The diocese has been busy selling churches in order to replenish its dwindling coffers.
St. John the Divine is now a Taoist temple and in place of the altar is a painted dome representing general Guan-Gong who was deified and is worshipped by those who attend the temple.
So nothing much has changed.
From here:
What was once the St. John the Divine Anglican Church at 3426 Smith Ave. in west Burnaby was a tired-looking, A-framed structure with glass blocks next to the main entrance.
After renovations by the Chinese Taoism Kuan-Kung Association in Canada, which purchased the property in the fall of 2010, the building has been transformed. It retains the original structure but the front wall has been replaced with large panes of glass, with a natural-coloured wooden archway flanking the new entrance.
The property had sat vacant for over a year and the ultra-modern design was chosen after the association spoke with neighbours about what they wanted to see, said project manager Kevin Chen. The association wanted to put its own stamp on the building while recognizing its past as a Christian church by not completely changing the look of the structure.
Inside, where the altar once stood, a full-height elliptical dome has been added and a mural painted on it.
Now known as the Tian-Jin Temple, it is the first Taoist temple in Canada to worship Guan-Gong, an ancient general.
Correction: as a commenter pointed out, the church was in the Diocese of New Westminster, not the Diocese of B.C.
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Just a small correction… I think the heading should probably read “Diocese of New Westminster.”
Thanks, so it should – Burnaby is in the Diocese of New Westminster.