A drug addict who robbed an elderly woman in a cathedral was locked up for 15 months yesterday. Richard Gibson admitted grabbing a bag containing money and credit cards from Peggy Lee, 80, as she tended candles in St Mirin's Cathedral, Paisley.
Source: Daily Record.
posted at 12:29 PM

A minister jetted over 10,000 miles from Australia to conduct a Perthshire wedding yesterday. The Rev Douglas Robertson returned to his homeland for the marriage of his sister-in-law at Kinclaven Church, by Stanley. Local man Scott Tares married Dr Kirsteen Macdonald from Glasgow. Mr Robertson left Scotland almost three years ago to take up a post as senior minister at the Scots' Church in Melbourne. He was previously a minister at Appin and Lismore in the north-west of Scotland.
Source: Dundee Courier.
posted at 12:21 PM

A shortage of ministers has forced the Church of Scotland into a major rethink of its operations. Congregations are being warned the traditional pattern of one minister for one parish is set to disappear.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 9:13 PM

Priestly celibacy in the Roman Catholic church has largely broken down in many parts of the world, Father Timothy Radcliffe, former master general of the Dominican Order, which has 200,000 members worldwide, said last night. Eamon Duffy, professor of the history of Christianity at Cambridge, told the BBC's Analysis programme: "There is a real danger in the western Catholic church that the clergy will become a profession for homosexuals... many are first class, marvellous priests but I think everybody sees that it would be undesirable to have the clergy predominantly homosexual."
Source: The Guardian.
posted at 9:11 PM

Once sold as a health drink, Buckfast wine is blamed for social sicknesses in Scotland. But its devout producers, and their fans, give Buckie their blessing.
Source: Sunday Herald.
posted at 7:39 PM

Celtic and Scotland legend Jimmy Johnstone is backing research into a controversial medical therapy - even though it is opposed by the Catholic Church of which he has been a life-long member. Johnstone, considered one of the greatest footballers of his generation, is suffering from motor neurone disease (MND), a degenerative brain disease. But the 60-year-old former internationalist is campaigning for the use of stem cells from human embryos to help sufferers from the fatal condition and other deadly diseases. His stance brings him into direct conflict with the Catholic Church, which is opposed to the use of human embryonic stem cells because it leads to destruction of the embryo.
Source: Scotland on Sunday.
posted at 7:30 PM

More than 90% of Scottish MPs and MSPs believe the Catholic church wields influence over political decisions taken at Holyrood and Westminster. A quarter believe it is ''very influential'', compared to only 6% who believe the same of the Church of Scotland. In the Glasgow University research, only 5% of those who responded thought the Catholic church was "not influential", compared with 13% for the Church of Scotland and 74% for the Episcopal Church. The researcher, Martin Steven, also found that a majority of the 113 legislators who responded to his survey were against the Church of Scotland having continued special status in its relations with the state. While 52% were opposed, 30% backed its national role.
Source: Sunday Herald.
posted at 11:34 PM

Members of the congregation of St Patrick's RC Church in Kilsyth bade farewell to the Rev Alastair McLachlan of the Burns and Old Parish Church of Scotland, who leaves next month for the West Highlands.
Source: Cumbernauld Today - Cumbernauld & Kilsyth Chronicle.
posted at 6:33 PM

Coltness Memorial Parish Church in Lanarkshire has celebrated its 125th anniversary.
Source: icLanarkshire - Wishaw Press.
posted at 6:29 PM

MSPs are set to debate Stirling Council's decision to shut down Holy Trinity Episcopal Primary School. Tory list MSP Brian Monteith has secured a parliamentary motion opposing the closure to be discussed in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday, January 7.
Source: icStirlingshire - Stirling Observer.
posted at 6:26 PM

Profile of Rev Pauline Steenbergen, locum minister for St Fergus, Crimond and Lonmay churches in Buchan.
Source: Buchan Observer.
posted at 6:24 PM

Seven-year-old Bobby Morrison from Garthdee won a competition held by his school, Kaimhill Primary, to design a festive banner for Garthdee Parish Church.
Source: Aberdeen Evening Express.
posted at 5:58 PM

Christine Hay, born around Christmas in the year 1553 to parents of humble origin and into a Scotland threatened by war and famine, should have vanished into the mists of history. But yesterday Christine, whose baptism in Perthshire is the first surviving one recorded in Scotland, joined some of the nation's greatest historical figures in a valuable new archive published online. The sacrament took place a year after the Catholic Church had ordained that every parish should keep a register of baptisms, marriages and deaths. Now some 4,000 parish registers are being put on the internet by the General Register Office for Scotland.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 2:02 AM

