On 10th September, 2007 a Thanksgiving Meeting was held in the Gospel Hall, Father Mathew Street, Cork to give thanks to God for His faithfulness in the 116 years of testimony in that building which was opened in 1891. This present building is to be demolished and a new Gospel Hall will be built as part of a redevelopment of the area, and will be the ground floor of a new office block. In the meantime, until the new Hall is completed, the Assembly is meeting on Lord's Days in a nearby hotel for the Breaking of Bread. The Bible study on Thursday nights is held in the homes of the believers. At the meeting a brief history of the Assembly was given, as much as is known, tracing the goodness and faithfulness of God over many years.
The early days
The earliest mention of an Assembly in Cork dates back to 1818, when there were two companies who sought to meet in a simple, Scriptural fashion. What became of these two companies or what developed during the next few decades is not recorded, but a testimony in Cork city was maintained, and 30 years later there was a vibrant Assembly bearing witness to Christ.
Mr R C Chapman of Barnstaple made a preaching tour of Ireland in 1848 covering over 600 miles, mostly on foot. In February of that year he visited Cork and was welcomed by the Assembly where he found happy fellowship and was refreshed as he broke bread with them on the Lord's Day. Mr Chapman's comment at that time was: "The Assembly in Cork is like an island of light in a sea of darkness".
The account of work in 1891
In the inaugural issue of Believer's Magazine (January, 1891) there was an article entitled, "The Tract Distributing Band". Young believers in Assembly fellowship were encouraged to share in this work of systematically giving out gospel leaflets in their areas. A number of places were mentioned where this work was being carried out, and one of these places was Cork city where 18 young men had formed themselves into a "Band". They had divided the city into eight districts, two workers for each, and two for the factories and warehouses which they covered with gospel literature and spoke to the workers. What a blessing to have 18 young men in Assembly fellowship and to see them all active in personal witness for the Lord helping forward the work of the gospel in their own district.
The Assembly met in a number of places prior to 1891 when the present Hall was built. A note in the October, 1891 Believer's Magazine reads; "CORK: A new Hall has been opened in Queen Street here, in which from this time believers will gather for worship, and preaching of the gospel. Mr H A Mandeville conducted a week's special meetings in above Hall, with noon Bible readings which were richly blessed. Prayer is requested that this newly opened door may become a centre of blessing in this needy town".
Many brethren have been associated with the Gospel Hall over the past 116 years, and each has done his share to help further the work of the Lord in the city as they sought to build up the Assembly and to maintain the testimony according to the New Testament pattern.
Mr James Buchanan, one of the six original trustees of the Gospel Hall, was a brother of exceptional devotion to Christ and an earnest worker in the gospel. Mr Buchanan was saved as a lad of 22 after coming to Cork to pursue his business career. No sooner had he got salvation than he started to win souls for Christ, for he had a burning desire to gather in the lost and guilty. Through his diligent study of the Scriptures he saw that it was his blessed privilege and duty to obey the Lord in baptism, and furthermore to meet for worship with those who owned no human name and recognised no ground of gathering except that revealed in the Divine Word. After being baptized he was received into the gathering of believers who then met in the Assembly Rooms in the South Mall, Cork. It was his ambition in life to obey his Lord in all things no matter what opposition or persecution a faithful course involved.
Open air preaching
The first attempt to preach in the open air was in 1893. Many were the stirring incidents resulting from those early days in open air work in Cork as the simple preaching of the gospel stirred up riots in the streets and every possible form of opposition was employed against Mr Buchanan and his fellow workers. Because of his indomitable courage and perseverance in his open air witness, he became known as "Salvation" or "Whosoever" Buchanan. Quite often he suffered severely for the gospel's sake as on occasions he had to change his clothes, or even destroy them because of the filth that would be thrown at him. On one occasion the crowd tried to throw him into the River Lee, but he was rescued by the police. When things became calm in Cork Mr Buchanan went up to Galway and Athlone and other towns in the South and West of Ireland for pioneer work and in every place witnessed a bold confession amid scenes of violence and disorder. In Galway the preachers were badly injured by stones and they had to come home for a complete rest until they recovered from the effects of the ill-treatment received. Mr Buchanan was called home on Whit Monday, 1912, and at his funeral was carried to the place of burial by members of the police at their own request. Those who had guarded him in his service for God during his life counted it an honour at his death to bear his remains to their last resting place.
More recent events
Some who served the Lord for a time since then in fellowship with the Assembly in Cork were: Mr and Mrs John Scott, Mr and Mrs F L Pontin, Mr and Mrs A J Gray, Mr and Mrs Gilbert Stewart and Mr and Mrs John Elwood. St. Patrick's Day, 1945 saw the beginning of the Annual Conference in Cork. Brethren from the four Assemblies in the province of Munster - Cork, Bandon, Skibbereen, and Limerick - all came together for the ministry of the Word. Speakers from all parts of the British Isles, America, and Canada have come during the passing years to minister God's Word to His people. The conference gatherings have been a real source of help and fellowship to not only the Christians in Co. Cork, but also those from almost every county in Ireland. For the first number of years the conference was held in the Gospel Hall in Cork, but with increasing numbers coming the conference grew to more than could be comfortably accommodated in the Gospel Hall, so for a year or two the meetings were held in Ashton School in Cork. This was not an ideal situation, so the venue was changed to the Bandon Grammar School some 20 miles away, and this has been found to be a most suitable centre for the meetings.
A special meeting was held on 4th May, 1991 in the Gospel Hall to commemorate one hundred years of testimony in the present building in Father Mathew Street. The Centenary Conference was a time for thanksgiving to God for His faithfulness during the century that had passed and also a time for the ministry of the Word by Mr J G Hutchinson and Mr C Hocking as Christians gathered from many parts of Ireland to praise God for His faithfulness over so many years.
A new chapter will open with the completion of the new Gospel Hall in Father Mathew Street, but the Lord has not changed, His Word has not changed, and His Gospel remains the same, so with confidence we look to Him for future blessing, and can say with the hymnwriter, "We'll praise Him far all that is past, and trust Him for all that's to come".
What was written in the Believer's Magazine back in 1891 at the opening of the present Hall can be repeated in 2008 for the new Hall: "Prayer is requested that this newly opened door may become a centre of blessing in this needy city".
