All Saints Sandy Hill Ottawa now a mosque on Fridays

When St. Alban’s voted to join ANiC in 2008, one of the consequences, as Justin Welby might call it, was that the Diocese of Ottawa acquired the church building and the congregation had to find a new home.

To fill the empty pews and created the illusion that the diocese had a use for the building, the congregation of All Saints Sandy Hill was imported into St. Alban’s.

This, of course, had the unfortunate consequence of setting All Saints adrift as an Anglican Marie Celeste. I expect the diocese hoped no-one would notice.

Now All Saints is being rented out as “the kind of space that reflects Canada’s fabric today”. That means that on Fridays, it is a mosque.

From here:

On the December day they took possession of a 115-year-old church in Sandy Hill, Leanne Moussa and some others climbed up a spiral staircase and rang the church bells.

Those tolling bells, which at least one person mistook for a call to worship, represented both the joy they felt for saving All Saints church and their excitement about its new life as a multi-use community centre. The former Anglican church is now home to several different religious congregations, a small café, artists’ studios, event space for classes and conferences, and there are plans for future redevelopment that could add offices for NGOs and new housing units.

[….]

The deconsecrated nave will soon serve many functions — mosque on Fridays, synagogue on Saturdays and the spiritual home of two different Christian groups on Sundays. The 300-seat space can also be used for weddings, concerts, book launches and lectures, Moussa said.

8 thoughts on “All Saints Sandy Hill Ottawa now a mosque on Fridays

  1. Correct me if I am wrong, but I do not think it is mosque just on Fridays. My understanding is that according to Islam, once a church is used as a mosque, it is a mosque. Period. And Muslims now have claim to it entirely and exclusively as a mosque.

  2. I wonder whether they have had any enquiries for bookings for meetings of the local Rationalist organisation.

  3. The congregation was not imported into St. Alban’s-a complete falsehood. However, the large building complex had cost the congregation and diocese enormous sums with no apparent end in sight. It became a financial sinkhole. It is in a neighbourhood which was once residential and anglophone, but is now mostly taken up by the University of Ottawa, students, and rooming houses and is mostly francophone. Also it was quite close to a number of other downtown Anglican churches, including St. Alban’s, which is just a few blocks away. But the cost of maintaining the property is the real reason why it was sold.

  4. Who cares? As long as the building is used by community members (and not being boarded up OR pulled down), I am happy with this. Besides, what’s nicer than a building hosting Muslim, Jewish and Christian groups on successive days. Kudos to people who are in charge!

  5. I don’t think it is a good idea that Muslims, Jews, and Christians should share the same worship space. However, six different Christian denominations do take turns to worship at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. It is interesting to note that the key to this church is held by a Muslim family since 1517. Adeeb Joudeh opens the doors in the morning and closes them every night. There is no payment for this task.

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