No. 611 - Burnie - Montello Apostolic Church

Montello is an inner southern suburb of Burnie situated on the Montello Hills between the city centre and Upper Burnie.

The Apostolic Church is a pentecostal movement that arose in the early 20th century. The movement sought to revive first-century Christianity in its faith, practices, and government.

The Apostolic church was established at Burnie in the early 1940’s and for a decade worship was held in various halls including Burnie’s public library. In the early 1950’s the suburb of Montello was selected as the location for a new church and a site was acquired on Tattersall Street (between Mace and Bird Streets). Three other churches were built in Montello at this time including a Baptist church, a Gospel Hall and a Salvation Army hall.

Building of a weatherboard church began in mid 1952 using voluntary labour. The church was dedicated on Saturday 21 March 1953 with a ceremony led by Pastor W.A.C. Rowe, the President of the Commonwealth Council of the Apostolic Church of Australia.

According to a report in the Advocate, the weatherboard church was intended as a temporary building until a “permanent brick structure was erected”. At this stage I have found out little about the church’s progress or if the brick church was built. There is no trace of the original church on Tattersall Street. The successor to the Apostolic Church in Australia is the Acts Global Churches, “a second generation name for the Apostolic Church Australia”. The Act Global church is represented by the “LifeHouse” church at Wivenhoe, Burnie.

The only photograph I have found of the church is a poor quality image taken from The Advocate taken at the time of the church's opening. (26 March 1953)

An early public notice of Apostolic Church services. The Advocate July 1953

Sources:

Advocate, Saturday 3 January 1942, page 9
Advocate, Saturday 19 November 1949, page 24
Advocate Saturday 22 November 1952, page 12
Advocate, Wednesday 18 March 1953, page 9
Advocate, Saturday 21 March 1954, page 13
Advocate, Thursday 26 March 1953, page 3
Advocate, Saturday 4 July 1953, page 20


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