Sunday 1st October is the day when our congregations celebrate their Harvest Festivals.
There will be services as follows:
St Maelrubha’s, Lairg (in Lairg Church of Scotland) at 8:30am
St Finnbarr’s, Dornoch at 11:00am
St Andrew’s, Tain at 11:00am – followed by a ‘Bring and Share‘ Harvest Lunch (this is also a ‘Bring a friend to Church‘ Sunday in St Andrew’s)
All are welcome, just come along.
Harvest Festival
Take care that you do not forget the Lord your God, by failing to keep his commandments, his ordinances, and his statutes, which I am commanding you today. When you have eaten your fill and have built fine houses and live in them, and when your herds and flocks have multiplied, and your silver and gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied, then do not exalt yourself, forgetting the Lord your God
After the remembrance of the Last Supper at which +Mark washed the feet of members of the congregation, we moved to the Garden where we wtched and waited with our Lord.
This morning we walk the way of the Cross in Ardgay/Bonar Bridge in witness to His Passion, we reflect on His final hour in Brora this afternoon and this evening we relive His Passion again in Tain in a service of Tenebrae, with Communion from the Reserved Sacrament.
The walk will consist of Eight stops, with a variable amount of walking between them. There is room for at least a few cars at each stops and so it will be possible for those who cannot or do not wish to walk the whole route to participate by adjusting the amount of walking required to suit their needs.
The walk will start in the car park adjacent to Kincardine Church in Ardgay and will end at Creich Church in Bonar Bridge, where there will be Hot Cross buns and tea/coffee available. The walk itself will commence at 10:15am and we should arrive at Creich Church by about 11:50am.
At each stop, there will be a Reading from Scripture, a short Reflection and a Prayer As we leave heading towards the next stop, we’ll sing a hymn. We will carry a large rough wooden cross throughout the walk.
The stops are as follows (time are rather approximate):
Kincardine Church car park (@10:15)
Ardgay Hall car park (@10:35)
Drover’s stone near Ardgay Station (@10:45)
‘Stonehenge’ just the Ardgay side of the Bridge(@11:10)
Garden adjacent to the Caley Cafe(@11:20)
Car Park behind the Bonar Health Centre(@11:30)
Grassy area just beyond the Bradbury Centre(@11:40)
May God give us the wisdom and courage to tell the stories of faith that transform lives.
Services
Brora
St Columba’s Episcopal Church, Victoria Road, Brora
2:00pm
Dornoch
Oversteps Care Home, Earls Cross Road, Dornoch
West Church Hall, Sutherland Road, Dornoch
11:00am
2:00pm
Tain Area
Kilmuir & Logie Easter Church Of Scotland, on the B817 at Kilmuir
3:00pm
Lairg
Lairg Church of Scotland, Church Hill, Lairg
7:00pm
All are Welcome at any of these services
“For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light – for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.“
Ash Wednesday Eucharists next week on 22nd February 2023, where the imposition of ashes will be available for those who wish, will be held as follows:
10:30am – St Finnbarr’s, Dornoch
6:00pm – St Andrew’s, Tain
Both services will be followed with a short introduction to the Lent Self-Study materials (“Opening the scriptures: setting our hearts on fire”) for those that are interested.
(Please note that there will be NO Thursday midweek service at St Andrew’s, Tain on 23rd February)
“I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power”
(Ephesians 1:15-19)
May God give us the wisdom and courage to tell the stories of faith that transform lives.
One of the World Day of Prayer Guiding Principles is that ‘Prayer is rooted in listening to God and to one another‘.
The theme of the worship service “I Have Heard About Your Faith,” based on the letter to the Ephesians, is an invitation to active listening, which is the ground of our prayers. Following the example of the letter (1:15-19), where the author praises the church for their faith in Jesus and love toward all the saints, the service this year makes this personal through the witness of the saints with stories from the lives of women in Taiwan.
The service shares the letters of encouragement sent to women who faced suffering and injustice. Their stories of faith concern issues that are shared by women and girls around the world and that continue to challenge us to prayerful action. They remind us of the urgency to protect the environment and have a nuclear-free homeland; to be aware of the gender stereotypes women face when challenging the traditional role in the workplace or in the family, and to care for the healing of the victims of verbal and sexual abuse.
It also encourages us to think about the hidden struggle of the essential workers, who during the pandemic, had to balance work and family in a vulnerable economic situation both in Taiwan and elsewhere. The sisters, who prepared the service, thank God for the natural resources of their island and pray for wisdom in face of the political isolation of Taiwan in the international community. They ask for our prayers.
Services Locally
Brora
St Columba’s Episcopal Church, Victoria Road, Brora
2:00pm
Dornoch
Oversteps Care Home, Earls Cross Road, Dornoch
West Church Hall, Sutherland Road, Dornoch
11:00am
2:00pm
Tain Area
Kilmuir & Logie Easter Church Of Scotland, on the B817 at Kilmuir
3:00pm
Lairg
Lairg Church of Scotland, Church Hill, Lairg
7:00pm
All are Welcome at any of these services
“For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light – for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.“
Scottish Episcopal Church - Dornoch, Lairg, Brora, Tain & Tongue 