St. John the Evangelist's Anglican Church, Izmir

St. John the Evangelist's Anglican Church, Izmir
Country  Turkey
Denomination Church of England
Churchmanship Anglo-Catholic
Website Official website
History
Consecrated 1899
Architecture
Functional status Active
Architectural type Church
Style Gothic Revival
Administration
Archdeaconry Eastern Archdeaconry
Diocese Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe
Clergy
Chaplain(s) Rev. Ron Evans

The Anglican Church of St. John the Evangelist, also known simply as St. John's, is located in Izmir, Turkey.[1]

Worship

St. John’s is liturgically Anglo-Catholic by tradition with the use of vestments, holy water and incense. Sunday services are held in English at 10 a.m. followed by tea and fellowship.[2]

History and description

There has been an unbroken line of Anglican chaplains resident in Izmir since 1630. The first Anglican church building was built by the Levant Company for the employees and families of the Smyrna factory in about 1625. A second church building, built for the use of British inhabitants and forming part of the premises of the British Consulate General was consecrated in 1843, and named in honour of St. John the Evangelist.

The present site was bought specifically for the purpose of building a church, after the British Consulate was rebuilt without provision for a place of worship. The building was built with money raised by local people. The foundation stone was laid in November 1898 and the church was completed in 1899. The church seats about 150 people.

Bishop Collins Memorial Hall was erected in 1913 and is used as a multi-purpose facility. The Sunday School meets in the hall and the hall and kitchen are used every Sunday for after-service fellowship and tea, as well as for various meetings and events. The church office is next to the fellowship hall. A vicarage was built next to the church in 1911 and is now leased to the British Government for use as the British Consulate.

Another Anglican/Episcopal church in Izmir is the Church of St. Mary Magdalene which was built around 1858 by British Levantines again, at Bournabat (today's Bornova). St. Mary Magdalene is located just east of the Ege University Rektörlüğü in Bornova. This church is closed except on special occasions or for scheduled services.[3]

The interior of the church

The baptismal font is traditionally placed near the main entrance to the church to symbolise the fact that it is by baptism Anglicans become members of the church. The font is in the shape of a shell, an ancient Christian symbol of pilgrimage.

In 1904 a new bishop, Bishop William Collins, was appointed to the diocese. On a visit for a confirmation in 1911, Bishop Collins died on board SS Saghelien in the bay of Izmir, and is buried in the crypt of St John’s. His gravestone is behind the font. On the wall above, there is a picture of Bishop Collins, of the chalice containing the episcopal ring, and a copy of the statement from him setting out the jurisdictions of the three Anglican chaplains here at the time.

Above the grave on the west wall are a number of memorials, the older ones were brought here from All Saints Buca when it was closed and handed to the council. The stained glass window was made by the Bavarian Art Company in Munich.

The east window can be seen on entering the church with a traditional depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus, with his mother Mary on his right and St. John on his left. At the base of the window, there is a scene depicting St. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, bound in chains on his way to execution in Rome, being greeted by St Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, who was himself martyred here in the stadium at the foot of Mount Pagus. The window was designed and produced by Charles Eamer Kempe, a well-known stained glass designer of the time.

The sanctuary lamp, originally in a Greek church was given in memory of a parishioner, Patricia Ringenbach, and was dedicated on September 1994. The sanctuary lamp burns to tell people that bread from the Eucharist is reserved in the tabernacle, the cupboard itself was given in memory of a former chaplain, Rev. Mr. Tupholme (1959–73). Amongst the other items within the church inventory are a pair of crosses laid on the altar table whose style suggests origins of Russia and Ethiopia respectively.[4]

Notable burials

Gallery

References

  1. ↑ http://www.achurchnearyou.com/izmir-smyrna--st-john-the-evangelist-church/
  2. ↑ http://stjohnsizmir.tripod.com/
  3. ↑ http://anglicanizmir.tripod.com/
  4. ↑ Father Ron Rogers, former Anglican chaplain to St John the Evangelist's church, Alsancak, Izmir

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