Blog

  • Consultation on Civil Partnerships and Same-Sex Marriage

    This week the Scottish Government’s consultation on civil partnerships and same-sex marriage comes to a close. The Scottish Episcopal Church’s response has been prepared by the Faith and Order Board which Bishop Gregor convenes and that will be published some time in the next few days. It would be surprising if that formal response contained…

  • Pestilence, Famine, War and Death

    When I was speaking about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in the pulpit on Sunday it was with some hope that they might be regarded as merely allegorical figures. Alas, now I have heard the news that Harry Ramsden’s is to close. Not the johnny-come-lately chain that bears the name, but the real thing,…

  • Eclectic

    Last weekend was one of those minor extravaganzas that happen at St Mary’s that one should never quite get used to. On the Saturday afternoon we had an extra Evensong which the assistant organist Geoff Woollatt brought together. A bunch of people who’ve never sung together before appeared under the label – The St Mary’s…

  • Sermon preached on 27 November 2011

    here’s the video of yesterday’s sermon (complete with a little coughing and wheezing)

  • Advent

    Advent is here – it is the longest that Advent can be too, four full weeks, with Christmas on a Sunday this year. Every time I go into church I’ll be enjoying this:

  • It is a worldwide thing you know

    One of the things that is interesting about the campaign for Equal Marriage is that it appears to be an idea whose time has come internationally not simply here in Scotland. Here’s how it looks in Australia: Don’t forget if you want to make a response to the Scottish Government’s consultation, one of the easiest…

  • The Mothers’ Union and Marriage

    One of the most interesting submissions to the Scottish Government’s consultation on Same-Sex Marriage is surely going to be the one from the Mothers’ Union. I’m not going to rehearse the articles that I’ve put up on this blog about the MU and its attitude to all things gay in the past, but suffice it…

  • New Choir CD

    There’s a new choir CD out this week. Recorded last January, this one is an Advent/Christmas extravaganza. The perfect gift for Christmas. The CDs cost £10 and will be for sale on Sunday in church and available online (if there are any left) next week.

  • How to Cook Moose

    First catch your moose and butcher it. (Note opportunities for roadkill at this time of year in certain countries). Alternatively go to Lidl this week and buy moose steaks. Defrost steaks if frozen. Marinade overnight in mixture of gin and worcestershire sauce Pan fry with juniper berries. 5-6 mins. Stir in cream. Garnish with redcurrants…

  • Diocesan Discussions

    We had a really good afternoon discussing proposed changes to the law on marriage this afternoon at the wonderful St Bartholomew’s, Gourock. This little church is high up overlooking the Clyde with views of the dark brooding cloud that hangs over Dunoon. It has recently been gorgeously refurbished, something that their Rector, Drew Sheridan and…