You must be tired listening to me suggesting that I have the best Sunday morning journeys of any bishop in the Anglican Communion. But .. through Crieff and Comrie … along Loch Earn with snow on the mountains around Lochearnhead … up Glen Ogle .. down to Killin where the Falls of Dochart were at their spectacular best.
I find the soul of the SEC in places like this – fragile and warm little churches tucked away in beautiful places – keeping a flame of sacramental worship alive. They probably remind me of childhood experiences of rural Church of Ireland churches in Co Cork. My grandmother wearing her hat – but not her coat – singing loudly and playing the organ while some stout-hearted member of the congregation pumped.
Our Tin Tab at Killin may have all sorts of structural and other problems which you would rather not know about. But it is warm and friendly and it shares its warmth with the Roman Catholics after we have headed off for lunch. Which today was the entire congregation of 19 gathered around Angus and Jill’s hospitable table. And then back up Glen Ogle in the snow.
Tough but somebody, etc., etc.
Strange…..that’s exactly how Provost Kelvin started his sermon on ‘Yahweh, Breath of God’ a few months ago!
Aah!
The Tin Tab holds , great memories for us. I took our little Choir Angelus, to hold the Service of Sung Evensong there in June of last year. It should have been a nice day, but rather cloudy and cold. We held the practice in the local C of S, where we were royally-treated to a lovely tea before processing into St Fillans. I understand that it was the first time since 1984 that Evensong had been held there, so we were really-chuffed that there was a reasonable turn-out from the village.
Lovely people, lovely church, and lovely occasion!
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