When the Murray Church burned down earlier this year, the Nicola Valley lost more than just its oldest building.
Guest books from years past, records of who is buried in the cemetery outside the chapel’s doors, stained glass work crafted by local artisans — all of these things were reduced to smouldering ashes after an alleged arsonist targeted the heritage building.
It was a hefty price to pay for a senseless act of destruction, which continues to lack a definitive motive.
Rebuilding the Murray Church will not bring these things back. Even the old church bell is cracked beyond repair, and will likely need to be replaced.
While the physical aspects of the church were lost in an instant, the memory and the history of the building will take longer to fade away. But like all things, there will come a day when the last vestiges of the Murray Church vanish.
Unless, of course, the church is rebuilt.
The board of the Trinity United Church decided this past weekend that memory was worth preserving — even if that means restarting the clock on the Nicola Valley’s oldest building.
Kudos to them on the decision to undertake a significant project on behalf of the greater community. While Trinity United maintained control of the Murray Church, the building housed people from across the community during special services over the past few years.
Maybe in the year 2169, the now-booming metropolis of Merritt (far enough inland to be protected from rising seas) will set aside a new honour for the rebuilt church: “Oldest building in the Nicola Valley (x2).”
