Spring 2013 - Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk

GREYFRIARS HERB GARDEN
Spring 2013

MINISTER
Reverend Dr Richard Frazer
Telephone: The Manse 0131 667 6610
Email: minister@greyfriarskirk.com
GAELIC SERVICES
Telephone: Kirk Office 0131 225 1900 (for information)
SESSION CLERK
Andrew Stewart
Telephone: 0131 0131 447 3597
Email: sessionclerk@greyfriarskirk.com
Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk
Greyfriars Place
Edinburgh
EH1 2QQ
Telephone: Kirk Office 0131 225 1900
Email: administrator@greyfriarskirk.com
Website: http:/www.greyfriarskirk.com
E-mail: administrator@greyfriarskirk.com
Greyfriars Tolbooth and Highland Kirk is a registered charity:
Greyfriars Tolbooth and Highland Kirk, Edinburgh, Church of Scotland:SCO03761
Greyfriars Outreach Ltd: SCO123786 Society of Friends of the Kirk of Greyfriars:SCO06644

Rev. Dr. Richard Frazer
Minister
Dear Friends,
On Thursday 25th April at 1pm, John Swinney, Cabinet Secretary for Finance,
Employment and Sustainable Growth in the Scottish Government will officially open
our new extension to the Greyfriars Kirkhouse. We are delighted that John has agreed
to do this and we hope that members of the congregation will come along to this very
special event.
We have spent some years getting to this point, developing the Grassmarket Project
with all its support, educational and enterprise activities and designing the building to
meet our requirements and then raising the capital, a little over £2 million. But we have
done it! And we have managed to complete the project on budget and on time.
In addition, we have not had to borrow any money and so we have a beautiful new
building and all we have to do is ensure we look after it in the years to come.
I want to say a special word of thanks to Gareth Hoskins Architects whose beautiful
design blends the old with the new perfectly and to the contractor, John Dennis whose
quality of workmanship reflects the high quality of the design. Our own Johnnie
Webster has been a huge support throughout the process as have Jo Elliot and Carole
McCaul and many other people have contributed their time, effort and support. I am so
grateful.
After Easter we will recommence Parish Meals, the offer of hospitality that was begun
by Isobel and Marjorie Reid nearly 30 years ago and upon which the Grassmarket
Project has been built. It has always been a Christian duty to stand alongside the
poorest and most vulnerable of people. In the middle ages our predecessors on this
site, the Franciscans, were medical herbalists and cared for the poorest from their
Friary, the foundations of which I believe may well be directly under the present
structure of the old Kirkhouse.

In the 19 th Century Thomas Guthrie established Edinburgh’s first Ragged School,
providing an education and a hot meal to the numerous “crowds of children” who
inhabited the closes of 19 th Century Edinburgh. As Guthrie put it, “their faces tell how
ill they are fed; their fearful oaths tell how ill they are reared." The new Kirkhouse
extension is a 21 st Century manifestation of the Church’s constant and urgent mission
to be alongside the “least of these” as Christ himself put it.
I am especially delighted that we now have a building of such architectural excellence. I
have always felt that the surroundings we inhabit have a big influence on how we feel
about ourselves. Clean, well cared for and beautiful surroundings help people to feel
that they are cherished and encourage us all to aspire. It is my hope that the many
people we try to support will respond to this new environment and that we will
continue to see people move on to enjoy success in their lives as a result of the
hospitality, support and inspiration they have received.
The next big event on our horizon is the proposed union between our congregation
and that of Kirk O’Field. That will challenge us to ensure that those who come to us
from Kirk O’Field are made to feel welcome. One thing that we have come to see is
that our congregation is, as Andrew Stewart our new Session Clerk described it recently,
a “community of communities”. We trust when the time comes our friends from along
the road will be able to retain their identity whilst also feeling at home.
We approach Easter, the season of newness and rebirth. At this time we study and
worship with our ecumenical partners and there are any opportunities to explore both
traditional and innovative forms of worship through events like Nitekirk and Refugio. I
wish you much blessing as you journey to the Cross and beyond to Easter Day and I
would commend the many opportunities that exist around our community for worship,
exploration and discovery of the one who is “new every morning”.
With affection,
Your minister,
Richard Frazer

