
St Matthew's, or St Matthew-in-the-City, is a historic
Anglican church located in the
Central Business District of Auckland, renowned for its
neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style since its completion in 1905.
History
As the city expanded, residential and commercial buildings sprung up to the west of Queen Street. To serve the Anglicans amongst the growing population,
George Selwyn, New Zealand's first Anglican bishop, acquired land from the Crown in 1843 at the corner of
Hobson and Wellesley Street. On it a one-room school was built from which Selwyn first conducted services.
In 1855 Selwyn appointed the designer of
Old St Paul's, Wellington, the Reverend
Frederick Thatcher
The Reverend Frederick Thatcher (1814 – 19 October 1890) was an English and New Zealand architect and clergyman.
He was born at Hastings to a long-established Sussex family. He practised as an architect in London from 1835 and was one of the ...
as vicar of the new parish of St Matthew's. On 13 July, 30 people met in the school room to constitute the new parish.
Eastern Auckland remained the establishment part of the city. Meanwhile, St Matthew's in the west became the church of merchants and shopkeepers. Its finances reflected their support and acumen. From a shaky start – the Rev'd Thatcher's annual stipend was supplemented by 88 pounds from his military and prison
chaplain
A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...
cies – the parish became self-supporting within 10 years. By 1868 its income was 1000 pounds a year, then the largest in the diocese.
As Auckland grew to the west, so new parishes were established and St Matthew's built a mission chapel, St Thomas', in
Freemans Bay
Freemans Bay is the name of a former bay and now inner city suburb of Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand. The bay has been filled in to a considerable extent, with the reclamation area now totally concealing the ancient shoreline. Hist ...
in 1876.
In 1896 the parish decided it was time to build the stone church.
John Loughborough Pearson
John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficienc ...
, designer of both
Truro Cathedral
The Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Truro, Cornwall. It was built between 1880 and 1910 to a Gothic Revival design by John Loughborough Pearson on the site of the parish church of St Mary. It i ...
in
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlan ...
and
St John's Cathedral in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
, Australia was engaged, but before he could complete the plans he died in December 1897. His son, Frank Loughborough Pearson, completed his work and the cornerstone was laid on 23 April 1902 by Governor
Lord Ranfurly.
As central Auckland became increasingly commercial the population in the parish declined. St Matthew's took on more of a role as church to the commercial and civic life of the city, a role it continues today. The church's size, location, style and musical tradition have made it a natural place for civic services to be held. Typical were a memorial service for Prime Minister
Richard Seddon
Richard John Seddon (22 June 1845 – 10 June 1906) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 15th premier (prime minister) of New Zealand from 1893 until his death. In office for thirteen years, he is to date New Zealand's longest-ser ...
and for the silver jubilee of
King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Q ...
in 1935. In two world wars, St Matthew's held services to farewell troops and to offer thanksgiving for their return. In recent years, St Matthew's has held civic memorial services for the victims of
AIDS and the
Air New Zealand Flight 901
The Mount Erebus disaster occurred on 28 November 1979 when Air New Zealand Flight 901 (TE-901) flew into Mount Erebus on Ross Island, Antarctica, killing all 237 passengers and 20 crew on board. Air New Zealand had been operating scheduled Ant ...
disaster on
Mount Erebus
Mount Erebus () is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica (after Mount Sidley), the highest active volcano in Antarctica, and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. It is the sixth-highest ultra mountain on the continent.
With a summ ...
.
Because its location frequently brought it into contact with the poor, even in its early days, St Matthew's developed a strong social justice ministry. A leader in the protests against
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
during the
1981 Springbok Tour
The 1981 South African rugby tour (known in New Zealand as the Springbok Tour, and in South Africa as the Rebel Tour) polarised opinions and inspired widespread protests across New Zealand. The controversy also extended to the United States, wh ...
and sponsorship in 1974 of the Auckland Community Church, a congregation ministering to
gays and
lesbians
A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...
established it as a strong voice for human rights. In 1996
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the ...
recognised that voice by coming to St Matthew's to thank New Zealand for its important role in ending apartheid. Today St Matthew-in-the-City remains committed to serving the socially marginalised and promoting the
UN Millennium Development Goals to eliminate extreme poverty.
The church has a pro-
gay marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
stance and, after New Zealand legalised gay marriage, put out the call for gay couples to be married there.
The Revd Glynn Cardy, a former archdeacon and last vicar, resigned on 5 October 2013, and is now the Minister of a Presbyterian Church. The Revd Helen Jacobi was inducted, the first woman vicar of St Matthew's.
The building includes a 1300-year-old stone from the ruins of
St Augustine's Abbey
St Augustine's Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Canterbury, Kent, England. The abbey was founded in 598 and functioned as a monastery until its dissolution in 1538 during the English Reformation. After the abbey's dissolution, it underwent ...
, England, and is listed as a Category I Historic Place. It has a peal of 8 bells, most of which were made in 1862, rung in the
change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a tightly controlled manner to produce precise variations in their successive striking sequences, known as "changes". This can be by method ringing in which the ringers commit to memor ...
style by members of
The Australian and New Zealand Association of Bellringers
The Australian and New Zealand Association of Bellringers, known as ANZAB, is the organisation responsible for the promotion of English-style " full circle ringing" – namely change ringing and method ringing in bell towers with a peal of bel ...
.
In December 2009 a billboard put up by the church showing Mary and Joseph in bed together drew criticism from other churches.
References
* ''A Place on the Edge: the story of St Matthew-in-the-City'' - Leigh, Jack;
Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Ger ...
New Zealand, 2005
External links
St Matthew-in-the-City(official church website)
St Matthew's Chamber Orchestra(official orchestra website)
The World Cafe(official organization website)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Matthew's, Auckland
NZHPT Category I listings in the Auckland Region
Matthew
Matthew may refer to:
* Matthew (given name)
* Matthew (surname)
* ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497
* ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith
* Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chi ...
Anglican churches in New Zealand
Listed churches in New Zealand
1900s architecture in New Zealand
Auckland CBD