The Church of Scotland is currently going through a Parish Appraisal process in Cumbernauld. Part of this process is for each Church of Scotland congregation to get to know its parish, and the people in it, even better than it does already. For this reason we have produced a very brief questionnaire – just three questions – from which we would like as much feedback as possible.
The questions are:

• What is the role of the Church in the Parish?
• What do you think is the key issue, for you, living in Cumbernauld?
• What should the Church be doing in the community (which it is not currently doing)?

We are not asking anyone to bang on doors of complete strangers; just to discuss the questions with friends and neighbours in the parish – in an ‘over the fence’ sort of way, this is not an inquisition! We do not need to know who said what, just their answers. If you want, please use this blog for your comments. They will be passed on to the appropriate people.

Christian Aid has a vision: an end to poverty. They say, “Poverty is an outrage against humanity. It robs people of dignity, freedom and hope, of power over their own lives.” They believe their vision of an end to poverty can become a reality, and urge us to join them. Read the report, watch the video, and take action.

With summer now well and truly upon us, things in the kirk are a bit quieter than normal. That, perhaps, is no bad thing given how busy we were during the first six months of the year. However, there is still a lot going on behind the scenes and there are two particular events to which I would like to draw your attention:

The Stated Annual Meeting of the congregation is on Wednesday 15th July at 7.30pm in the Parish Church. As well as the opportunity to look back at the congregation’s life over the past year, we hope to have a presentation showing the progress of our “Year in the Life” photo journal of our 350th Anniversary Year.

And the Prayer & Launch Event for Connect 2009 will be on Friday 7th August at 7.00pm in Seafar House. This will consist of presentations from the various Steering Groups to pass on information about the events planned for this year and how we can all be involved. There will also be time for prayer for the Connect events taking place in September. We will feature Connect more fully in a future ‘update’.

A selection of photographs from this year’s Garden Fete and June’s 350th Anniversary celebrations have now been posted onto the kirk’s website. To see pictures from the Birthday Party that followed the worship service on 7th June click on the “next page” link at the foot of the Anniversary Service page.

The July edition of the Church of Scotland’s Good News magazine includes a special report from Edinburgh Presbytery that argues the Church of Scotland can seize on the challenges of a secular society, and also the convener of the Panel on Review and Reform, Reverend David S. Cameron, explains how congregations can help cultivate change in the Kirk. You can download Good News from here.

The Ekklesia news service reports that The Church of Scotland has welcomed the Scottish Government’s new climate change targets but warned they were doomed to fail unless the people of Scotland were involved at a grassroots level. Speaking a day after the Scottish Parliament approved the trail-blazing Scottish Climate Change Bill, The Rev Ian Galloway, Convener of the Kirk’s Church and Society Council, said: “We warmly welcome the amendment to the Bill requiring the Scottish Government to publish a strategy for public engagement. Without an effective strategy the new law stands little chance of success. Congregations across Scotland, particularly Eco-Congregations, will have [a] vital role to play in coming months to help the Government get this right.” Read the full article here.

Ecumenical News International (ENI) reports that the Methodist Church, the third largest in Britain, has become the first church in the country to ban its members from belonging to the British National Party, which Methodism deems to be a group advocating racism. The church said on 9 July that its annual conference in Wolverhampton had passed a resolution that none of the church’s 265,000 members could be a member of a political party whose constitution, aims or objectives promote racism. This specifically includes, but is not solely limited to, the BNP. More on this here.

ENI also reports that Protestant Christians are celebrating the 500th anniversary of the birth of Jean Calvin, the French-born church reformer who inspired a movement that now has tens of millions of adherents worldwide. Calvin was born on 10 July 1509 at Noyon in northern France, and is known throughout the world for his role in the Reformation while he lived in Geneva, a once independent city state that is now part of Switzerland. Religious and political leaders gathered on 10 July at Geneva’s Cathedral of St Pierre, the church where Calvin preached during the Reformation, where they heard a call for the theologian to be commemorated as a source for a contemporary response to social issues. Read the full article here.

Among the drawings and contributions made by our children at the 350th Anniversary Service on Sunday 7th June was the following. It proves, apart from anything else, that the most profound expressions of faith can come from the youngest members of the church.

Some of us might be lucky.
Some of us not.
Some of us might be a star.
Some of us not.
But it does not matter if you are lucky or a star,
Because God loves us all the same
And he always will.

