Tag: church

The vicar of Drylaw!

Drylaw’s White Church welcomes new Minister

miniDrylaw Parish Church has been without their own for over a year so they were delighted to welcome new Minster Jayne Scott last month. Jane brings considerable community experience to Drylaw and she’s quickly settling in to her new surroundings.

Jayne, who was born in Stockport and brought up in Port Seton, has been an ordained Minister for 26 years but she has worked in a number of roles – she’s been Principal of a theological college, chief executive of Safe Space, a Fife charity that supports victims of sexual abuse and the Director of Community Development Network. She was also parish minister at Culross and Torryburn in Fife. That wide experience will be valuable as Drylaw church faces an uncertain future.

“I have a great interest in community learning and exploring possibilities for communities to get better and stronger. The threshold between church and community should be an easy one to cross – church shouldn’t feel like an alien environment”, she said. “I have been appointed as transitional Minister for five years. It’s fair to say the future of this church is very uncertain – clearly, it’s an open-ended future and my role is to uncover the potential we have here. Our church is right at the heart of the community and communities need facilities that can bring people together. Church, when it is done well, is where you have that intergenerational intersection.”

“Drylaw only has three public buildings – the church, the school and the neighbourhood centre – and what happens in those three buildings is key to helping Drylaw thrive. I have already had very positive discussions at Ferryhill and look forward to meeting Roy Douglas, the manager at Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre. I hope the connections we can make will benefit the local population as a whole: initial conversations suggest there is a lot of scope to look at working in a collaborative way.”

welcomeJayne has made some changes already – the church sanctuary (above) has been reorganised to become a more welcoming space – the regimented rows of pews have gone, replaced by a warmer, more informal circular seating arrangement, and a ‘junk room’ is being cleaned out, painted and converted into an office. You get the distinct impression that this won’t be the last of the changes to life at Drylaw Parish Church.

“I’ve been here a month now and that’s really been getting to know folk and settling in, but I have a lot of plans and ideas. I’m very much looking forward to my time here,” Jayne continued. “We have a number of activities planned in the run up to Christmas (see below) and I’ve arrived at a very busy time, which is really good. I’m looking forward to meeting more people: offering support when life is difficult and welcoming people to Drylaw church – a safe and welcoming place”.

Good luck, Jayne – and Pepper the dog!

Coming up at Drylaw Church:

Sunday 7 December

Vigil time in the Sanctuary from 4 – 5pm. A quiet time to reflect and remember loved ones.

Sunday 7 and Sunday 14 December

How would you like to sing in the church choir on 21 December? Now’s your chance – practice and rehearse from 10 – 10.30am for the performance during 11am Sunday service on 21 December. Open to all!

Tuesday 23 December

Christingle from 11 – 11.30am

Christmas Eve – Wednesday 24 December

Watch Night Service 11.30pm. All welcome.

Christmas Day – Thursday 25 December

Morning Service 10.30am. All welcome.

 

Sun sets on St Paul’s

‘That on 12 October 2014 the Parish of St Paul’s, Muirhouse will be completely SUPPRESSED’

3Campaigners have lost the battle to save their beloved St Paul’s church in Muirhouse. Parishioners must now move to other churches as their spiritual home of over 45 years will be closed and sold.

A small band gathered to stage a candlelit vigil before the final Friday evening Mass at the Muirhouse Avenue church, one final protest. They were quiet, they were dignified, they were peaceful and they made their point – but ultimately, their efforts were in vain.

13Church authorities had already made the decision to close the church and the Decree passed to that effect was pinned to a noticeboard – which ironically heralds ‘Welcome’ – inside the church doors (below).

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The Decree, which is signed by Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh Leo Cushley and Chancellor Rev Scott Deeley, states:

1. That on 12 October 2014 the Parish of St Paul’s, Muirhouse will be completely SUPPRESSED;

2. That on 12 October 2014 the territory of the former Parish of St Paul’s Muirhouse will become part of the parish of St Margaret’s, Davidsons Mains;

3. The faithful domiciled in the former territory of the parish of St Paul’s Muirhouse will become parishioners of St Margaret’s, Davidsons Mains;

4. That on Sunday 12 October 2014 the church of St Paul’s Muirhouse will no longer be used for the Liturgy pending relegation to profane but not sordid use;

The Decree goes on to say that all assets and the parish registers will be transferred from St Paul’s to St Margaret’s.

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So the battle’s over and the campaigners many questions – among them, just how did the church’s debt mushroom to £284,000 and why was it allowed to spiral out of control? – will go unanswered.

Children from St David’s RC Primary School in West Pilton will now have to find their way to St Margaret’s in Davidson’s Mains for their church services – a considerable distance on busy roads. And the stalwarts of St Paul’s’ men’s club – who have met socially at the church for over forty years, but were not even informed of the intention to close the church – what future for them? Where do they go?

5Churches are not about buildings, of course. Churches are the people, the people are the church. The church authorities have cited falling congregations as one of the reasons for Muirhouse closure, but Muirhouse and Pennywell is an area undergoing a major regeneration. Thousands have left the area as their homes were knocked down, but thousands more will return as new homes are built. Many of the families making their homes in Muirhouse will be Eastern European, many of whom are Catholic.

So as I watched worshippers going in to church on Friday as the sun went down, I did wonder: where will these people go? Yes, they’ll have nice new homes – but no spiritual home at the heart of their new community?

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Candlelight vigil at St Paul’s

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SILENT PROTEST AGAINST THE CLOSURE OF ST PAUL’S

FRIDAY 10 OCTOBER FROM 6.15pm

A silent protest will take place on Friday 10 October from 6.15pm onwards outside St Paul’s during the Thanksgiving mass. There will be posters handed out for people to display and candles will be provided and placed around the entrance to the church and other areas (it would be helpful if you could bring along some glass jars to hold the candles to prevent them going out).

There are also posters available for children and families to colour in and decorate to display at the protest. These can be picked up at Muirhouse Library or Muirhouse Community Shop. Of course, you can also make your own posters, placards, and banners and bring them along too!

We hope to see as many people as possible attend from all parts of the community while we protest silently and peacefully to demonstrate our objection to the closure of St Paul’s.

SILENT PROTEŚCIE PRZECIWKO ZAMKNIĘCIU ŚWIĘTEGO PAWŁAPIĄTEK,

10 PAŹDZIERNIKA Z 18:15

Cichy protest odbędzie się w piątek 10 października od 18:15 roku poza St Paul’s podczas mszy Dziękczynienia. Będą plakaty rozdawane dla osób do wyświetlania i świece będą dostarczane i umieszczone wokół wejścia do kościoła i innych dziedzinach (dobrze byłoby gdybyś mógł przynieść niektórych słoikach trzymać świece, aby zapobiec im wychodzi).

Są też plakaty dostępne dla dzieci i rodzin, aby kolor i ozdobić, aby wyświetlić na protest. Te mogą być zabierani na Muirhouse Biblioteki lub Muirhouse wspólnotowego sklepu. Oczywiście, można również tworzyć własne plakaty, afisze i transparenty i przynieść je razem też!

Mamy nadzieję, że tak wielu ludzi, jak to możliwe, chodzi do wszystkich części społeczeństwa, a my cicho i spokojnie protestować wykazać nasz sprzeciw wobec zamknięcia St Paul’s.

Prosimy dołączyć w ” Wydarzenia ” , jeśli będziesz uczestniczyć

Save St Paul’s Campaign