St Peter’s Church Offers Students Wi-Fi

March 14, 2012

St Peter’s Church in St George’s is offering a modern technological twist on the concept of opening their doors to the needy, with the 400-year-old Church offering free wifi access to students off visiting sailboats this past Sunday.

Over the weekend, students from visiting sailing and training boats could be seen sitting on the Church’s steps, using their laptops, iPads and smartphones to surf the net, staying in contact with family and friends back home.

Rev. David Raths said, “It was wonderful to have them there, and they were obviously quite comfortable being on the church steps. I don’t know how long I could have sat there – I wouldn’t have thought those ancient bricks are that comfortable, but the young people didn’t seem to have a problem.”

“They were there throughout the Sunday morning service – the sidespeople and I were wondering if we could add them to our attendance statistics – and after the service several of them helped move into the church from the hall the extra chairs we have had to rent for our Intituling Service next Sunday afternoon.”

St. Peters Church is believed to be the oldest continuously used Anglican church in the Western hemisphere. The church is built on the same location as a 1612 structure made of wooden posts and palmetto leaves that was destroyed in a storm.

On August 1, 1620, the first Parliament in the New World was convened in St. Peter’s. The church was rebuilt in 1713-14, after a 1712 hurricane caused widespread devastation thoughout the island and additions were completed in 1814 and 1832.

The font of the church — approximately 500 years old — predates the 1609 wreck of the “Sea Venture” and the altar is the oldest piece of woodwork in Bermuda.

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Comments (7)

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  1. Triangle Drifter says:

    Good going there St Peters. As my screen name implies, I do a fair amount of traveling & I don’t stay in hotels nor do I have a smartphone so finding WIFI is always a challenge & much appreciated when found.

    I have never found it in a church before. The usual sources of free WIFI are places like librarys, schools, fast food restaurants, family restaurants & businesses like laundramats.

  2. Family Man says:

    Way to go St. Peters!

  3. Wouldn't That Be Nice says:

    Church offering free wifi access to students off visiting sailboats this past Sunday is a very good deed from St. Peters Church. Hopefully and God willing they will continue this Wi-Fi for LOCALS and i hope they don’t shot it back off when the sailors leave. I think that it would be just as lovely and beautiful to come across St. Peter’s Church and see LOCALS on those steps using their laptops, iPads and smartphones to surf the net.

    • True that says:

      I agree as local students need Wi-Fi for homework. Parents now have to choose between Wi-Fi and the rent. Homework and information that must be sent to or by their teachers does not often get sent because of this problem.

  4. Hans Haringa says:

    Thank You so much for offering this service. It allowed us to have a nice Skype conversation with our son (second from left of the four youngesters in the middle)!

  5. we too appeciate it verry mutch that the church ofers such service. actuaty i am at the church right now! otherwise we woud not be able to speak to our family in Holland.

  6. Student says:

    School at Sea for the win!