One of Scotland's finest examples of medieval architecture, containing the exquisite monumental tomb of a Scots princess, is under threat from vandals. Historic Scotland has put security guards at the site in an attempt to save Lincluden Collegiate Church in Dumfries and Galloway.
Source: The Herald.
posted at 5:32 PM

A group responsible for maintaining church buildings and helping Christian projects get off the ground in Shetland has been given a Christmas bonus. The Shetland Churches Council Trust has been allowed to keep last year's grant underspend of GBP 3,400 by its funders, the Shetland Charitable Trust.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.
posted at 5:28 PM

Toddlers staged a nativity play yesterday at the final Christmas service of a 112-year-old church as the congregation faces eviction by the building's owners. Mount Zion church, known as the "children's cathedral", is in the heart of Quarrier's Village, near Bridge of Weir in Renfrewshire, which was built in the nineteenth century as a refuge for orphans and destitute children. Worshippers have now been told they must move out to allow conversion of the Grade B listed building into 12 luxury flats.
Source: The Herald.
posted at 5:21 PM

The Moderator of the Church of Scotland used his Christmas sermon to call for more tolerance and urged society to shake off its homophobia, which had become a "consuming obsession".
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 5:16 PM

Evangelical Christians are switching from old-fashioned mass rallies to curry nights and sports events in a bid to win converts. A new initiative targeted at the 'Friends' generation of 18 to 30-year-olds focuses on small groups in pubs, clubs and people's places of work rather than huge crowds in halls or football stadiums. The Ten10 project is spearheaded by the group behind veteran American evangelist Billy Graham's last visit to Scotland.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 5:15 PM

The leader of the Church of Scotland is using part of his Christmas sermon to accuse the kirk of reinforcing hatred of gay people. He is telling a congregation in Aberdeen that the church and the rest of Scotland must shake off its homophobia.
Source: BBC Scotland News.
posted at 1:21 PM

In his Christmas Eve sermon at St Machar's Cathedral in Aberdeen, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland encourages us to take joy in Christmas: "the joy in a new beginning, in the opening of possibilities of freedom, hope and vitality which hitherto we had never dreamed of."
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 1:20 PM

A diminished crowd of a few thousand people gathered in Bethlehem's Manger Square on Wednesday for Christmas Eve festivities that have been overshadowed by three years of violence in this West Bank town. "It's very different. It's not quite as Christian as I thought," said Neil Cavers, 55, who came from Scotland to spend Christmas in Bethlehem. Despite the dreary conditions and gray, cold weather, Christmas carols rang through Manger Square and incense wafted nearby as priests and altar boys lined the entrance of the fortress-like Church of the Nativity, built over the grotto where it is believed Jesus was born.
Source: SFGate.com - San Francisco Chronicle.
posted at 7:49 PM

The Churches Advertising Network's Christmas poster campaign has been attacked by the Rt Rev Michael Hare Duke, former Episcopalian Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 7:39 PM

The Catholic Church is to mount a national campaign urging Scotland's councils to remember the Christian message in their festive celebrations. Local authorities will be asked to ensure that they include the word Christmas on their greetings cards from next year.
Source: BBC Scotland News.
posted at 12:24 PM

Residents in Bothwell, Lanarkshire, have won their battle to have the bells of one of Scotland's oldest churches muffled. Villagers complained that the chiming from Bothwell Parish Church, the oldest collegiate kirk north of the Border, was disturbing their lives as the bells tolled every 15 minutes from 6am to midnight.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 12:20 PM

The disused Trinity Church in Irvine, Ayrshire, will be demolished brick-by-brick before being rebuilt in Japan as a wedding centre. The church was built in 1863 and had its imposing steeple added six years later. Hexagonal in plan, it was built for the Rev William Robertson, otherwise known as the "Poet Preacher" because of his lyrical sermons.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 9:37 PM

Jack McConnell, the First Minister, yesterday chided public bodies for what he described as "political correctness gone mad" after an Edinburgh hospital banned the sale of a charity Christmas CD because it mentioned the words "baby Jesus".
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 9:35 PM

Cardinal Keith O'Brien has been honoured with a civic reception in Edinburgh.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 9:33 PM

