Marian Macintyre describes how Shetland Presbyterial Council has consistently reformed its work with 10 Guilds on the islands.
THE very mention of the word ‘change’ can strike fear and apprehension into the hearts of many Church and Guild members!
As we thought about writing this article, we came to the conclusion that here, in the most northerly Presbyterial Council in Scotland, we have been slowly but steadily evolving (changing!) over the years and adapting to the changing circumstances we now find ourselves in….folks may resist ‘change’, but we have found that they are open to suggestions and ‘new ways of doing Guild’. I suppose a bit like the Church as a whole...always reforming.
The Council has 10 Guilds, with both male and female members, four of the Guilds being on islands (Whalsay, Yell (two Guilds), Unst, Out Skerries). There are three individual members.
Some Guilds are ecumenical (with Methodists). Of course these branches have much in common, but each works the way which best suits its members and community. The Guild in Brae re-formed after a few years of having no Guild. So there are lots of positives.
One of the common factors is weather – not just in winter but at any time of the year. The weather has a bearing on how and when we meet. If, for example, a speaker cannot get to an arranged meeting because the inter-island ferry is unable to run, the Guild has to be self-sufficient, and rely on its own resources to fill the gap.
As Guild Week is held in November, we would find it challenging to arrange a Council-wide celebration because of weather and transport difficulties. Individual Guilds celebrate in their own churches, but last year we did a ‘DVD relay’, using the Annual Gathering DVD, which was passed from Guild to Guild from South to North, and so in a sense we were all ‘united’ in the watching of it, although not actually together. Better weather prospects mean that our council rallies take place in March, June and September, on the mainland and also on the islands. Speakers from our project partners cannot readily come to Shetland due to prohibitive travel costs, and so we use the excellent educational and promotional material/DVDs which they provide.
Flexibility is vital: meetings may be held in churches, village halls, houses, care centres. Timing has to be flexible too – one Guild tailors its meetings around the shift-patterns of a member who is working, and so may meet on a different day and time every month. In a small community, communication is perhaps easier, and so changes to times etc can be done readily. Members meet one another at other community events or in the local post office or shop.
Weisdale Guild, whose stunning garden was created by the Beechgrove Garden team, continues its outreach during the summer months when visitors and locals alike can ‘Sit and Sip’ – enjoy the garden and a cuppa.
A reluctance/inability to take on ‘Leadership’ roles within one branch of 12-15 members has meant that all the members form the committee – they all take part in the decision-making, arranging the syllabus, and leading worship at meetings.
In Burra Isles, the Guild is a ‘round the table’ meeting, very informal, depending more on local speakers – and of course one thing which has NOT changed in 130 years in all Guilds is the ‘makkin’ (knitting)….Guild members bring their knitting and knit during the meeting….sometimes a bit disconcerting for a guest speaker! In order to attract new members, the Burra Guild has initiated a ‘drop-in, drop-out’ sort of arrangement, where local folks are invited, and if it’s a meeting that particularly interests them, they come along.
Skerries Guild has not been affiliated for many years, but has one individual member, who leads the meetings as Guild meetings, using Guild materials, and they totally support the projects. I was in a supermarket car park last year and one of the Skerries members handed me an envelope with £100 in it. This Guild, with 8-10 members, had watched the DVD from Feed the Minds about FGM, and had been moved to give towards this Project.
On a positive note, Church, Guild and community in Shetland are interconnected in a special way – although many people in our communities are not ‘church members’ in the literal sense, they would regard the local church as ‘wir Kirk’ (our church), and so wholehearted support for church events is always forthcoming. The Guild can benefit from this too – support for Guild events is excellent, and so we are able to widen our reach.
Being geographically remote, we relish contact with the mainland …..one of our island Guilds in Unst has a link with a Guild in Perth. Another target for the future would be establishing further links with mainland Guilds. We value the support we receive from the Guild staff and Conveners who readily offer advice, and from time to time enjoy a visit to these beautiful islands – it helps us to feel part of a bigger picture, and part of the bold, strong organisation which is the Guild.