St Dunstan's Centenary Celebration Videos

St Dunstan's Centenary Celebration Photos

Symbols of Our 100-Year Journey ⛪️✨

As we celebrate this wonderful Centenary milestone, several historical symbols representing different decades were brought forward during our Centenary Thanksgiving Service. Each symbol tells a unique part of our story, beautifully reminding us of God's sustaining grace across the many seasons of our parish life. 

🍷 The 1985 Cruet

This cruet was used in 1985, on the occasion of a visit by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop Robert Runcie, to Melbourne. He was the Celebrant and Preacher at a service in Festival Hall, attended by thousands. Consecrating the bread and wine for thousands of attendees was a challenge, and more of these cruets of wine were consecrated than were needed. Since all consecrated bread and wine needed to be consumed at the end of the service, people were "volunteered" to assist by consuming the leftover wine, in return, they were offered a cruet to take home.

At the time, Festival Hall was used for rock concerts, music events, professional boxing and wrestling. The altar stage was set up over the boxing ring.

Regional churches across Victoria organized synchronised transport, such as chartered buses, to drop thousands of churchgoers directly outside the West Melbourne venue.

This pulpit Bible was printed in 1929 by the Cambridge University Press and was used until late 90's in the parish.
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It is a King James version, was kept on the then lectern in the original church. Evensong was a weekly service, 7pm, with a full choir. Two lay readers, Mr. Nigel Jackson and Mr Willison, were rostered to read the lessons for the day.. Mr Jackson was the CEO of one of the big banks and was chauffeured to work, occasionally offering a ride to parishioner Gail Cavanagh to her workplace. He had a very commanding presence and a dramatic way of reading scripture.

In a later, more enlightened era, women also became readers. At one evensong, Joan Dennis, reading the Old Testament lesson, read from the book of Daniel, Chapter 3, the story of  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in which those names appear in several verses. After reading "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego" two or three times she changed the words to "the three of them." Ever practical was Joan!

The nine lesson carol service made famous by Kings College Cambridge was introduced to St Dunstan's in the 1960's. It was a privilege for a choir boy to be selected as a reader for one of the lessons, to step up to the lectern and read from the big bible

📖 The 1929 Pulpit Bible

✍️ The 1930 Bible

Steeped in our foundational history, this precious Bible dates back to 1930. It inscription from our very first Vicar,  Fr Oliver Brady, acknowledges Harold Cavanagh, with First Prize for Boys Bible Study, 1930.

Harold Cavavagh, father of current parishioner, Jenni McKenzie and her older sister, former parishioner, Gail Chugg, was born in 1914, in  Preston. In 1926 the family moved to Camberwell. He was the oldest of three  brothers, the other two being Jack and Norman. Both Harold and Jack played in the St Dunstan’s cricket team and were premiers in 1932. 

He first met his wife Joyce Lenegan, when her family lived in Kalang Ave, when the parish met in a house nearby, before the temporary church arrived. They married around 1940. 

Harold joined the army in 1942, spurred on by the bombing of Darwin, land served in northern QLD  and New Guinea, in the 2nd division, Signals Corp. He died in 1957, aged 42, when Jenni was 11. 

This lamp was introduced in 2024 signifying the multicultural ministry began at St.Dunstans'.This was made in Kerala, Inida.

✍️ The 1930 Bible