A new Dean has been appointed for the Scottish Episcopal Church's Edinburgh diocese. The Reverend Canon Kevin Pearson will take over the most senior appointed post in the diocese after the Very Reverend Jim Mein retires in January.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 5:24 PM

Keith O'Brien, Scotland's new Roman Catholic cardinal, has attacked the state of morality in contemporary society, saying people are "getting away with murder" with their stance on moral matters.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 5:23 PM

The Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh yesterday confirmed it has banned a charity Christmas CD because it mentions the baby Jesus. More than 150 copies of the disc, featuring traditional and new festive songs, were donated to the hospital to help raise the spirits of children receiving care over the festive period. But hospital managers refused to pass it on, saying it could offend those who were not of a Christian faith. The ban was yesterday condemned by Bashir Maan, a prominent Muslim leader. "If somebody doesn't want to listen to this, they don't have to. This is political correctness gone mad," he said. "It is going too far and it is going to be counterproductive."
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 5:21 PM

The Church of Scotland is planning to scrap the traditional Sunday school following a dramatic drop in numbers and complaints from parents that they can no longer persuade their children to attend.
Source: Sunday Times.
posted at 2:32 PM

In Britain this year, the Christmas festival has been subjected to every harassment that petty, politically correct bureaucracy could devise, writes Gerald Warner. Christianity is being crushed between an unholy alliance of the atheistic Left and the globalised forces of capitalist materialism. While local councils behave like soviets, stamping out all evidence of Christian practice and belief, commercial retailers banish 'uncool' greetings cards with a religious theme from their shelves, in favour of smutty Santas.
Source: Scotland on Sunday.
posted at 2:26 PM

A pioneer of women's ministry in the Church of Scotland has questioned how the Kirk came to choose its first female Moderator. Rev Dr Mary Levison welcomed the election of Edinburgh elder Dr Alison Elliott to the post. But she adds: "I find there are two things which people are puzzled about. The first is, how it could come about that two women were proposed for election and not a single man [and] why should a woman elder be nominated, when there are now in the ministry women of considerable wisdom and experience?"
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.
posted at 4:16 PM

Rev Erik Cramb, a Church of Scotland minister and national co-ordinator of industrial chaplaincy, has criticised employers who give workers holidays at Christmas, but don't pay them for their time off.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 9:29 PM

Shopping centre bosses in Greenock have issued a Salvation Army band with a Christmas ultimatum - cut the number of players at their weekly concerts or move.
Source: Greenock Telegraph.
posted at 9:22 PM

A minister is back in his pulpit after an inquiry found no substance to the allegations made against him. A three-strong team, appointed to probe claims raised about Rev John Jarvie of Falkland and Freuchie, reported its findings to a meeting of St Andrews Presbytery. Details of the nature of the complaint or its source have never been disclosed. Mr Jarvie has been restored to full ministerial duties and took services in the villages on Sunday.
Source: Fife Now - Fife Herald.
posted at 9:20 PM

The restoration of a church in Leslie, Fife, has been given a major cash boost by the Cadogan Charity. It has donated ?10,000 toward the cost of repairing St Mary Mother of God, which was gutted by fire in May.
Source: Fife Now - Glenrothes Gazette.
posted at 9:15 PM

The minister of Kilsyth Burns and Old Parish Church is moving on after 21 years. Alastair McLachlan (59), a native of Renfrew, will be minister of Craignish, linked with Kilninver and Kilmelford, Argyll.
Source: Cumbernauld Today - Cumbernauld & Kilsyth Advertiser.
posted at 9:11 PM

St Aidan's Church in Galashiels has welcomed a new minister, Rev Morag Dawson, who has moved to the Borders from Irvine.
Source: Border Telegraph.
posted at 9:08 PM

Rev Bill Laing has become the first incomer to collect Selkirk Merchant Company's 'Personality of the Year' award. Bill (81) moved from Drumchapel in Glasgow to Selkirk in 1963, where he became the first, and last, minister of St Mary's West Church. He retired in 1986.
Source: Border Telegraph.
posted at 9:07 PM

Tributes have been paid to the Rev Norman Macpherson, a former minister of St Mary's South Church, Blairgowrie, who died last month.
Source: icPerthshire - Blairgowrie Advertiser.
posted at 8:58 PM

Campaigners battling to reverse a decision to close Stirling's Holy Trinity Episcopal Primary School are being backed by SNP MSP Bruce Crawford.
Source: icStirlingshire - Stirling Observer.
posted at 8:54 PM

