History
of St. Thomas Aquinas Church
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St.
Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Church, located at 50
Hoskin Avenue -- adjacent to the Newman Centre --
on the campus of the University of Toronto, was built
in 1926/27. What stood on the property prior to the
church being erected was a coach house which served
the needs of the Matthews House, now known as the
Newman Centre.
The Newman
Club purchased the Newman Centre, originally known
as the Matthews House, in 1922. Mass was held in the
famous Oak Room of the Newman Centre prior to the
church being established. As numbers increased, it
soon became apparent that the Newman Centre needed
to build a chapel.
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Thus,
the coach house next to it was demolished and a chapel
erected in1926/1927. With limited space, it clearly
presented architectural challenges. The solution was
to build a church rectangular in plan with its long
elevations perpendicular to the street. The resulting
one-storey limestone structure was designed in the
style of 15th century Gothic architecture. The exterior
walls were composed of coursed broken face Credit
Valley limestone and ashlar Indiana limestone, topped
by a roof composed of gray slate and copper. The church
design features a nave and aisle plan with deep sanctuary
and sacristy. The interior of the church is quite
beautiful with arch braced trusses and an exposed
roof made of dark stained British Columbia fir. The
design originally featured white and yellow leaded
glass Gothic windows with diamond panes to allow natural
light to pour into the interior and two traditional
stained glass windows near the entrance of the church
honouring St. Thomas Aquinas and Cardinal Newman.
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The
church was blessed by Archbishop Neil McNeil and dedicated
to St. Thomas Aquinas on March 27, 1927. At various
points since 1927, the church has been administered
by the Paulist Fathers, the Basilian Fathers, and
the Archdiocese of Toronto (it is currently under
the direction of the Archdiocese of Toronto). In June,
1995, it was officially named a parish of the Archdiocese
of Toronto, and no longer simply a chapel.
The interior
furnishings have been rearranged from time to time
to reflect liturgical changes; however, the building
has not been significantly altered. It was one of
the first
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listed in the Toronto Historical Board's inventory of
historical buildings for architectural and contextual
importance in 1973. |
As
part of the Great Jubilee Celebrations, for the Year 2000,
the parish community undertook a special project to select
and commemorate significant Christian heroes and heroines
of the last century by erecting nine new stained glass windows
in the west wall of the church. These windows honor the
following saints:
St.
Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), St. Therese
of Lisieux, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Blessed Gianna Beretta
Molla, Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, Blessed Brother Andre
Bessette, C.S.J., Franz Jagerstatter, and George & Pauline
Vanier.
As
a parting gift to Fr. Thomas Rosica, C.S.B. who served as
Pastor and Executive Director of the Newman Centre from
1994 - June 2000, the parish community replaced the remaining
window on the west wall of the church with new stained glass
images honoring three additional heroes and heroines of
the past century: Blessed Pope John XXIII, Blessed Kateri
Tekakwitha, and Fr. Jerzey Popieliszko. (For additional
information on the lives of the men and women depicted in
the new stained glass windows, please refer to the "Dedication
of the Stain Glass Windows" link. )
Dedication
of the Stain Glass Windows Page
The
celebration of the Eucharist is held daily in the St. Thomas
Aquinas Church, at 12:15 p.m., Monday through Friday. The
Sunday Liturgy of the Eucharist is held at 11:00 a.m. and
7:00 p.m. These two Masses tend to attract many from the
University area, both students and faculty, persons living
nearby, and visitors to Toronto and the University.
The
beautiful church is the site of many weddings, lectures,
concerts, and other events held throughout the year. An
occasional movie or documentary has also been filmed on
site. During the day the church is open for quiet prayer.
Many people come to pray and to find solace in the peaceful
environment.
All
are welcome.
Click
here to view a 360 degree panorama view of the Chapel
- Photo by Carlo Allegri of the National
Post -
The
Newman Centre Chapel on Christmas Eve, 1999. The suspended
door, now open wide, commemorates the Holy Door at the Vatican,
opened at the Midnight Mass by Pope John Paul II, to inaugurate
the Great Jubilee, the 2000th Anniversary of the Birth of
Jesus.
