Lay people leading services

Sir

‘Lay people now leading services in drive to save kirk’ ran a Scottish May 01 headline. This resonated with my own life story.

I went to work as a relief GP in the Highlands and Islands after burnout as an urban GP. It was lovely to have time to ramble, explore rock pools, ski or fish.

But a Christmas meal at the Port Ellen Freemason Hall started a different adventure.

The seafood and whisky were great, as was a chat with the local Church of Scotland minister, who also gave a talk alluding to the strength of spiritual cohesion amidst all the traumas or debris of life.

Another stepping stone on my journey from atheism came when attending a Christmas dinner at a Church-run care home on the Isle of Harris. The food was excellent and I was surprised to be offered a generous measure of whisky after the dessert. It was quite a revelation to see this dispensed in a Church-run facility.

At the end of the meal a great number of the older people burst into Gaelic psalm singing for a few minutes, which shook me to the core and enlivened my interest in knowing more about their faith. I endeavoured to put out a few feelers, akin to a child sticking a worm on a hook and whacking it into the local trout stream.

Reading Isaiah 53 drew me to reflect on how One-Solitary-Life mysteriously fulfilled the central messianic prophecy and the words of invitation in Isaiah 55 drew me to make a commitment.

Many of us listen at Christmas to ‘How beautiful are the feet’ as Handel’s Messiah is played, but the busyness of life prevents us from examining the message properly. When we look at successful Church initiatives, like the modern Alpha Course, it’s evident how lay involvement and informality connect with people seeking to explore the big questions.

When we read the book of Acts it’s amazing how much Church activity was in homes where smaller groups met. Just take a quick read at the first half of Acts Chapter 2 describing Pentecost.

Lay people leading services in the kirk truly is a blast from the past. A top UK Anglican evangelist, Canon Michael Green (1930-2019), wrote a short text called ‘Forgotten Dynamite’.

J T Hardy by email.