LETTERS

Church and the community

At a recent conference held by the three Church of Scotland churches in Bishopbriggs, concern was expressed at our failure to attract new members into the church. It suddenly occurred to me that this is not what the church is all about. Did Jesus erect a building and expect people to come into it? No! He and his followers went out into the community to where the people were. Likewise after Christ died his followers, such as Paul, determined to take the Gospel to the ‘ends of the earth’.

Quite clearly, the mission of the Church and its members is to go out into the community. One method of doing this is for a minister-led team to devise leaflets containing a Gospel message and for the rest of us to deliver the leaflets through the parish. Opportune times for outreach would be August/September, Christmas and Easter.

A further opportunity for outreach is to set up a street stall, say once a month, at a strategic point/points throughout the parish. If resources don’t extend to a stall, church members can stand in groups of two or three, giving out leaflets and display a billboard inviting questions or comments.

If the church looks out, there is every chance that members of the public will look in.

W Findlay, Bishopbriggs

Hubs and vacancies

I was intrigued by the article ‘Thinking out of the Box’ in November’s edition. I know that the original thinking behind the idea of Hub style ministries was to enable presbyteries to do just that and think out of the box. I was slightly disappointed therefore to read that Argyll were still seeing this model as a ‘support for vacant congregations.’ To my mind the idea of a hub conjures up the idea of a cluster of congregations covering perhaps three or four or more charges, with one overall minister. So no vacancies. This one minister would then have a role similar to the ‘ministries co-ordinator’ posts in Argyll, but why not simply call this person ‘the minister’. The minister would then have a team rather like the teams mentioned in the article to help him service all the congregations, perhaps visiting each congregation for Sunday worship on a rotating basis, and working with the worship and other team leaders during the week. The minister could take any services involving the sacraments or needing ordained minister input, as could any OLMs in the team.

Let’s get rid of our long list of congregations in vacancy by making some really radical and out of the box changes by bringing these congregations into hubs and giving them their own minister again – albeit not exclusively their own. In eff ect they would simply be part of a larger linkage but managed in a new and sustainable way.

Frank Ribbons (Rev), Aboyne

WW2 and the Channel Islands

I read the Big Question in November’s issue with interest. I was surprised however that nobody thought – or bothered – to ask the views of the two Church of Scotland congregations in the Channel Islands. These are St Columba’s in Jersey and St Andrew’s in Guernsey.

For those readers who do not know, the Channel Islands were occupied by the Germans from 1940 until 1945. I still sit, and worship with, a woman who remembers the Geheime Feldpolizei (Secret Field Police – there was no Gestapo) walking up and down the aisles during morning worship. Youth club nights in our church hall ended with her husband (not her husband then obvs) playing God Save The King on comb and paper.

We were then part of the Presbyterian Church of England, having originally been a Free Church of Scotland founded in the mid 1800s to service Scottish regiments in Jersey.

James B Sinclair, St Helier, Jersey

Spence statement

I refer to the letter submitted by Alec Porter, Strathblane, (Life and Work February 2017) in which he cited in the second half of his correspondence that the late Gusty Spence, was ‘famously known for his chilling instruction to his fellow Loyalist paramilitary gunmen, that if you can’t get a Republican get any Catholic.’

Unfortunately with his demise in 2011, my late Uncle cannot now defend himself. I can categorically state that Gusty Spence never, NEVER uttered or issued such words and indeed was himself criticised within Loyalist circles for his stand against, and his condemnation of the so-called Shankill Butcher killings of innocent Catholics, simply for their religion. His unequivocal statements even when in prison against sectarianism speaks for itself and whilst he himself went on to admit that he had erred in his own way, never ever urged others to act in what he deemed in later life, as a mistake. Thanking you.

Edward Spence, Belfast

Faith and fun

We were extremely encouraged by the article by Joseph A Marti’i Bouis and also by the article by our Moderator, the Rt Rev Colin Sinclair.

The message, quite rightly, seems to be ‘Christ centred’ – stick to the teaching/truth of the Bible.

Having taken part in many SU camps as a camper/leader/cook I realise the value of not only talking about faith but living out that faith through having fun and eating and laughing.

Dorothy Mackay, Aberdeen

Trustees Response

I wish to respond to Professor John R Hume’s letter in the November issue which suggests a misunderstanding of the purpose of the ‘buildings survey’. This is not about reform of the Church’s central administration nor is it directive or prescriptive. It is a consultation which last year’s General Assembly approved, instructing all Presbyteries and Kirk Sessions to complete, and to which any member of the Church has been able to respond. It is their views which have been expressed through the online questionnaire, at the eight regional roadshows and through the webinar.

The Trustees have tried to analyse the range of problems and opportunities presented by the Church’s land and buildings reflecting the issues in which they are asked to get involved up and down the country but they make no apology for being clear that buildings cannot be ends in themselves but must be resources for worship, discipleship, mission and outreach. What that looks like has to be worked out in the local context. This is the opposite of the ‘one size fits all’ approach about which Prof Hume is concerned. Far from being a ‘121 directive’, the consultation is clear that congregations and Presbytery should be taking the lead in resolving issues to do with facilities off ered by churches and halls and with the location of buildings – and it suggests ways in which congregations might be freed up from some of the burdens which come with buildings. The report on the analysis of the questionnaire responses will be published in full early next year and will form the basis of the Trustees’ Report to next year’s Assembly.

David D Robertson, Secretary, General Trustees, Edinburgh

Presbytery success

As the presbytery structure of the Kirk enters an era of radical change, any and all past achievements should be put on the record.

Recently, I acquired a first edition of the New English Bible New Testament from 1961. The preface, to my surprise and delight, credits its development initially to the Presbytery of Stirling and Dunblane. They delivered an overture to the General Assembly in May 1946 recommending that a translation of the Bible be made in the language of the day.

Many churches including the Church of England took this forward initially meeting in conference in Central Hall, Westminster. The New Testament was published in 1961, the Old Testament and Apocrypha following in 1970.

J Michael Buchanan, London

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