it seeks out the one sheep out of the hundred ; as it seeks to do the unusual thing for the sake of righteousness , instead of the safe thing , for the sake of appearance .
May the Easter season be for you a time of liberation and a challenge to live out the freedom so hard won , by the Liberator of all liberators the risen Jesus .
Best wishes
Scott
A
StOM Page 4
THE DIOCESAN SYNOD – A FRESHER ’ S VIEW
s the Lay Rep of St Oswald ’ s I attended the Synod held in Paisley on 7
March . It started with a Fresher ’ s meeting , and I could not have been fresher . It was a rather daunting task , but turned out to be a most stimulating and uplifting experience . This is why I want to tell you about it .
The Eucharist at the start was a moving experience , you felt surrounded by a ‘ cloud of witnesses ’, like in a large cathedral congregation at Christmas .
When Synod members filed into the Church , I caught sight of many familiar faces – Alan Boyd gave me a hug , there were Paul Fletcher and Sally Gorton , and of course our three wise men , the Canons Paul , Nicholas and Scott , the latter frequently addressed as ‘ the Chair ’. Tom Montgomery from St Ninian ’ s in Troon was obviously pleased to meet me , I had only met him 18 years ago at St Margaret ’ s , Newland and remembered him as ‘ tall , dark and handsome ’, while he described himself as ‘ looking like Postman Pat ’. Not a bit , but still handsome . He is going to baptise our granddaughter on Easter Sunday .
When it came to the business conducted , some votes were cast and appointments made , Donald Orr , Ghost of Interregnums Past , got some job with the Dean . At first I thought he was made the Dean , but the Bishop told us that the Dean had been in his position for 9 years and that this needed to be reviewed only next year . The Dean introduced his vision of ‘ St Mary ’ s For All ’, the project of transforming the historic church of St Mary ’ s , Hamilton into a ‘ Centre to celebrate the Christian message ’ and to include the local community . This sounds like Pioneer Ministry in Hamilton . Just you wait until we have our own Pioneer Minister in situ , it will be ‘ St Oswald ’ s for All ’ next . A similar project was introduced for St Mary ’ s Cathedral , but this hasn ’ t got further than fundraising , while Hamilton has already started working in the community , although the buildings are not yet finished .
After an excellent lunch ( glass of wine included ) we got updates from Development Team Convenors . The Worship & Liturgy Team , represented by Gill Young and Linda Whitby , talked about the character of each community made obvious by the liturgy in Worship , Welcome and Prayer Life , and that an inter-diocesan network could be called upon for advice where the team could