George C. Pidgeon

Who was George C. Pidgeon?

George Campbell Pidgeon was a Christian minister, first in the Presbyterian Church in Canada and then in the United Church of Canada, as well as the last Moderator of the Presbyterian Church before amalgamation and the first Moderator of the newly formed United Church of Canada. He was a strong proponent of the proposed union of churches and later in life championed ecumenism.

Pidgeon was ordained by the Presbyterian Church in 1894 and earned his Doctor of Divinity degree from Montreal's Presbyterian College. His first posting was at Montreal West Presbyterian Church. He then moved to the Toronto area, serving first in the Streetsville area, before moving to the West Toronto Junction area.

From 1909 to 1915, he left pastoral ministry to teach theology at Westminster Hall in Vancouver. He then returned to Toronto in 1916, where he served as minister of Bloor Street Presbyterian.

He became Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in 1925, and was a strong proponent of the proposed church union between the Presbyterian, Methodist and Congregationalist Churches in Canada. However, a substantial minority of Presbyterians remained opposed to church union.