WOW – what a weekend that was. I am referring, of course, to the weekend of 6/7 June which saw our annual summer fete followed by a worship service commemorating 350 years of continuous worship in our present church building followed, in turn, by our birthday party on the manse lawn. Phew, one can get tired out just by thinking about it. But it was a marvellous weekend and the culmination of many hours of hard work and effort by lots of different people. And, to them all, we say “thanks”.

First up was the Summer Fete on Saturday 6th June. As the hailstones battered the manse garden on Saturday morning, serious doubts about the success of this year’s event must have been going through many people’s minds. But the skies began to clear as opening time approached and, as the afternoon wore on, the showers gave way to bright sunshine. By 4pm over three hundred people had thronged the gardens and tearoom and over £2205 was raised for church funds. Radio Heartbeat provided the musical entertainment, the official opening was performed Rev. Alan Sorensen from Greenock Wellpark Church (better known for his radio programme on Clyde 2) and our usual stalls did a roaring trade. The cheerleaders J C Pom Poms amazed us by their athleticism and the children’s fancy dress competition was yet another highlight of what turned out to be a brilliant day. We have got a lot of pictures from the event and they will be added to our website over the summer.

On Sunday 7th June we had the second of our worship services celebrating 350 years of continuous worship in the present church building. The service was led by our worship team and the Very Rev. David Lunan, until very recently the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. The theme focused on how we are all parts of Christ’s body – the church – and how we each have a part to play. The children and young people provided drawings of what it means to them to be part of this body (see the poem at the end of this update); there was a musical solo from Claire Dalling on the flute; Graeme Currie (trumpet) and Lucy McDonald took part in one of the meditations; and various members of the congregation came forward with items representing different contributions we all make to the life of the church. During the service, our new specially-commissioned Pulpit Fall was dedicated. Pictures of the new fall have been added to our website along with Maggie Dobie’s description of what the various elements represent, while the remaining pictures from the anniversary service and the birthday party will be added to the kirk website over the summer.

Leading up to the anniversary weekend, we had asked members to send the church a Birthday Card and invited them to make a donation of one penny for each year of the church’s history (£3.50) or whatever they felt they could give. The birthday cards were displayed in the church on the day of the service and we were delighted that £2034 had been donated. Some of this money will pay for our new pulpit fall and the rest will be used for the mission work of the church. We will be able to give you more information about this in a later bulletin.

While most of the committees and councils are taking a well-earned break after the General Assembly, there is some news to report. The June edition of Good News contains a summary of, and pictures from, the main proceedings at the General Assembly and contains news of an East Lothian kirk that has become the first Church of Scotland congregation to open a debt counselling centre for parishioners struggling with their finances. There is also news of a fund-raising scheme in Caithness Presbytery for a hospital in Malawi that prevents and reduces the major causes of blindness.

The kirk’s Church & Society Council has produced its June news update. This contains a simple checklist to enable churches to measure their carbon footprint and more about the Eco-Congregation Scheme. There is also news from the Poverty Truth Commission that was launched in Glasgow in March.

Finally, the latest newsletter from the World Mission Council – WM29 – features news on what it is like to be a Christian in a country where Christians are not only the minority but face hardship for their faith. With features on India, Pakistan and China among others, WM29 provides much of interest as well as topics for prayer.

Could this be the biggest weekend in Cumbernauld Old’s history? Maybe so, maybe not; but it’s still a big one nevertheless. And you are invited to join in!
First up is our annual Garden Fete on Saturday 6th June. It promises to be bigger and better than ever: with a children’s fancy dress parade, birds of prey, cheerleaders the JC Pom Poms, Radio Heartbeat and more. All the regular activities will also be there: a bouncy castle, tearoom with home baking, book sale, bottle, plant and soft goods stalls and prizes galore. Doors open on Saturday at 1.30pm with the formal opening of the fete at 2.00pm by Rev. Alan Sorensen, who hosts Radio Clyde 2’s Sunday morning “Down to Earth” programme. Entry £1 for adults, 25p for children.
On Sunday 7th June we have a joint service at 11am to celebrate the 350th Anniversary of continuous worship in the Parish Church building. Worship will be led by Very Rev. David Lunan until very recently the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. After the service the celebrations will continue with a birthday party in the Manse garden. As you would expect, there will be a birthday cake and even jelly and ice cream.

The amount raised in our parish during Christian Aid Week 2009 was £2501.81 – this includes £420 raised at the Boys’ Brigade display and represents a wonderful total in the present economic climate. Well done, and thank-you, to all concerned. Just as a footnote, around £837 of the total was gift-aided and this will generate a further £208 for Christian Aid.

