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Summer 2001 Newsletter of
Monikie and Newbigging Church.

    This version of the Church Magazine was supplied to the webmaster in 'native' format, and remains substantially unchanged.

The Manse, Monikie
Summer 2002

Dear Fellow Parishioners,

“The summer days are come again”. The writer of this hymn was Samuel Longfellow, a Unitarian and brother of the poet Henry. “For summer joy in field and wood, we lift our song to him”. The hymn – writer intended it to be sung in the open air. We certainly hope that many of the occasions we are planning can be held successfully out of doors- the Garden Party at the General Assembly, the Jubilee Celebrations and our own church walk. Of course we all have our happy memories of summer days and know only too well how fleeting they are. Although the hymn will be left out of the projected new hymnary we will look on it with fondness for its evocation of “happy moods of love and joy and prayer.”

A blissful summer to you all!

Yours sincerely,

Gordon Mackenzie.

• 7^th Newbigging (with coffee)
• 14^th Monikie
• 21^st Newbigging
• 28^th Monikie

Mr. Stuart Munro resigned recently as Clerk to the Board. Stuart has been thanked for the excellent work he did on our behalf during the past four years. Mrs Fiona Gibb has been appointed Clerk to the Congregational Board. We wish her well in her new position.

Some new members were voted onto the Congregational Board at the Annual Business meeting held on Sunday 3^rd March. For reference purposes here follows a list of Board and Session members:-

• Session Clerk - Janet Sim
• David Anderson
• Stewart Anton
• Dorothy Booth
• Rae Gray
• Bill Johnston
• Sandy McKay
• Roy Matthews
• Rob Millar
• Bill Mitchell
• Angus Nicoll
• Les Riddick
• Doris Ritchie
• Bill Ritchie
• Sandy Smeaton
• Congregational Board
• Clerk - Fiona Gibb
• Margaret Anton
• Ian Belford
• Jean Fairlie
• Mabel Kettles
• Doreen McHardy
• Gordon Millar
• Margaret Riddick
• Catherine Ross
• Elizabeth Scott
• Jim Young

Guild News

The Guild met for the final time in Newbigging Church on Wednesday 1st of May when our speaker was Mr. David Richardson. Mr. Richardson is a fundraiser for Rachel House and he gave us a very interesting insight into the founding of the Hospice. He showed us some slides and told us a bit about the new Hospice which is being planed for a site near Loch Lomond On the evening our collection of £120.00 was donated to Rachel House

It is with much regret that we now have had to disband the Guild but maybe some day in the future, if enough people were interested, we might be able to form the branch again

Rae Gray

As the official agency of 40 denominations in the UK and Ireland, Christian Aid enables people to do together what they could never do by themselves. It takes the 'mustard seed' which each individual can offer and allows it to grow dramatically. It supports work in over 60 countries worldwide enabling poor people, regardless of their religion, to help themselves. Working through local organisations – 'partners' – in those countries, Christian Aid is able to:

• listen to those people to understand what causes their poverty
• fund local projects that bring about long-term benefits for poor

people
• campaign so that their case is put to those who have the

power to change things
• give aid promptly when emergencies arise.

You will be well aware that the names of the servicemen who died in the World Wars are commemorated on plaques, which are situated in the two churches. Monikie War Memorial Hall forms the physical memorial to the dead of this Parish.

The names from the plaques have, for some time now, appeared on The Monikie Website, on the Hall webpage at www.monikie.org.uk/momemhal.htm. Colin has recently been researching the persons whose names are listed and already some information is available. He is now asking for your help - he requests that any reader who has family or other knowledge of those servicemen should contact him on 370329 or by letter or email (details on website) so that the information he has can be checked, and additional information can be collated. It has proved particularly difficult to get information for the servicemen of the First World War.
It is only proper, that as memories fade, that those who gave their lives for their country should be properly recorded. It is intended to produce a few printed versions of the eventual list with the details collected.

PARISH REGISTER 

February 23^rd Simon J Arbuckle to Laura Anne Metcalfe, Glasgow University Chapel

February 23^rd Robert Petrie, 21 Pitairlie Road, Newbigging

 March 15^th Thomas Anderson, 12 School Road, Newbigging

Bob had many talents. He was good with his hands and loved playing the accordion with his friends. Bob had a good sense of humour and a quiet independence. By nature he was a hard worker.