Kirkcudbright Parish Church is to be open for 24 hours during the Christmas season to afford opportunity for the community to 'knee-mail' God.
Source: icDumfries - Galloway News.
posted at 8:49 PM

A Protestant teenager who daubed Irish Catholic sectarian slogans on the walls of a kirk - Redding and Westquarter Parish Church, in Falkirk - in attempt to get others into trouble was caught because he couldn't spell.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 8:32 PM

Life & Work celebrates its 125th anniversary in January 2004 with a 68-page issue - the biggest ever published - as editor Lynne Robertson takes a look back at its colourful history. Also in this special issue of the Church of Scotland's magazine, Grand Prix legend Sir Jackie Stewart talks about his deep-seated religious beliefs and the disease which has struck his family. Rev Dr Mary Levison, who pioneered the path of women to the pulpit, speaks frankly about the election of the first woman Moderator-Designate, Dr Alison Elliot. And a competition has been launched to foster new Christian art.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 12:24 AM

The December edition of Baptist Union of Scotland News is now online.
posted at 12:18 AM

Christmas celebrations are cancelled in Bethlehem this year and only a Christmas tree and few ornaments will be erected at Manger Square.
Source: Anglican Communion News Service.
posted at 12:12 AM

A minister is to get a complete makeover on TV reality show The Salon after pals' jokes about her being the Vicar of Dibley left her hot under the dog collar. The Rev Jill Clancy of St John's Church in Gourock decided she needed a new look after being saddled with the nickname ever since she studied divinity.
Source: Evening Times, Glasgow.
posted at 11:00 PM

A rural Aberdeenshire community will come together this week for a carol service in historic Keig Church, near Alford, which they recently saved.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.
posted at 10:57 PM

Christmas message from the Moderator of the Church of Scotland's General Assembly.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 10:48 PM

The Anglican Cycle of Prayer for 2004-2005 is now available online.
Source: Anglican Communion News Service.
posted at 5:24 PM

Cardinal Keith O'Brien is calling on Scottish Catholics to support marriage and the family and to build "a culture of life" in Scotland. A letter tol be read at masses in Scotland on the weekend of 27/28 December explains what steps bishops will be taking in 2004 towards achieving these goals, including leaflets and a dedicated website.
Source: Scottish Catholic Media Office news release.
posted at 5:22 PM

Lothian Presbytery have shown their appreciation to three Church of Scotland ministers with service totalling 160 years.
Source: East Lothian Courier.
posted at 7:29 PM

St Andrew's High Church in Musselburgh is to be allowed to call a new minister 18 months after the suspension and resignation of the previous incumbent following his conviction on a gay sex charge.
Source: East Lothian Courier.
posted at 7:26 PM

Former music teacher Valerie Cuthbertson of Cumbernauld Old Parish Church has been ordained deacon by Jeanette McNaughton, deaconess at Condorrat Parish Church, in what is thought could be the first instance of one deacon being ordained by another in the Church of Scotland.
Source: Cumbernauld Today - Cumbernauld & Kilsyth Advertiser.
posted at 7:22 PM

Peter Grover has been appointed pastor of Glenview Evangelical Church in Gartness, Airdrie, a year after fleeing Islamabad following the terrorist attack which left six people dead at Murree Christian School, where his children were pupils.
Source: icLanarkshire - Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser.
posted at 7:12 PM

The GBP 250,000 restoration of the west window at St Ninian's Episcopal Cathedral in Perth has been completed almost two years after the building suffered extensive storm damage.
Source: icPerthshire - Perthshire Advertiser.
posted at 7:07 PM

The collection and associated fundraising at this year's Salvation Army community carol service in Kilmarnock will benefit the Al Amara schools scheme in Iraq.
Source: icAyrshire - Kilmarnock Standard.
posted at 6:58 PM

Angry parents forced councillors to run a gauntlet of protests after they decided to shut a Dumfries Catholic school. Families from St Teresa's hoped a previous decision to close their school would be overturned at a full council meeting. But it was voted down, 20-18.
Source: icDumfries - Dumfries & Galloway Standard.
posted at 6:49 PM

A judge was yesterday asked to stand down from the trial of three alleged Loyalist terrorists because he is a Catholic. Edgar Prais, QC, submitted a motion at the High Court in Kilmarnock calling on Lord Hardie to remove himself from the bench. Prais claimed that the judge should not sit in judgment on three men alleged to be members of Protestant paramilitary groups the Ulster Defence Association and the Ulster Freedom Fighters. Lord Hardie rejected the motion.
Source: Daily Record.
posted at 1:32 PM