Just after I issued the last update (see below), the Church of Scotland issued a special General Assembly edition of their Good News bulletin. This newsletter (which can be downloaded from here) summarises some of the issues to be discussed at the General Assembly which starts on Thursday 21st May in Edinburgh. Among them are suggestions that the kirk considers using ‘virtual ministers’ to stem a shortage of full-time clergy, i.e. using video links where a minister cannot be present in person. Meanwhile, a report from the kirk’s World Mission Council asks whether the Western world needs to be converted because of a “recession” in Christianity. The report says that many African countries have become heartlands of the faith while Europe has seen a slump in Christianity which is unprecedented in its extent and severity and claims that Christians from Asia and Africa are now approaching Europe as a mission field, as the direction of missionary endeavour changes.

Closer to home, our Boys’ Brigade company – the 1st Cumbernauld – had its Annual Display on Thursday 14th May. It was a fabulous evening all round and a very memorable occasion for eight young men in particular: three being presented with their Queen’s Badge and five being presented with their President’s Badge. Neil Campbell, Mark Gammie and Calum McDougall received their Queen’s Badges ahead of a further, formal presentation in a few weeks’ time at the Scottish Parliament, and Jordan Watson, Andrew Turnbull, Kenneth Scott, Stuart MacFarlane and Euan Alston were awarded their President’s Badges. Some pictures of their presentations have been added to the church website and we hope to have more pictures added over the next few weeks.

Cumbernauld Old is a member of Scotland’s Churches Scheme. They have just launched their new Sacred Scotland website and are producing a series of Sacred Places guidebooks covering the whole of Scotland. One of the features of the new website is that churches can update their own entries with historical information, pictures and events. I’ve updated the entry for Cumbernauld Old to add some pictures of the church (only six photos are allowed) and had hoped to add details of our Summer Fete and Anniversary activities. However, the events section of the website has so far beaten my attempts at updating it.

The Christian ‘think-tank’ Ekklesia has reported recently on concerns raised by Christian Aid about the current situation in Sri Lanka, hopes that the results of the recent General Elections in India will mean a reduction in the violence against Christians in the state of Orissa and a call from Christians in China for the world to remember the events of Tiananmen Square that occurred twenty years ago this June. Click on the links above to find out more.

It’s just SO last century! It’s our 20th century quiz, of course. To coincide with our 350th anniversary our planning group have devised a quiz (with prizes) where each answer relates to one year year in the 20th century (we thought a question for each of the last 350 years would be a bit much!) Pick up your entry forms at church, just £1 per entry), or request one from church members. Completed entries should be handed in by 30th August.

My, doesn’t time fly? Holy Week and Easter almost seem a distant memory but it’s worth remembering, before moving on, that they are the reason that the church exists. Everything we are as a church, and everything we do, is as a result of the events of that one weekend in the life of our Lord. At the end of this month, on Sunday 31st May, the Christian church celebrates the feast of Pentecost when the promised Holy Spirit came to Jesus’ disciples in Jerusalem, and so the church was born.

Sunday 31st May, the Day of Pentecost, is also the day when we will celebrate the Sacrament of Holy Communion at services in the Parish Church at 11am and 6.30pm. We usually celebrate Communion on the first Sunday in June but have other plans for that day, as you may have heard! The 11am service replaces our two usual weekly services at 10.15 and 11.45, while at the 6.30pm service, non-alcohol wine will be used.

Before then, though, May is rather a busy month in the life of the congregation

Yesterday, Sunday 10th May, there was a gathering of the five Church of Scotland congregations in Cumbernauld. Faced with the challenge of creating a joint plan for the future, this was the first “staging post” (to use an expression of Peter Neilson, our mission enabler) and the turnout of members from Cumbernauld Old was impressive. At this first meeting, we learned a bit more about each of the five congregations and discussed our common challenges. These will be reviewed by the Steering Group, further activity will take place over the summer and the next “staging post” gathering is scheduled for September.

Christian Aid Week 10-16 May 2009

We are now into Christian Aid Week. Over the next few days, until Saturday 16th May, volunteer collectors from our congregation will join others across the UK and Ireland delivering envelopes, visiting houses and asking for donations. Should an authorised collector call at your house, please give them a warm welcome and a generous response (preferably with a Gift-Aid signature).

On Thursday 14th May our Boys’ Brigade company hold their Annual Display in the Forge Community Centre starting at 7.00pm. Please come along and show your support.

On Sunday 17th May, the Scottish Bible Society are having a celebration of their 200th Anniversary at St. Mungo’s Parish Church at 2.30pm. The entertainment will be provided by the Kilsyth Praise Group and tickets, priced at £2 include tea or coffee. All proceeds to the SBS’s current Brazil Project.