Andrew Stewart
Session Clerk
If you were able to be at the Kirk on Sunday 13 January you will have seen the transition to a
new Session Clerk. After 5 years of outstanding and cheerful service Kathleen Munro retired
and the role passed to me.
I am delighted to be able to serve you and the Kirk in this way. My first contact with
Greyfriars was in the 1980s, when I came to Edinburgh from my home town of Perth to study
at Edinburgh University. In many ways Greyfriars was a different place then. There were
rows of wooden pews, and Covenanters’ flags hanging from the pillars, and the old organ.
But in many ways it was the same: the wonderful worship and music, the commitment to the
community around the Kirkhouse and the warmth and hospitality of the congregation. I
particularly remember one of the elders gathering up the various students who came to the
Kirk and inviting them to his house for Sunday lunch: not only was I well fed that day, but I
met Lesley, whom many of you will know, and now all these years later our daughters
Catriona and Marianne are in the Greyfriars Youth Group and Sunday School.
Since then my career has taken me to London and back and I am now a QC practising in the
Scottish courts. But through all that time Greyfriars has enriched my life through the
opportunity to sing in the choir, to play in the ceilidh band, to experience many activities and
events and just to be part of the stimulating and caring Greyfriars community. Greyfriars has
also led to me being involved with the Church nationally, previously as member of the Church
of Scotland Board of Practice and Procedure and now as Chairman of the Scottish Churches
Committee which brings together the eleven main Christian denominations in Scotland - from
the Free Presbyterians to the Roman Catholics and all in between - to work together on issues
which affect us all.
So I am very grateful now to be able to give something back to Greyfriars by becoming your
Session Clerk. And what an exciting time it is to take this on. Thanks to the hard work and
vision of Session Clerks, ministers, elders and members of the Kirk and the wider Greyfriars
community we have a Kirk that is vibrant with activity, reaching out to members and the
public in many different and imaginative ways. After the service on 13 January many people
came up to congratulate me on my appointment (and more than a few to commiserate!). But
it is each of you who deserves to be congratulated for your part in creating the congregation
and community which I will be honoured to serve as Session Clerk.
Andrew Stewart

Sermon preached by Jo Elliot
in Greyfriars Kirk
6 th January 2013
St Matthew 2: 1 – 12
Icon representing the Three Kings offering their gifts – the traditional view
Part of our Christmas kit that comes out of storage each year is a nativity scene, crudely carved out of
olive wood. As you might expect it has all the usual characters, Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus,
shepherds, animals, angels and three wise men. This standard scene is enacted at hundreds of primary
schools at this time of year.
But it’s not just telling the story from one of the gospels. It’s a conflation of all four, or rather of the
two that mention anything at all about the nativity. John and Mark say nothing at all about the birth of
Jesus. Luke tells the story about there being no room at the inn, the manger and the shepherds, and
Matthew has the story about the wise men following the star from the East, going to Herod to get
directions, turning up wherever the family was lodging by then and producing gifts quite unsuitable
for a young baby or his parents: gold frankincense and myrrh.
And were there three wise men, or two or four or ten We just don’t know, all we know is that
between then they produced more than one gift. The more you poke at it, the more uncertain it all
becomes as an account of actual events.
So it’s clear to me that we have to unpack the story a bit, to understand it as metaphor. Gold for a
king, frankincense for a priest, myrrh to prefigure Christ’s death. Are these just gifts actively given by
the wise men to a passive recipient, just like the little wooden parcels wired to the wrists of our
nativity scene We’ll come back to the gifts and the giving later.
Meanwhile, it’s interesting to pull back the focus. The wise men weren’t just around in Bethlehem
anyway, waiting for something to happen. They weren’t summoned from nearby like the shepherds.
They had to journey to get there. In other words it was a pilgrimage. Matthews’s gospel doesn’t talk of
the journey itself, but TS Eliot fills the gap in his Journey of the Magi
A cold coming we had of it
Just the worst time of the year
For the journey, and such a long journey
The ways deep and the weather sharp
The very dead of winter
In the modern world, the biggest pilgrimage centre by far is Mecca. In the Muslim tradition someone
who has been on the hajj to Mecca adds the title hadji to his name as an honorific like doctor or sir or
reverend. The new name acknowledges that he has become a different person through having made a
journey which is still costly and uncomfortable, even dangerous. Special training and preparation is
necessary.

