Hot off the presses—in 1909: stories from early Canadian church newspapers

By John Hamer, Community of Christ in Canada Historian

Did you know that the Canadian church had its own newspapers over a century ago? The Canadian Messenger was published monthly in Stratford, Ontario, from January 1903 until December 1908. The Canadian Messenger was then replaced with The Canadian Mirror, which was published monthly in London, Ontario, from January 1909 until August 1911, when it was discontinued.

The masthead of The Canadian Mirror includes an image of the Holy Bible (subtitled “The Great Mirror”) and is bedecked with ribbons and maple leaf wreaths proclaiming Canada (four times!). Sadly, of both newspapers, only a single issue is preserved in the Library/Archives at international church headquarters in Independence, Missouri. The May 1909 issue of The Canadian Mirror (Vol. 1, No. 5) has been preserved (and a scanned PDF is available).

View issue

​All by itself, this issue is a treasure trove of information about the history of Community of Christ in Canada. For example, in a letter to the editor, Samuel Brown of Greenwood, West Virginia, gives his recollection of the organization of the London District. (“Districts” had been one of the main organizing structures of the church prior to their consolidation into “Mission Centres.”)

Brown had just been baptized by Elder Joseph Luff (then pastor of the Toronto Congregation and future member of the Twelve), and this was the first church conference he ever attended. The conference was held in January of 1878 in the kitchen of Christopher Pearson in Bayham, near Corinth, Ontario. Elder Luff was elected to serve as the new district’s president, but the big excitement came from the guest minister, as Brown writes:

        Preaching services were held in Brother Pearson’s orchard,
        where seats and a platform were arranged. A large crowd
        gathered; I should judge there was over a thousand people
        assembled, for they came for miles to see “the Mormon
        prophet.” It had been previously announced that Joseph
        Smith [III], son of the martyred prophet, was to be there.
        Before Brother Joseph made his appearance on the stand
        as the speaker at 2:30, we heard numbers of them remark,
        “Which is him?” and “What does he look like?” while others
        remarked, “Why, he just looks like other men,” etc. Brother
        Joseph was in the prime of life at that time and rather
        pleasant both in looks and manner.

According to Brown, the new London District was at that time very small, comprised of five branches in Corinth, London, Osborne, St. Thomas, and Toronto. He was pleased to have read that the district had since grown substantially and that a new Toronto District had recently been formed out of the London District. He concludes:

        Many, many changes have taken place since [the
        organizing 1878 district conference], too numerous to
        mention at this writing. Who can foresee what shall be
        thirty-one years from now? The experiences of the past
        have taught me that the best course to pursue is to be true
        to God, to keep his commands, and be faithful to the charge
        entrusted, and we shall conquer by and by. I hope success
        may attend the new districts [London and Toronto], and
        that their officers may be faithful of their trust.

As we have just shared the organizing meeting for the new Canadian Mission Centre, it’s interesting to look back on that first organizational meeting of the London District held 148 years ago, back in 1878. We might muse as Brown did, “Who can foresee what shall be 148 years from now?”

The single known copy of The Canadian Mirror is a wealth of information for the history of our church in Canada. Other articles include reports from the Manitoba Reunion, two-day meetings at Garafraxa and Clavering branches in Ontario, the work of the Toronto District Library, a Children’s Day in London, public preaching on Manitoulin Island, new church books by Canadian authors, and more. What a wonderful glimpse into our past!

If anyone has any copies of The Canadian Messenger or The Canadian Mirror in their personal or congregational libraries, please contact the Church Historian Team for Community of Christ in Canada, John Hamer ([email protected]) and Stephen Thompson ([email protected]).