The World Wars Communion Table was dedicated on November 11, 1934, by the minister of St. Andrew's and chaplain of the 48th Highlanders of Canada, the Reverend Stuart C. Parker, D.D. The table was gifted by the sergeants to the church in memory of their comrades who fell in the First World War and now stands as a memorial to those who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars.
The oak table was created by Dr. John A. Pearson, a member of St. Andrew's Church. The symbols of Bread and Wine are carved below the top to the table above the panels. The Gothic tracery of the panels are intertwined with maple leaves, roses, thistles, shamrocks, acorns and fleur-de-lis. A carving of the heraldic figure of St. Andrew is on the front panel and the Burning Bush with the legend "Nec Tamen Consumebatur" is on the back panel. The interior of the table is ventilated through small decorative openings in the tracery.
The abutments at each end are narrower than the table and about six inches lower; each has a removable oak top. Below the tops are plates of glass set in a hinged frame which can be opened and closed, and also locked to safeguard the records within. Hidden in each is an electric light which can be turned on or off by a switch on the Chancel wall.
The 48th Highlanders of Canada Book of Remembrance is located in the abutment on the right and its title page and dedication is in the abutment on the left. The symbols of the Armour of God are carved on the sides of both abutments - The Girdle of Truth The Breastplate' of Righteousness, The Sandals of Peace, The Shield of Faith, The Helmet of Salvation and The Sword of The Spirit. Thus there is in this shrine of Christian Faith a beautiful and useful memorial in the place of sacrifice and communion with God.
St. Andrew’s Church has been the Regimental Church of the 48th Highlanders of Canada since their founding in 1891 when the church, as one of the several Scottish societies in Toronto, petitioned the government to be allowed to have a regiment that reflected their Scottish Heritage. Their first Commanding Officer, John Davidson was Chair of the St. Andrew’s church board of management. From their founding up until the 1970s, the minister of the church was the padre of the regiment.
