View from the pulpit

The Rev Jim Reid describes a journey of ecumenical working and a new union in Fife.

IF you mention Kinghorn and Burntisland to folk of a certain generation they say: “Oh I remember going on holiday there, great beaches” If it’s a younger person it may provoke, “Oh yes, I’ve seen ‘Life on the Bay’ (a BBC documentary series).”

We have much history in these parts - for instance, the King James Bible and King Alexander’s downfall. We’ve been making, in recent years, our own history of covenant, collaboration and a new union.

We have been engaged in an ecumenical and evangelical partnership among our three presbyterian churches (and excellent working relationships with the Episcopal and Roman Catholic congregations also). Burntisland Parish Church, Erskine United Free Church and Kinghorn Parish Church entered into a Covenant as “BEK” (Burntisland, Erskine and Kinghorn) which was launched in united worship on Easter Sunday 2022. Much of the impetus for this came because of our joint livestreaming during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, under the banner of “BEK and call” with the desire to be at Jesus’ beck and call!

There have been good relationships for many years among all the local churches and it was felt by the BEK three, that something tangible should emerge.

As we came out of Covid a “fresh expression of worship” was suggested, planned and has been a feature of worship in the BEK Churches each three weeks over the past two years: we call it “Chilled Church”. It is a relaxed, all age friendly and engaging time of fellowship, worship, Bible teaching and indeed, enjoyment. It reaches parts of our church families and indeed our two communities that the more traditional style of worship has been struggling to do. It brings a team from BEK together in music, teaching and preparation.

Having given a presentation about Chilled Church at Fife Presbytery, other churches are taking heart and considering similar styles of fresh expressions of worship.

Another very significant result of our BEK Partnership is that we have been able to jointly fund and appoint a Children’s, Youth and Families worker, Adrian Minnie, who has come from South Africa to work with us and has achieved much in his first year.

As with all churches we’ve been responding to two rounds of Presbytery Mission Planning in the past five years which has been challenging, especially for the many Churches in vacancy, which Burntisland has been, for nearly four years. But, with a series of proactively supportive Interim Moderators, Locums and the support of the BEK Ecumenical Partnership the two Church of Scotland churches of Burntisland and Kinghorn will be united this month ( January) with me as minister. Both Kirk Sessions, the joint Union Task Group, ably convened by my UF colleague and friend the Rev Alexander Ritchie and the five Teams of Worship, Community and Outreach, Fabric, Finance and Pastoral, have put much work and prayer into preparing for the union.

I feel both honoured and challenged to accept the call to be minister of the united church, after 27 years in Kinghorn: pray for us that we may be at the Master’s beck and call! ¤