In the reformed church, despite our best efforts there’s not much of a tradition of pilgrimage but it
has long been a feature of the catholic church, for instance to Lourdes to be transformed by healing.
And actually we lose a lot through cutting ourselves off from our pre-reformation heritage. There’s a
central insight, that what you’re doing affects how you think. The Latin tag is solvitur ambulando, the
problem is solved by walking, by exercise. One of the traditions of a stay in the abbey on Iona is a
little pilgrimage walk round the island, stopping every so often for a series of reflections suggested by
the landscape. In the catholic tradition during Holy Week there’s a progress round the fourteen
stations of the cross in the church building.
The point is that we’re not just disembodied minds – how we think, our state of mind, is
fundamentally affected by what we’re doing, and walking is one of the best aids to thought.
Catholic pilgrimages to Lourdes, to Rocamdour, to St Andrews were the earliest kind of holiday, the
mediaeval tourist trade. Of course not everyone can go on a long pilgrimage. There are only certain
times in life when it’s possible, when you’re fit enough, when you don’t have work or family
commitments, and you can take this kind of sabbatical break.
A pilgrimage, a sabbatical break can be many weeks or
months, like it probably was for the wise men. Equally it
can be quite short, a week or just the weekly Sabbath
day, to pause, reflect and emerge a slightly different person.
The Christmas and New Year holiday is the break in
the year that most people in the country take at the same
time, and its transformative potential is recognised
through our New Year resolutions. You put the
disappointments of the old year behind you and on the
1 st of January you try to wake up as a better person
St Andrews Cathedral, Scotland’s traditional pilgrimage destination
After a few New Years you start to realise of course that resolutions are easy to make and almost
impossible to keep. Someone told me the other day that there’s a spike in gym membership in January
as people resolve to get themselves fit. But by March the numbers in the gyms are back to normal as
people backslide to their usual patterns of exercise and activity. And we know, week by week just how
hard it is as we confess our sins and in the Anglican words, pray for pardon and remission of our sins,
time for amendment of life.
We aren’t literally going on a pilgrimage each Sunday or each New Year holiday. But there are insights
which carry over from the active pilgrimage walk into the static sabbatical. Pilgrimage is about letting
go of certainties. It’s about leaving the established and settled ways of living and ways of thought, and
launching ourselves into the unknown. The idea of the pilgrim people is about following Jesus where
he leads.
Right at the end of Matthew’s story of the wise men, we are told that they give their gifts, but being
warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they return home another way. They don’t come back the
way they came. On the contrary they are transformed by their journey to Bethlehem. When they get
back to their palaces or their universities, they are different people.

So pilgrimage is about action helping thinking. It’s about transformation. And finally, getting us back
where we started, it’s about gifts.
In the Acts of the Apostles Paul tells his listeners that it is more blessed to give than to receive,
attributing these famous words to Jesus. But one of the insights of pilgrimage is receiving. The pilgrim
puts himself in the position of vulnerability, the blessed recipient of the gifts of others.
Directions for the Pilgrim
As Richard and I moved through Spain we
paid every night for our board and lodging.
Nonetheless we were continually receiving
gifts. The gifts of hospitality from the keepers
of the albergues and hostals, the cafes and
restaurants. The gifts of the companionship
of the people we met along the way, who
were ready to share their stories and listen to
ours. The kindness of strangers who whistled
at us when they saw us heading off the path in
the wrong direction, when we lost the track of
the yellow arrows.
So graciously receiving a gift is maybe just as blessed as giving it. Mary accepts the gifts of the wise
men on behalf of Jesus, and that gracious acceptance is a gift in itself. There’s a nice bit of symmetry
here. The wise men come with their gifts, they depart with a blessing.
The thing is, giving entails a response in return. The recipient gains something from the giver, but the
giver also gains something from the recipient. That’s why giving and receiving is such a powerful
interaction, one of mutual engagement. A gift can be unwelcome or inappropriate or embarrassing if
it’s not in line with the relationship that the recipient has with giver.
In the actual stable, were the gold frankincense and myrrh really welcome Probably not in any direct
sense. What would a baby do with these things, or even his mother. But these exotic gifts are charged
with symbolism, and their gracious acceptance is a powerful statement. The wise men are saying to
Jesus, we want you to be a king, we want you to be our priest, we want you to die for us – and those
were wishes which Jesus was ready to embrace.
This kind of giving: which is mutual giving, selfless giving, is a model for our right relationships with
each other, and surely that mean right relationships with God.
Amen

