History

The History of Our Church

Our parish’s history is unique. The parish of St. Jeanne la Pucelle, or St. Joan of Arc, was founded in 1919 to serve French-speaking Catholics who had been drawn to the West Toronto Junction area by the wartime manufacturing located here. Archbishop McNeil approved the plan to purchase a  property measuring 100 feet by 100 feet, located at 2363-69 Dundas Street West, one block north of Bloor Street. Our founding priest, Fr. Rodrique Lussier, hired an architect to design and build a simple church and rectory for a small congregation. The church opened in December 1920, just as a post-war economic depression settled over West Toronto. The French Canadian population began to decline, and the Irish began to arrive.

Fr. Lussier was succeeded by Fr. Thomas Manley in 1928, and an English-speaking territorial parish emerged during the dark days of the Great Depression. In 1936, Fr. Edmond Ryan replaced Fr. Manley, dominating the church with his personality for 27 years, paying off the church’s debt in full, and establishing the St. Joan of Arc parish as we know it today.

In 1963, the Toronto Transit Commission expropriated the church’s land in order to build the Bloor Street subway line. At this point, Fr. Ryan was ill, and returned to Ireland; the Priests of the Sacred Heart were invited to take over the parish. Fr. Peter Renders shepherded the parish through an unsettling period, involving temporary quarters until a new church could be built. For two years, the second floor of Fran’s Restaurant, on the southeast corner of Bloor and Dundas Streets, served as the St. Joan of Arc church. In December 1964, land at our current location at 1701 Bloor Street West was purchased, and our iconic hexagonal church with parish hall and rectory attached was designed and built. 

After a brief period of exile when the Toronto Board of Education expropriated Fran’s Restaurant,  the congregation gathered in our new church, which was blessed by Archbishop Pocock on April 16, 1966. At that time, an estimated 1,200 families from 20 different cultural and linguistic groups made up the parish – times had changed since 1919.

For over 30 years, the Priests of the Sacred Heart—Fr. Renders, Fr. Coppens, Fr. Van Damme, Fr. Botman, and Fr. Casper—transformed our parish, introducing “lay involvement” and “lay leadership”, laying the groundwork for the philosophy of shared stewardship that the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement have honed over the past 22 years. The Friars embody the Franciscan spirit of At-one-ment, including the values of unity for all, healing the broken and those who have lost their way, and welcoming all people. They have invigorated our parish with their commitment to reconciliation.

From 2007 until 2019, Fr. Dan Callahan, SA, served as our pastor, involving parishioners in the life and worship of our parish before returning to Graymoor in New York. Initially, Fr. Bob Langone, SA, joined us in 2018 as associate pastor, becoming pastor in 2020. Our parish looks with great hope toward a positive future where we continue to realize the invitation of our mission statement: Living and Proclaiming the Gospel through Stewardship. All are welcome.

Adapted from A Tale of Two Churches: a brief history of St. Joan of Arc Parish, 1919-1994 by Michael Power, published by the St. Joan of Arc Parish, 1995.