’ whereupon he was taken down the aisle. There the verger and several others assisted
to put him outside the door…….
Enquiries…tended to show that Mr Winn some time ago had publicly
threatened to take down some of the hangings at St Matthew’s and also to pull
down the cross…..’
The following extract is taken
from May
‘Bitterly distressed by
the happening, Canon Bell told the
whole story to the Bishop (Dr. E. S. Talbot) who, after consideration, ruled
that if the Host were reverently burned, and the man apologised, the matter
should be allowed to drop. This was done, and the following Sunday the
congregation made a solemn act of reparation for the dishonour done to the
Sacrament.
Although the man had apologised he still continued to disturb the
service. On one occasion his behaviour became so unbearable that Maurice Few
(server), after a tussle, picked him up and carried him bodily out of the
church! He threatened to bring his friends the following Sunday, so Canon Allen
Bell arranged for a Police Inspector and three constables to be posted round
the building. Seeing the police, the man behaved himself decently in church and
after the service, instead of holding forth in the road as usual, he made off
for home with the Inspector dogging his footsteps. He never troubled St. Matthew's again.’
Heavily involved in these
disturbing events was Rev’d Remington Rocksborough Smith, the first priest-in-charge. Like many young priests he had an uncomfortable
time at first; many in his new congregation were apprehensive of his ‘Catholic
doctrine and practices’. He worked hard to dispel these attitudes, and through
his tact and energy he won back most of the people who had left earlier. In 1903 the Surrey Comet reported on
celebrations at the St Matthew’s Patronal Festival:
In the afternoon the Sunday School teachers
and children – preceded by their banner - and the choir men and boys in their
robes, went in procession through many of the streets in the district. They were led by the band of the Boys’
Brigade………
The procession was a fine sight, and was viewed by large crowds of
people, to whom it afforded much pleasure to see how well-behaved and happy the
children appeared. Arrived at the
church, the festival service of the Catechism was held, an address being
delivered by the Rev. Rocksborough Smith. All the vacant space in the church was
occupied by parents and other friends of the children, even the vestry and the
porch being occupied; yet many people were unable to gain admission. In the evening a similarly large congregation
assembled, and many perforce had to remain outside. The Vicar preached a stirring sermon, in the
course of which he quoted figures to show the progress of the church during the
past year, notably that the number of communicants had been doubled, while the
offerings to foreign missions had been four times as great.’
From contemporary accounts it
seems that the people of St Matthew’s not only worshipped enthusiastically but
also enjoyed a lively social life. In
May 1905 the Surrey Comet reported on a concert in St Mark’s Hall:
A concert was given here on Monday evening in connection with the St
Matthew’s Guild and Band of Hope…..
The second part of the programme was provided by the Cottenham Minstrels ‘from
The Wimbledon News 13 May 1905
said that St Matthew’s Church had been rejuvenated owing to Mr. Rocksborough Smith’s labours, and when the vicar announced
that he was leaving, the Gazette quoted remarks made on the subject of his
departure:
‘….Before Mr Smith came, there were only about fifty children (in the
Sunday School) and the utmost disorder prevailed…..Now
250 attended, & their excellent behaviour and enthusiasm they all knew…..’
‘Several of the children had been won over from the Wesleyans and some
from Emmanuel Church…….’
‘….(one of the speakers) hoped that now their tin church had become so
full, the permanent building would soon be begun; but if Mr Smith went away he
felt convinced that their numbers would suffer seriously, and the building of a
new church be delayed.’
Rev’d
Remington Rocksborough Smith later became a Bishop in
St Matthew’s was now a lively
neighbourhood church and on
The little iron church became a social
centre where church organisations met.
The Order of Service for the Dedication of the Extension of The Church
of S. Matthew in the Parish of Wimbledon, S. Matthew’s Day, September 21st
1927, refers to ‘.... an iron church,
known to us all nowadays as S. Matthew’s Hall’. This went on till 1937, when the ‘new’ St
Matthew’s hall was dedicated (yes, there have been three halls, too).
So the plan to build the
Jean
Porter