"Many fall and cannot rise without a helping hand - that hand could be yours." So says Cardinal Keith O'Brien in his New Year reflection for 2004.
Source: Scottish Catholic Media Office news release.
posted at 12:41 PM

Mr John Oates, Field Officer for the Catholic Education Commission, has retired. He will continue to serve as the representative of the Bishops' Conference of Scotland on the General Teaching Council.
Source: Scottish Catholic Media Office news release.
posted at 10:53 PM

In a bid to solve its chronic recruitment crisis, the Catholic Church in Scotland has agreed to cut the time it takes to train a priest from six years to as little as four. Men in their 40s, 50s, and 60s are being fast-tracked into the priesthood by treating their extensive life experience as the equivalent of up to two years in college studying theology.
Source: Scotland on Sunday.
posted at 9:47 PM

More than two hundred years after the Scottish Englightement philosopher David Hume first tried to drive religion out of human affairs, could it be that God is now staging a Millennial comeback? Why in this secular age, when little more than 10% of British people go to church, is Number 10 Downing Street inhabited by an avowedly religious politician? Why are so many of Blair's New Labour apostles - like David Blunkett, Jack Straw and Estelle Morris - devout Christians, when most Labour voters would run a mile rather than go to church? Even in Scotland, since devolution, the Church seems to be exerting an increasing influence over secular affairs.
Source: Sunday Herald.
posted at 9:47 PM

A new academic study has found that those who celebrate the Christian trappings of Christmas feel far better than those who worship at the altar of crass materialism. "Religious people seem to have a greater purpose in life, which is why they are happier," says Dr Stephen Joseph of the University of Warwick, who carried out the survey.
Source: Sunday Herald.
posted at 9:47 PM

An Inverness minister is reaching for the sky - as a padre in the Royal Air Force. The Reverend (Flight Lieutenant) Alasdair Nicoll served as a minister at Anstruther Baptist Church before joining the RAF earlier this year.
Source: Highland News.
posted at 7:30 PM

Three new stained glass windows have been dedicated at Gullane Parish Church.
Source: East Lothian Courier.
posted at 7:25 PM

A Burnside minister has been appointed as the chairman of Children in Need Scotland. Rev Stuart MacQuarrie will help decide where the money raised by the BBC's annual charity appeal - whose mascot is Pudsey Bear - will go throughout Scotland.
Source: icLanarkshire - Rutherglen Reformer.
posted at 7:19 PM

Nine East Kilbride churches are praised in the latest edition of a book highlighting the nation's most interesting places of worship. 'Churches To Visit In Scotland' is produced annually by the Scotland's Churches Scheme.
Source: icLanarkshire - East Kilbride News.
posted at 7:14 PM

The long-awaited training suite and additional accommodation for the Salvation Army in Perth have been officially opened.
Source: icPerthshire - Perthshire Advertiser.
posted at 7:08 PM

The word of God has literally been stopping traffic in Perth. Perth Christian Centre has spent thousands of pounds on a formidable billboard campaign to reach members of the public this Christmas.
Source: icPerthshire - Perthshire Advertiser.
posted at 7:06 PM

On Tuesday 9 December in St Andrew's and St George's Church of Scotland in Edinburgh, 150 children will take part in the official opening of the Sunflower Garden Project, which helps children affected by drug use in their family.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 6:21 PM

Pupils of St. David's primary school in Dalkeith today handed over a cheque for ?1000 to the Missionary Children's Society to pay for meals for orphan children in St Charles Community Academy in Zambia.
Source: Scottish Catholic Media Office news release.
posted at 6:19 PM

The Kirk's Moderator, Iain Torrance, professor of patristics and Christian ethics at Aberdeen University, who has previously sparked controversy with his support for the ordination of homosexual ministers, said yesterday he viewed civil partnerships as a matter of justice rather than religion and called for the legislation to be extended to partners of opposite sex. The Rev Iain Greenshield of Snizort, Skye, expressed "disappointment" at the comments. "I am very, very disappointed if that's his position. I think it is taking us a step further away from our Christian faith."
Source: The Herald.
posted at 5:53 PM

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland has said civil partnerships should be available for heterosexual as well as gay couples. Professor Iain Torrance claimed such a move would allow people to have "greater faithfulness and greater structures in their lives".
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 5:49 PM

