Friday, February 2, 2007

Saints Peter and Paul Church in Flintoft

Our ruling bishop is:

His Beatitude, Metropolitan Herman
of the Orthodox Church in America (O.C.A.)



Our diocesan bishop is:

His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel
of the Romanian Episcopate (O.C.A.)

and his assistant:

His Grace, Bishop Irineu
of the Romanian Episcopate (O.C.A.)


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a general view of our church



icon of the holy patrons of our church (Sts Peter and Paul)
located in the Ikonostas, on the right side



the Ikonostas of our church



the Royal Doors of our church



one of the icons



remains of the stone house, buit by the first priest, priest-monk Dionisie (Nichofor)



first (sod) house of the first cantor of the Flintoft church

Second (log) house of the first cantor of the Flintoft church


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a short history of this church by Ms. Betty Lascu
from "Prairie Trails and Pioneer Tales" p. 48


The Saints Peter and Paul [Romanina Orthodox] Church was built in 1911 in the northwest corner of NW 34-6-3-3.

The lumber was donated by [Mr.] Nicholai Zora, a pioneer of the Zehner District who had relatives in this area. The lumber was hauled with team of hourses and oxen. [Mr.] Garvel Bancescu, a local corpenter who homesteaded NW 6-7-2-3 supervised, and local farmers provided volunteer labour.

It is believed the Iconostasis was brought from Jerusalem or Greece. Many of the monks did the Icon paintings using natural herbs and natural products.

A priest, Dionisie Nichifor, a sixty-year-old monk was persuaded to come to Canada. He filed on the SW 34-6-3-3 and conducted services in the new church. He lived in his homestead in a stone house. His land was farmed for him by the church members.

The priest Cantors were: [Mr.] Peter Tatousi, [Mr.] Chris Adamache, and [Mr.] John Oncescu.

After eighteen years of service, [the Very Reverend] Priest-monk Dionisie, due to illness, returned to Romania to live with his sister, where he later passed away.

The next priest was Teofil Maxim, who lived in Flintoft, and walked or was taken by team buggy to church every Sunday.

The church was used regularly until 1957, when a new church was built in Assiniboia. It was used occasionally after that.

The first funeral held in church was that of [Ms.] Cristache Oancia, in 1912, and the first wedding was that of Mr. and Mrs. Tudor Radu, in 1913.

A memorable event of the church took place on June 29, 1936. His Grace Bishop Policarp, with the asssitance of other priests. consecrated the church.

As the years passed, older pioneers moved away, while others passed away. The church too, showed many signs of deterioration. On different occasions, [His Grace] Bishop Valerian (D. Trifa) visited the parish. Seeing the church's condition, he encouraged the parishioners to do something to presenrve its natural beauty, along with its valuable Iconostasis.

In the fall of 1977, six members of the parish volunteered to collect pledges for restoration of the church. They organized a bbuilding commitee consisted of: [Mr.] John Jonescu, [Mr.] Trian Lascu, [Mr.] Dan Stoian, [Mr.] Nick Stoian, [Mr.] Nick Topola, and [Mr.] Steve Kosti, and with the help of other church members, renovations began.

On August 9, 1979 the stone altar was demolished, as it could not be lifted or moved. The church was then moved and a cement slab foundation was built. The church was then moved back to its original site. The bell tower, approximately fifty feet from the church, was also lifted and placed on a new foundation.

The exterior and interior have been restored as close to the original as possible. New sidewalks and an outdoor washroom were built.

On June 29, 1981 the restored church was consecrated by His Grace Bishop Nathaniel (Popp) of Jackson, MI, U.S.A. The Very Reverend Archimandrite Martinian (Ivanovici) with the assistance of other priests officiated at the service.

The Saints Peter and Paul Church celebrated its 70th Anniversasry (also known as "Hram") with a festive banquet held in the limerick Community Center.

Today, the church stands restored, a well known landmark and a tribute to the many pioneers who worshipped and prayed inside. A tribute must also be paid to the members who resotred this church in our pioneers' memory.