Together with Eva, his late wife, Tom was part of a devoted couple. He was a skilled piper and loved breeding birds, especially canaries. Tam worked as a self-employed painter and decorator after his army career ended on his being wounded in France.

Prayer Warriors Needed

How would you like to impact the lives of children and young people in Scotland from the comfort of your own home Impact (Summer Mission) are looking to start up small prayer cell groups in various locations across the country. These groups would meet a couple of times a year to pray for Impact Teams

FLOWER LIST - NEWBIGGING CHURCH

There is a flower list in the vestibule of Newbigging Church and anyone who wishes to put flowers in the Church is asked to add their name to an appropriate date. Alternatively if you do not at present know a suitable date but would like to be asked to contribute flowers in the future, I would grateful if you would contact me on 01241 852061. It is far easier if willing volunteers let me know rather than be missed out.

KIRK WALK

The Kirk Walk is to be held on the Saturday 15^th June. Sandy McKay and I have been tramping the hills and studying maps and guides looking for a suitable route for our annual away day. We had a wonderful walk on a glorious day in Glen Artney walking towards Ben Vorlich. Regrettably the road in Glen Artney and the southern Loch Earn road are unsuitable for coaches. Another approach for this walk is from Callander but the road there is no better. Glen Artney is well worth a visit if you are in the Comrie area. There is a car park and a picnic area beside Glen Artney Church, which can also be reached on foot following a track from Comrie, on the other side of the river - the Water of Ruchill. On a less favourable day we ventured north from St. Fillans but nevertheless enjoyed an interesting walk but this time the track petered out leaving an area of open hillside between it and another track down to Killin. We are hopeful that the Blair Atholl area will provide us with a circular route following part of the Minigaig. Whatever route is finally chosen, (approximately 10 miles) I am sure it will turn out as usual to be a good day for fresh air, exercise and fellowship. If you would like to join us please contact Sandy McKay on 01241 853030 to book your place on the bus or for further information. The more participants - the cheaper the cost!

To try and improve Church Funds this is to be a sponsored walk - instead of sponsoring an individual you are asked to sponsor or find sponsors for the collective group. A sponsor form will be included with this newsletter. Please use it to gather donations from your family & friends or alternatively add your name to one of the forms in either Church.

Dorothy Booth

Glasgow Churches Together have launched the 2002 Common Prayer Initiative for any interested churches of all denominations across Scotland. Churches are asked to use the following prayer as part of their worship throughout June. They have a different prayer for each month.

Prayer for June
God of Singing and Dancing,
praying, in oneness,

In Jesus' name. Amen. 

Although I am just an ordinary country ‘wifie’ I thought I would try to contribute a little something to the Church Newsletter, which I usually read from cover to cover. As we are less than a month away from the Queen’s Golden Jubilee and I have always been a great royalist like my mother before me and having been born the same year as Her Majesty makes me more of a royalist than ever. At the time of the Coronation my husband, son and I were living in the Forfar area and in the morning of the 2^nd June 1953 my husband’s main concern was that his early tatties had been frosted. What a catastrophe for someone as dedicated as himself, you would have thought the end of the world had come! I can laugh about that now but it seemed serious at the time even though later in the day we were to witness a great occasion in the life of the British nation as there had been a television installed in the local hall and we were invited to attend.

My daughter was born three days before the end of the Coronation Year so her middle name had to be Elizabeth.

I have lived in Newbigging for forty years, the longest I have lived anywhere so there must be something I’m doing right!

Annie Todd

Another article from the series ‘Down The Ages’by Rev Douglas Chisholm written during the Silver Jubilee Year 1977. This article can be viewed on the Monikie Website website, www.monikie.org.uk  (..and is not reproduced again here).

The Queen during her Golden Jubilee Visit to Scotland will attend the opening of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland on Saturday 25^th May and attend St Giles Cathedral on Sunday 26^th May. On Thursday 23^rd May she will attend a Service of Thanksgiving at Glasgow Cathedral.

Thanks to all contributors to this edition of the Church Magazine.

Articles for the next edition by Sunday 4^th August, please.

DB

Editor

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