During June, July and August
St Finnbarr’s Charities Shop
will be open even longer
From 10:00am until 4:00pm
Notices
Pilgrimage Route between Tain and Kirkwall
At a time of growing interest in the reviving of ancient pilgrimage routes, the North of Scotland is playing its part. A national organisation, the Scottish Pilgrimage Routes Forum, is overseeing the development of a route from Tain to Kirkwall, linking the medieval shrines of St. Duthac and St. Magnus.
At a meeting of interested parties, held in Tain in April, the route was named the Northern Pilgrims Way. It will largely avoid roads, following footpaths and tracks suitable for walking and cycling. Much of it will provide the traveller with magnificent coastal scenery, as well as experience of the unique Flow Country in Caithness and Sutherland.
It is hoped that publicity will attract not only dedicated pilgrims, intent upon travelling the whole way, but will also provide the opportunity for visitors to enjoy walking a section of the route to add interest to their holiday in the area.
The Pilgrimage Church in the centre of Tain will be the focus for the start of the journey. It contains a medieval statue of St. Duthac, preserved by the people of Tain for nearly six centuries. Visitors to the Church are welcome when Tain and District Museum is open, all weekdays from April to October, plus all Saturdays in the summer.
The 90Kg Rice Challenge
St Finnbarr’s Vestry have bought 90Kg of Kilombero White Rice from Just Trading Scotland, who deal directly with Malawian farmers. This is what is called The 90Kg Rice Challenge.
JTS say: “The 90kg Rice Challenge runs throughout the whole year and is the perfect social enterprise activity for your school, church or community group covering a range issues which are prevalent in today’s society including Fairtrade, Sustainability, Social Enterprise and Citizenship. Over 800 schools, churches and community groups have completed this already – so why not join them? It is a fun and engaging project with excellent learning outcomes to promote Fairtrade, Sustainability and Citizenship. It’s easy to organise and comes with an educational Challenge Pack, we have one for schools and one for churches, which feature plenty of information, lesson plans (or sermon outlines and prayers), ideas, promotional materials, recipes and activities to teach participants about Fairtrade which will be sent to you along with your 90 x 1kg bags of delicious Great Taste award winning rice.”
Anna and I have tried the rice and confirm that it does indeed have a “Great Taste“. The rice is available in 1Kg bags at £3 each. Please contact Anna or James if you are able to use or sell a few bags, whilst at the same time helping directly farmers in a part of the world that is facing huge problems just at the moment in the aftermath of Cyclone Idai.
90kg is the amount of rice a farmer in Malawi has to sell to enable him to send a child to secondary school for a year and so we can see that our participation can directly help to provide a better life for those in some of the poorest communities in Malawi, through the opportunity of education.
Lenten Reflections -Revd Julia – 21st March
Easter Ross Inter-Church Group
has asked Revd Julia to offer some
Lenten Reflections
on Thursday 21st March 2019
at 7:30pm
at St Ninian’s, Invergordon
All are Welcome
Inverness Cathedral Welcome Team
Within the next few weeks the 2019 cruise season is about to start. The first ship arrives at the end of March. It was a successful year last year with visitors from around the world. The forecast increase in numbers of visitors from both the Cruise Ship industry and the wider tourist industry is set to continue with significant increases.
We would very much like to invite you for your help. As many of you will know the set down point in the city is right outside the Cathedral West Doors and we wish to be able to share a Highland welcome with as many people as possible- this will help us with the planned hospitality to share our celebrations of 150 years.
If you can spare any time and would like to be a part of the welcome at the Cathedral (appreciating that many of you are busy in their own churches and communities), and would like to help out, perhaps on a regular or semi-regular basis or as a one off Welcomer then please do contact Andrew Ritchie, the Inverness Cathedral Welcome Team Coordinator at welcometeam@invernesscathedral.org
Lent Study Groups 2019
This Lent the Study Groups will focus on the Sacraments: what are they, what do they do, why are they so important in our tradition and even how many are there? The five sessions will provide the opportunity to explore these questions, and is always the case other questions that arise out of the discussion in a friendly, supportive environment.
