St Margaret Ecumenical Service to Mark the Anniversary of the St Margaret Declaration of Friendship

‘Hear my prayer, answer me, Lord, turn to me in your goodness.
Hear my prayer, answer me, Lord, turn to me in your love.’

To mark the first anniversary of the historic St Margaret Declaration of Friendship, the community of St Aloysius in Garnethill hosted Glasgow Churches Together(GCT) for an evening service on 17th November.  With a piper playing outside the church and a harpist playing inside, the congregation were truly welcomed to the celebration.

Before the clergy processed to the sanctuary to begin the service, the St Mungo Singers led the congregation in the singing of Noel Donnelly’s hymn to St Margaret.  Then there was a lovely short dramatic piece – I am the Light – The Life of St Margaret­ – proclaimed by Carmela Feoli, almost hidden in the pulpit, telling the story of Margaret, followed by an Invitation to worship which finished with the words: Led by the Holy Spirit, may we be inspired to speak words of peace, share in acts of hope, and offer hands that reach out in welcome to friend and stranger for the sake of God’s love.

This quite different beginning to a church service served to focus the attention of all present and prepare them for the singing of the opening hymn Love Divine, all Loves Excelling. Beautiful prayers of reproach and penance followed, completed by the heartfelt singing of the Ukrainian  Kyrie.

The scripture readings consisted of John 3:4-18; Psalm 23(24) in the setting by Gerry Fitzpatrick; and John 15: 1-8.  Parish Priest Gerrard Mitchell gave the reflection which he said he had been told to make clear and concise.  Indeed he felt that there had been many words spoken already with more to come, but these had been beautiful and precious.  They invited us to remember together, walk together and listen together, and make this the pattern for our lives together.

He asked the congregation to listen to and welcome what they had and would hear, and to reflect on what spoke to them individually, for that would be a precious gift which they should let speak into their hearts.  For him the words had been those in the second scripture passage “remain in me, as I also remain in you”. He invited everyone to pray over those words in silence and for each other.

He then led the reading of the St Margaret Declaration, with the congregation being divided into two voices for the reading.  This could have been dry and distracting but it worked beautifully.  Many present may not have seen the text before or had the opportunity to read it but in the quiet of the church, it came alive, particularly as the voices came together at the end to pray:

May there be an ever more united Christian voice in this land.

May the charity and love of Christ renew our participation in the mission of God.

May we contribute together to the good of society.

May we learn humbly from others, and from our own mistakes.

May all our work together thrive.

And may our shared pilgrimage bear much fruit,

To the good of all, and to the greater glory of God. AMEN

 

The service continued with prayers of intercession:
for the growing closeness of the churches;
for action by leaders and decision makers to help those struggling with the cost of living crisis;
for peace

in Gaza and elsewhere in our world; and for Scotland that it might be a vibrant nation dedicated to the service of God.

The congregation then joined in saying the Lord’s Prayer, before the service ended with a spoken and sung blessing, and the final , well loved hymn, Be Thou My Vision¸ However no ecumenical service would be complete without the opportunity to get together over tea and nibbles, and Fr Gerrard issued an invitation to all to head to the Ogilvie centre to enjoy some hospitality.  A lovely finish to the marking of an historic event.