The fire that destroyed Knox Presbyterian Church in Cannington last Thanksgiving may have tested the faith of parishioners, but it didn't break it. And it's that perseverance of faith that has kept the church going in the months that have passed.

Parishioners gathered at the Cannington Lions hall Sunday afternoon to mark the 144th anniversary of Presbyterian worship in the village. Rev. Paul Johnston, moderator of the Presbytery of Lindsay-Peterborough, delivered a message of hope.

The past seven months have undoubtedly been tough for the congregation, after a teenaged arsonist set the church ablaze in the early morning hours of Oct. 7. The ruins were eventually bulldozed and a vacant lot now stands as a grim reminder of the crime. Rev. Johnston said that he visited the vacant lot before Sunday's service.

"I thought about the building that was there and what was lost. And it was a loss. But a fire can't destroy a church," he said.

"You can burn down the building, but the church goes on...A church cannot be destroyed as long as there's faith."

That faith was on display during the singing of a very appropriate hymn, entitled 'I am the Church! You are the Church!', part of which reads: "The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple; The church is not a resting place, the church is a people."

The 17-year-old responsible for the fire, will be sentenced next Monday, May 12.

The Crown is requesting a three-year blended sentence -- with two years in custody and a year of supervision -- but defense counsel Lloyd Greenspoon has argued that the teen should be sentenced only to psychological counseling and probation.

The teen, who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, has been in custody at the Brookside Youth Centre in Cobourg since the string of arsons.