St Andrews Isle

St Andrews Isle

The St Andrews Isle.

In 1978, St Andrews Church combined with First Church and several of the furnishings in the north -eastern corner of the sanctuary come from there. In recognition of this move, the Isle on the northern side of the church was renamed the St Andrews Isle.

First Church is then the keeper of the St Andrews story, and what a story it is. The Reverend Rutherford Waddell came to Dunedin in 1879 from Ireland, following a brief ministry up the road in Lincoln, Canterbury.

Waddell had a strong and unflinching focus on social justice. He was not interested in an expression of faith that addressed the inner life but left the outer one untouched. As a young man, he had apprenticed to a draper and had worked long hours for a pittance.

This may have given him particular empathy for the women of his parish who were caught up in the practice of sweating, sowing clothing for pay that was well below the rate of subsistence. This had thought to be an issue only elsewhere, but Waddell exposed the practice here in Dunedin in a sermon called, The Sin of Cheapness.

The sermon caused an uproar which led to the formation of the Taylor S’s Union, which he served as the inaugural president and brought eventual reform of working conditions. He played no favourites, for when two elders from Knox Church down the road were found to own factories which practiced sweating, Mr. Glendining and Mr. Ross were named and shamed by Waddell. He helped initiate prison reform, and with the enthusiastic support of his congregation at St Andrews established a free public library, a free kindergarten and a savings bank all from the parish hall.

Beloved by his congregation, Waddell was a less adored figure in the wider church where some saw him as troublesome and even held his being Irish against him. Yet Waddell, though contentious in his day, is celebrated widely, perhaps as much outside the church as in it.

He reminds us that the Christian faith, properly expressed, is good news for everyone, not just those who adhere to it. As the Magnificat, Mary’s song of praise puts it, God has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.