The Church of Scotland

The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland meets in Edinburgh from Thursday 21st to Wednesday 27th May. Due to space constraints, not all congregations can send ‘commissioners’ (as they are called) so a rota system operates within presbyteries. This year Cumbernauld Old has the opportunity to send two commissioners, and our minister and one of our elders will be travelling through to Edinburgh for each day’s debates and discussions. You can keep up with everything that’s happening at the General Assembly through the Church of Scotland’s dedicated web pages.

And so into June, and our 350th Anniversary weekend.

The action all starts off with our annual Garden Fete on Saturday 6th June in the Manse grounds. Doors open at 1.30pm with the official opening at 2pm by Rev. Alan Sorensen, presenter of Radio Clyde’s “Down to Earth” programme.

Then on Sunday 7th June we have a special joint 350th Anniversary Worship Service in the Parish Church at 11am and led by Very Rev. David Lunan, the current Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. By the time he reaches Cumbernauld, his term of office will have ended, but Immediate Past Moderator of the General Assembly, etc. doesn’t roll off the tongue quite as easily! Following our worship service we will have our 350th Birthday Party in the Manse Grounds. Invitations will be on their way in the near future.

For several weeks now, we have been inviting members to send us a Birthday Card and we are glad to report that quite a few have been received. We have also been asking those who can to send us a donation of one penny for each year of the church’s 350 years (i.e. a gift of £3.50). That appeal has also been very well supported. There is still time to send us a card (and a donation if you wish) – just hand it to any office-bearer or hand it in to the church any Sunday. The cards will be displayed in church at our Anniversary Service and the money raised will be shared between the cost of a specially-commissioned pulpit fall and the mission work of the church.

News of the Garden Fete and our 350th Anniversary plans is contained in the May 2009 edition of the church newsletter, available for delivery to members shortly but already available online from our church’s website.

With the General Assembly on the near horizon, a few of the kirk’s councils are issuing summaries of their reports in newsletter form. I have provided links to a few of them here (courtesy of the Falkirk Presbytery website). In addition, though, the regular bulletins continue to be published and I am delighted to pass them on.

First up is the May edition of the kirk’s Good News magazine. Among the articles in the seven-page newsletter is a call for the church to face up to the reality of HIV/AIDS, news of a march (with a difference) through the streets of Larkhall, and thoughts on love from the Moderator, Rev. David Lunan.

The Mission & Discipleship Council’s enews for May 2009 contains details of more than 30 events, resources and websites to explore. Among the events listed is a conference on ‘Emerging Church’ – building a church for the 21st century – Fresh Horizons, which (it says) is a conference for ‘third-agers’ and how they may be used in ministry and mission; and information about Open Farm Sunday. I also liked the materials produced by Scripture Union for children about to enter primary school and for young people making the transition from primary to secondary education.

The kirk’s Church & Society Council has produced a short newsletter to coincide with the General Assembly, as has the Committee on Ecumenical Relations. Both can be downloaded from the Falkirk Presbytery website.

A recent World Mission Council news update highlighted the forthcoming World Week of action for peace for Israel and Palestine. The news article reads: World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, 4-10 June 2009, is intended to generate joint church action for a just peace. Churches in 20 countries have already sent news of their plans to the conveners, the World Council of Churches (WCC). A Palestinian community organisation is offering a way for many more countries to join – by sending peace prayers to Bethlehem.
People and parishes around the world are invited to send peace prayers to Bethlehem. A church-related community organisation there will share the prayers for worldwide use online during World Week and to be read aloud locally at the Wall, near settlements, and in Palestinian parishes and schools including in Gaza.
The WCC-led week of action is in its fourth year. Participants are invited to pray, educate and advocate, inspired by the theme “It’s time for Palestine”. A prayer offered by the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem has been sent to more than 120 countries, along with invitations to join World Week. For 2009 participants are encouraged to focus on Israeli settlements in occupied territory. Links to the topic as well as a message, prayers and liturgies for the week are available on the WCC website.

Oh, and did I mention this was Christian Aid Week? Just a reminder that their website will take online donations, just in case no-one comes to your door or you don’t get a chance to return your red envelope or you can’t make it to church next Sunday.

The director of Christian Aid, Dr Daleep Mukarji will preach in Glasgow Cathedral on Sunday 17th May at 6.30pm as the Cathedral hosts a service reflecting on the work of Christian Aid. There is more about this service on the Ekklesia website.