Revealed on 7 November 2022
4 minutes study
The Church of Scotland is heading in the right direction with streamlining its presbytery buildings by the use of 2024 as part of a a lot wider energy to fulfill the requires of twenty first century mission.
These radical reforms will see the selection of presbyteries in Scotland fall from better than 40 to beneath a dozen, making a more practical development to toughen the work of the Church as a result of it seems to be like for modern options to develop, reach out and serve communities across the nation.
The daring objective was agreed by the use of the Fundamental Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 2019. This yr’s Fundamental Assembly well-known that it have been encouraging to look how the administration of native presbyteries throughout the nation had replied to the issue and observed the options which the model new development would offer.
The most recent of the model new look presbyteries to be formed is the Presbytery of the South West, bringing together the earlier Ardrossan, Irvine and Kilmarnock, Ayr, Wigtown and Stranraer, Annandale and Eskdale, and Dumfries and Kirkcudbright presbyteries.
The model new presbytery held its first respected meeting on Saturday 1 October, the day after it formally bought right here into being, at St Marnoch’s Parish Church, Kilmarnock.
This included the arrange of the first Moderator for the model new presbytery, Rev Brian Hendrie, and the swearing in of its first presbytery clerk, Mrs Christine Murray, along with the appointment of various roles along with treasurer and safeguarding officer.
It moreover allowed representatives from the earlier presbyteries to get to grasp each completely different.
Mrs Murray talked about: “The first meeting was a very certain enjoy, starting with a transferring service involving all the Moderators from the ‘outdated’ presbyteries major us in prayer ahead of our new Moderator was put in.
“All our conveners have already proved to be arduous working and better than succesful, as they grapple with the complexity of unifying so many different approaches and traditions, and I’ve been crushed by the use of the selection of messages of toughen no longer best from ministers and people of presbytery nonetheless from congregational people from Arran to Lockerbie.
“I’m sure that, with such a stage of goodwill at the back of us, we can attain advancing the Phrase of God inside the Presbytery of the South West.”
A wonderful steadiness
The established order of the Presbytery of the South West follows the introduction of the Forth Valley and Clydesdale, and Edinburgh and West Lothian presbyteries initially of this yr.
The Presbytery of Edinburgh and West Lothian already had its committees and conveners in place ahead of its respected union on 1 January, and put in its first presbytery Moderator, Rev Julia Wylie, at its first meeting a month later.
Extra actions have included a casual in particular person “getting to grasp you amassing” held in Corstorphine Craigsbank Church Hall in April to allow different folks from across the presbytery to fulfill face to face, and a day conference relating to mission in recent Scotland, which occurred in Linlithgow St Michael’s Church Hall in September.
Performing presbytery clerk Dr Hazel Hastie talked about the first event significantly have been a highlight,
“That was an precise various to return again together and have a espresso and a croissant and sit down down and talk to different folks that you just didn’t know,” she talked about.
“I moreover suppose now we’ve a wonderful steadiness of different folks from the earlier presbyteries on our committees, providing a treasured combination of enjoy from every Edinburgh and West Lothian. We hope to find presbytery broad initiatives enabling nearer working together to assemble the Kingdom of God.”
Neighbouring presbytery Forth Valley and Clydesdale has moreover added to its combination of enjoy with the addition of Falkirk Presbytery in June.
Forging ahead
New presbyteries for Clyde, Fife and Aberdeen and Shetland had already been established ahead of the beginning of 2022.
Now Aberdeen and Shetland is preparing to enroll in Gordon, Buchan, Kincardine and Deeside, Orkney and most of Moray inside the new North East and Northern Isles Presbytery at first of 2023. Rev Elspeth McKay, currently the minister at Paisley Abbey, has currently been named as its first Presbytery Clerk and shall be transferring to Aberdeen to take in her new operate.
She commented: “I’m very quite a bit taking a look forward to returning to the North East and to getting to grasp the Northern Isles considerably greater.
“I’m moreover taking a look forward to meeting different folks as we forge the way in which during which ahead with the model new Presbytery of the North East and the Northern Isles.”
Early 2023 might also see the appearance of Lothian and Borders Presbytery, bringing together Lothian, Duns, Jedburgh, Melrose and Peebles presbyteries, and the model new Perth Presbytery, bringing together the Perth, Angus, Dundee, Dunkeld and Meigle and Stirling presbyteries.
The restructuring programme in Scotland is predicted to be completed in early 2024 when Highlands and Hebrides Presbytery is formed by the use of amalgamating Argyll, Caithness, Sutherland, Ross, Inverness, Abernethy, Lochaber, Lochcarron-Skye, Uist and Lewis presbyteries.
The Church of Scotland’s Presbytery of England and Presbytery of the World Charges are also discussing presbytery reform.
Study the timeline of reform inside the Church of Scotland since 2018.