Our places have stories to tell

The Rev Dr Richard Frazer considers how new life can be found in the discarded.

FOR a few years in the 1990s, I served the Church on the Art and Architecture Committee.

I met some remarkable people at that time. There were many craftspeople, expert in stained glass, in church furnishing; others who understood the wonderful legacy of remarkable church buildings in Scotland through the centuries. It was a privilege in my ministry to meet these people and to serve as minister in some beautiful and historic churches, including Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, St Machar’s Cathedral in Old Aberdeen as well as Cargill, Burrelton and Collace Churches in Perthshire, Collace being a foundation that went back to Celtic times.

In each place I have ministered, it was always important to me not to dwell solely in the past, but to continue the narrative of the place, to twist the plot if you like, of an ancient story and make it relevant for the present. Certain things may go out of fashion, but that does not mean that there is no way of repurposing the past to serve the future.

In my time with the Art and Architecture Committee, a great many congregations were disposing of their pews as they still are. Often deemed hard and uncomfortable, they would crowd out the interior of the church with little room to do anything other than sit, so congregations would dispose of them. They were out of fashion.

Whilst I was in Old Aberdeen, I began collecting these old pews. They would often look tired and shabby but made from the most beautiful wood. Skim off the surface and underneath was something pristine. When I came to Greyfriars Kirk in 2003, whilst we were establishing the Grassmarket Community Project, we started a furnituremaking project and began to make beautiful objects from these discarded pews. Most of the work undertaken was by members of the project, some of whom had been discarded, just like these pews. It is still going strong nearly 20 years later.

The idea of finding the beauty at the heart of something worn and rough round the edges has felt like a metaphor for some of the people with whom we worked at the Grassmarket. People who had felt left behind by society and could sometimes look a bit worn too; but, underneath, just like the pews, there is always something special to be found.

As people learn woodworking skills and other life skills, they also grow in selfesteem and begin to realise that though often written off by society, they still have a beauty and strength within. We have seen so many people rediscover their true worth through work in the Grassmarket Community Project.

When I think of Jesus’s ministry in Galilee, there are so many stories of lives on the edge turned around by his care, love and ability to see the beauty of people often hidden away. Blind beggars healed, demon possessed characters restored to their right minds, women caught in adultery not written off by vengeful, self-righteous men.

We have a wonderful legacy in the Church of Scotland of fine places, beautiful buildings and places resonant with great stories. I often hear people say that the Church is about people, not about places. That is right, but our places have stories to tell too, and even when it would seem that their relevance is in question, they can be re-purposed and put to good, community use once again.

So many fine church buildings are sanctuaries and signs of the kingdom in our communities and we should encourage the re-imagining of these places as assets for our community. Who knows what might emerge if we refuse to write them off as redundant?