From The Editor

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THE Committee on Christian Life and Work was a true visionary body of the Victorian Church of Scotland.

Set up by the General Assembly, it was initially chaired by the Rev (later Very Rev) Professor Archibald Charteris, the then professor of biblical criticism at the University of Edinburgh. Last month the legacy of the Church’s proud record on social care for the poorest and most vulnerable was the focus of this magazine. This area of the Committee’s work – attempting to bring together the Church’s many disparate works of care and compassion – was the irst in a succession of successful works which sought to fulil the needs of both the Church and the wider community. The same committee was also responsible for the development and launch of this magazine (not without trouble as detractors sought to have the idea shelved, forcing Charteris to rise from his sick bed and pledge his own money to secure the immediate future of the magazine).

The Church of Scotland Guild and the Diaconate followed – ensuring the legacy of the Committee on Christian Life and Work would continue into the 21st century. This magazine, founded in 1879, this year celebrates its 140th anniversary. A quick look at the archive reveals that the secret to survival has lain in its ability to change and adapt with the times.

Many other projects were launched by the Committee on Life and Work, including numerous supplements for this magazine, although only the Gaelic Supplement (launched in 1880) survives today. The Committee , which disappeared in the 1930s, was unafraid to stop work when it was no longer meaningful or relevant.

In balancing hopes and dreams – whether personal, congregational or committee-led – letting go of the burden of the past can free up the future.

There are lessons for the Church of today in this approach.

Ahead of the season of Lent in March – a time for self-relection for some – perhaps audits should be taken to consider where future hopes and dreams for our Church lie and to be realistic about what is no longer working.

Energy can be wasted in trying to prop up groups or long-standing cherished projects that no longer appeal or work.

On looking through the Life and Work archive, it is clear that there was a spirit of innovation within the Christian Committee on Life and Work. However, this was also tempered with realism: in the 1920s, for example, the committee loosened its grip over social care, paving the way for another better-equipped committee, to take over the work.

In balancing hopes and dreams – whether personal, congregational or committee-led – letting go of the burden of the past can free up the future. ¤

Lynne McNeil

Editor