The Kirk in Caithness is calling on the Ministry of Defence to torpedo plans to use a Far North site to store reactor compartments of redundant nuclear submarines. Dubbing the proposal ludicrous, the area's Church of Scotland Presbytery fears that the go-ahead would open the door to the import of other radioactive debris from the UK and overseas.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.
posted at 5:43 PM

Speaking of the relationship of Christian faith to government, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland has told MPs at Westminster that Christianity looks forward to a better future when the world will be re-created - but is not committed to being self-satisfied or to moralism. He said: "Christianity is not committed to moralism but is about transformation, new life and possibilities, not a catalogue of backward looking and condemnatory should have dones or worse still, shouldn't have dones."
Source: Church of Scotland news release.

posted at 5:37 PM

British people are being urged by a Methodist development agency not to buy a Christmas tree this year. Instead, by helping to plant trees in Africa and Asia this Christmas, they will be ensuring farmers and their families have enough to eat in future festive seasons.
Source: Methodist Church News.
posted at 6:19 PM

The Evangelical Alliance UK has accused the Government of trying to "pull the wool over the public's eyes" in its controversial Gender Recognition Bill. The Bill, which is "ill-conceived" and will turn upside-down common sense understanding of what it means to be 'male' and 'female' is, says the Alliance, being sneaked through because the Government realises that amongst its consequences will be the creation of institutional secrecy, same sex marriages and deception.
Source: Evangelical Alliance news release.
posted at 6:15 PM

Obituary of the Rev Professor James B Torrance; born 23 February, 1923, died 15 November, 2003, aged 80. 'Inspiring' may be an over-used word, but it is hard to avoid it when speaking of Professor James B Torrance, who recently died suddenly at his home in Edinburgh. As a theologian, teacher, preacher, colleague, father, husband and grandfather he modelled a way of life that proved to be an inspiration to thousands.
Source: The Scotsman.
posted at 10:05 AM

A priest has been attacked by a gang of youths in his church car park. Father Dominic Towey ended up in hospital after being hit by a brick and beaten with the branch of a tree during the assault at St John Ogilvie's in Blantyre, near Glasgow.
Source: Daily Record.
posted at 9:59 AM

An ancient Pictish stone could be removed from Kinellar Church in Aberdeenshire after almost 200 years. Church of Scotland authorities want permission to remove the sculptured stone - along with the pews, pulpit, church bell and its carved bellcote - before the church is advertised for sale. The 202-year-old kirk closed in 1990 and is soon to be put on the market.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.
posted at 9:55 AM

Churches in Fife will focus on HIV/AIDS this Sunday, 7 December, at an ecumenical service in Dunfermline Abbey. Organised by Dunfermline Presbytery, it will involve members of the Roman Catholic Church and the Salvation Army. The service will be addressed by the Rev Nigel Pounde, the Kirk's HIV/AIDS Project co-ordinator.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.
posted at 4:23 PM

The new bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen was ordained yesterday. More than 500 parishioners filled St Mary's Cathedral to witness the ordination of the Right Reverend Peter Moran, 68, during a mass at noon. Bishop Moran was parish priest of the Catholic church in Inverurie for 10 years and recently the administrator of Aberdeen diocese when his predecessor, Mario Conti, moved to become Archbishop of Glasgow.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.
posted at 1:43 PM

A historic Glasgow church is to undergo thousands of pounds of emergency repairs before Christmas. Kelvinside Hillhead Parish Church, which dates back to 1876, needs ?57,000 of work to stop water pouring in its roof.
Source: Evening Times, Glasgow.
posted at 4:45 PM

From December 2, new legislation comes into effect in the UK which formalises and extends the rights of employees of any faith to take time off work for religious observance. The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 prohibit direct and indirect discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief. Employers do not have to grant requests if they conflict with operational needs, but do risk liability for direct discrimination if they refuse to grant leave because of the employee's religion or belief.
Source: The Guardian.
posted at 4:44 PM

Churches Together in Britain and Ireland is moving its office from the building in Waterloo it has shared with Christian Aid since 1987. From Monday 15 December 2003 their address will be Bastille Court, 2 Paris Garden, London SE1 8ND. The new general phone number will be 020 7654 7254; fax 020 7654 7222. Email and web site addresses remain the same: info@ctbi.org.uk and www.ctbi.org.uk.
posted at 4:43 PM