This year there will be two groups, both will be held on Wednesdays on 13th, 20th & 27th March and 3rd & 10th April:
- 2:00pm at James and Anna’s house in Spinningdale
(if you want to come and don’t know where that is, just ask) - 7:00pm in St Andrew’s Hall
Come to whichever is most convenient and if that varies from week to week, you can mix and match. If you can’t manage to all five sessions, just come to those you can – they will each be largely self-contained.
Sessions will be a little over an hour long and will be followed by refreshments and fellowship. All are welcome, you don’t need to be a fully paid-up member of the Scottish Episcopal Church, or indeed any church.
Crask Weekend Services
From Saturday 2nd February, there will be a Eucharist on the First Saturday of each month starting at 5:00pm. This is in addition to the established pattern of services on the Third Thursday of the month at noon. There will no longer be a monthly Sunday evening Eucharist at the Crask.
On the Feast of Stephen
After the business and excitement of Christmas Day, perhaps a peaceful and relaxing St Stephen’s Day, although the prospect of ‘deep, crisp and even‘ snow seems rather remote given the temperature today.
Hereabouts we had very busy gathering at our midnight and Christmas Day services and there is still time to sing more carols at the Carol Services at The Crask on Thursday @ 2pm or at St Andrew’s Tain on Friday @ 3pm.
Many blessings for the remainder of Christmastide.
Kerala Flood Relief – An appeal
In the recent weeks, the state of Kerala in India was subjected to severe destruction caused by unprecedented flooding. At least 350 people lost their lives, (there are many more that are not recorded) thousands watched their homes washed away in floods and landslides and thousands, particularly the poor people living in fragile houses in rural areas, lost everything they had, swept away.
The Church of South India (CSI) and the other churches in the region have been actively engaged in rescue operations and in organising provisions of shelter and basic supplies to the displaced. Churches and their colleges and schools have been turned into emergency shelters and medical camps. Our colleagues and friends, who are priests and leaders of churches in these areas, are seeking the prayers and help of the global community as they continue their rescue and relief efforts for the affected people.
Revd Hamilton Imbadas (St John’s Forres) has been in touch with a few of his friends (priests in the CSI Central Kerala Diocese), who are continuing to be directly involved in rescue, relief and rehabilitation work. They report:
“All six Dioceses in Kerala were affected. East Kerala Diocese, Kochi Diocese and Madhya Kerala Diocese were the worst affected. Churches in the region are heavily involved in helping the affected people in various ways, alongside government’s response teams, other faith communities and volunteer groups. Work is coordinated by the Clergy with the active involvement of the Youth.
During the flooding itself, a team of volunteers from churches worked online connecting those needed rescues with those involved in the rescue operations and saved many lives. As people are starting to return to their houses, (or what is left of their houses) volunteers from churches are engaged in cleaning the mud-filled houses.
The CSI Central Kerala Diocese has formed ‘Flood Rescue-Relief-Rehabilitation Facilitating Committee’ to coordinate the assessment of need and relief and rehabilitation activities, which would involve repair and rebuilding of houses, replacement of furniture and home appliances, books for school and college students, in addition to continuing to provide food and clothes. With all sources of freshwater contaminated, health issues are emerging, and churches contribute to the responses to such needs as well.”
It would be a timely help if we can offer our support to our brothers and sisters in Kerala who are trying their best to assist the most affected and the neediest in the aftermath of the disastrous floods.
I can get further details from Hamilton and this could be where we send our Harvest Collection, let me know what you think.
James
Charities Shop Autumn Opening Hours
From Monday 3rd September, the 2018 Autumn opening hours for St Finnbarr’s Charity Shop in Dornoch will be 10.00- 1.00 Monday to Saturday.
Scottish Episcopal Church - Dornoch, Lairg, Brora, Tain & Tongue 