The Lismore Uniting Church will officially reopen the main church complex tomorrow (Sunday) at 10am with about 200 people in attendance.

The February 2022 big flood caused severe damage to the 116-year-old building, which was hit hard by the force of the water flowing through the streets of the CBD.

The flood destroyed the interior of the church and its surrounding fences, the adjacent Red Dove Café, Op Shop, and Hall, from under the floorboards to the ceilings, the altar, the church pews—everything. 

The historic church's first stone was laid on July 1, 1908, so the rebuild was always going to take time. After two years of an immense and complex reconstruction, it is finally going to welcome worshippers back into the Lismore Uniting Church proper. Since July 24 last year, the Uniting Church has been operating from a temporary space at the back of the building.

(The temporary Uniting Church in August 2023)

At the time, Lismore Regional Uniting Church Treasurer Alan Hoskins told the Lismore App that the church was heritage-listed, so had to be built back according to those regulations and requirements.

"Even the front brick fence surround is heritage-listed and has to be replaced exactly the way it was, and those bricks are a bit hard to get. They are coming from Victoria. The floor had to come out, so it is down to bare earth."

Local VIPs, including the Mayor of Lismore, Steve Krieg, will attend, as will Federal, State, and Local Government members, with some speaking at a function in the hall for 180 invited guests. 

The builders who reconstructed the church and premises will deliver a presentation on the project. Uniting Church Ministers and office bearers from Lismore, Sydney, Canberra and other Uniting churches – Coraki, Kyogle, Ballina, Jiggi will be present, as will representatives from churches of other denominations in the region. 

There will be a procession and service titled "Reconsecration and Renewal: A Reopening Service." It is as much about the building or the people gathered as it is a time for renewal of the work of the Uniting Church in the region. 

During the processional hymn, 10 members of the Lismore Uniting Church Council will carry important items such as the Bible, water for the baptismal font, and the plate for the communion bread and cup to the front of the church. All of these items in a church where many have married, farewelled loved ones and attended Sunday services for over 117 years will be reconsecrated to start again in a new era. Afterwards, all church councillors will remain in place to participate in the reconsecration of the entire building.

Lismore Uniting Church 

WHAT: Reconsecration and Renewal: A Reopening Service – Lismore Uniting Church

WHERE: Lismore Regional Uniting Church

WHEN: Sunday, 22 September 2024 10:00am