You know that you’re a true “nerd of all things Anglican” if you, like me, eagerly look forward to seeing the stoles and chasubles of visiting Priests and Bishops. What does the vestment’s design say about the wearer? Does it match the liturgical season? Does it have symbols that represent aspects of the wearer’s faith experience? “Oh, that’s an interesting stole,” one might hear from the pews as guest clergy process down the aisle.

What’s that you say? Stole? The truth is, we see church vestments every week, but we may not know their true names or origin. During our 150th year, let’s take a closer look at my favourite vestment–the stole.

The stole is the decorative scarf that an officiant wears during a church service. Here at All Saints’, clergy typically wear stoles with colours representing the liturgical seasons. The lower portion contains a symbol of faith. Common history suggests that ancient government officials wore stoles as a badge of office. Slaves and servants also wore cloths around their necks for cleaning and polishing. In the church, therefore, that the stole takes on these two roles. In the Anglican Church, you can identify a Deacon as they wear their stole diagonally from shoulder to waist. Ordained clergy always wear their stoles around the shoulder more like a scarf. At one time, the stole may have been used by celebrant to clean the chalice during the service. Too expensive for this purpose today, the stole is a symbol of that cleaning cloth and reminds us that the celebrant (whether Deacon, Priest or Bishop) remains a servant of Christ.

The next time you are in church, take a closer look at the vestments you see. You’ll be the envy of your pew when you are able to quickly identify a visiting Deacon from a Priest or gently correct someone who may confuse a stole for a common tippet.

~Bertie Weatherbottom, Notes & Queries Reporter for the 150th.

In October 1937, the Rev. E. Ralph Adye, Incumbent of All Saints and Legion Chaplain, presided at a Legion Drumhead Service. The parade and outdoor service was attended by 2,000 Legion members from across Ontario. All Saints also hosted a Choral Eucharist.

See more Drumhead Service images in the Whitby Public Archives online image collection.

Over 25 years passed between the time the  memorial balcony window was reserved (1939) and the date it was installed and dedicated (1964).

In January of 1939, Vestry was asked “to approve of, and order the reservation of the space at the South end of the church above the Front doors, for the erection, at some time in the future, of a memorial window.”

The generous donor desired “The Ascension of our Blessed Lord in Heaven to be the subject depicted in stained glass. This work, when executed, was to be under the direction of the Bishop of Toronto, and the Rector of All Saints’.

The window was dedicated at the 11:00 AM service on March 8th, 1964.

The circular window above depicts an Angel holding a Golden Crown of Life. The left-hand panel, headed “ALPHA”, has an angel with a banner reading “Praise the Lord” while the right-hand panel is headed “OMEGA” and has an angel with a banner reading “For the Lord is Good”. The centre panel shows the Ascending Lord, eleven disciples, and two women.

“Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. ”