Gàidhlig anns an Sgoil Againn.
Mar a tha Gàidhlig ri cluinntinn gach Là na Sàbaid ann an cridhe Cathair-bhaile na h-Alba ann an
Eaglais nam Manach Liath aig a’ Choithinail Ghàidhealach, tha i ri cluinntinn air taobh thall nam
Meadows aig Àrd Sgoil Sheumais Ghilleasbuig tron t-seachdain.
Tha an sgoil a’ tabhann ceithir chuspairean a bharrachd air Gàidhlig fhèin tron chànan ri còrr is
seasgad sgoilearan agus tha an àireamh sin a’ sìor-fhàs. An-dràsta, tha an sgoil a’ fastadh sianar
thidsearan aig a bheil Gàidhlig, le Uibhistich, Eirisgich, Leòdhasaich, Braoinich agus
Luchd-ionnsachaidh nam measg. Tha ùidh m˙òr aig tidsearan eile agus tha cethrar no còignear ag
ionnsachadh tro Ùlpan.
Thig a’ chlann o Bhunsgoil Chrois na Cìse dhan Àrd Sgoil. Tha a h-uile duine a’ coimhead air adhart
ri Bun Sgoil Ghàidhlig Taobh na Pàirce a’ fosgladh ann am Bonnington as t-Samhradh. Bheir seo
piseach eile air fàs na Gàidhlig.
Chòrd seirbhis na Nollaig ann an Eaglais nam Manach Liath ris a h-uile duine gu mòr agus bha e
iongantach a bhith a’ faicinn gach sgoilear Gàidhlig ann an Dùn Èideann an làthair san aon àite.
Tha e cudromach ann am baile mòr a bhith a’ toirt air cloinn a bhith mothachail agus pròiseil às a’
chànan agus a’ chultar a tha ceangailte nan inntinn gu math tric ri coimhearsnachdan iomallach air a’
Ghaidhealtachd agus anns na h-Eileanan.
Mar sin, tha sinn airson gum bi ceangal nas làidire eadar a’ Choimthionail Ghàidhealach agus a’
choimhearsnachd Ghàidhlig aig Àrd Sgoil Sheumais Ghilleasbuig, ge b’ e dè creud no creideamh a
tha aig sgoilear, gus am faic iad gu bheil coimhearsnachd na Gàidhlig beò ann an teis-mheadhan a’
bhaile.
James Gillespie’s High School is the secondary school for Gaelic Medium in Edinburgh, pupils
moving from Tollcross Primary (to be replaced by the new Gaelic school in Bonnington this
summer). It offers 4 subjects other than Gaelic in the language. There are 6 fluent teachers and
several staff learning also.
It is sometimes challenging for pupils to see the connections with a language more associated with
the Highlands and Islands but links with the Highland Congregation, including the successful
Christmas Carol Service for the schools, are important and we hope to increase these.
Eoghan Stewart

All are invited to our
Evening of Scottish Country Dancing
on
Saturday 9th March 2013
with the Greyfriars Kirk Band
All in aid of the Grassmarket Community Project and Kirk Funds. This is the third
time we are running this event, and we are building up an enthusiastic following—last
year we raised £4,000.
Details on the table at the entrance, tickets £25 each from our temporary
administrator, Roza Nicolson.
The Kirk before the dancers arrive
The Scottish Country Dancers
The Greyfriars Kirk Band

The following are dates of Kirk Session meetings and proposed dates for SCG meetings.
Please check Sunday notes for confirmation.
All members of the congregation are welcome to attend as observers.
Kirk Session Meetings 2013 in the Kirk at 7.30 p.m.
Tuesday 9th April
Strategic Co-ordinating Group Meetings, in the Kirk at 7.30 p.m.:
Tuesday 19th March
People and Events
The following is a summary of news since the Autumn edition
Baptisms
Alexander Harris Lockhart (13th January )
Lomond William David Williamson (10th February)
Blessing
Yuanyuan Li (Laurie) and Junxian Meng
Deaths
Rev Everard Kant (29 January)

Let me introduce myself.....
My name is Ken Coulter and most of the week (but not all) I teach Religious and Moral Education
(RME) in Trinity High School in Edinburgh. Previously I have had incarnations as an RME teacher
in Glasgow and nationally developed resources for Scottish Education; a project leader for Scripture
Union Scotland; a full time ordained Christian minister (and still am)(but not a Presbyterian), a
milkman and an asbestos stripper.
It has been my privilege to take over the work started by Paula Fraser in the Greyfriars Project. The
aim of this is to enable schools locally and nationally connect with the Greyfriars Story in ways and
through resources that are educationally robust and credible.
It is hoped that we will launch the online resources and the physical opportunities to visit Greyfriars at
the Scottish Learning Festival in September 2013. This is a journey that you as congregation and I will
pilgrimage together.
Our first venture is to present a version of the Easter Story within the church building to local senior
primary pupils. This is called the Easter Code and is planned for 5th, 12 th and 19 th March with a
couple of training sessions beforehand. A team of Greyfriars volunteers will help deliver this.
Alongside this we are working on a number of streams which include:
Dog and Bone (centred on the Kirkyard),
Promises and Covenant;
Helping Others,
Worshipping Community and Pilgrimage.
Please include this exciting and innovative project in your prayers.
Ken Coulter

Flowers
in
Greyfriars
This is the quietest time of the year
for the Flower Team. Even although
we love flower arranging, we are all
looking forward to our “holiday”
during the six weeks of Lent when
there are no flowers in the Kirk..
During that time, flowers can be put
in for special occasions, such as the
Fund Raising Ceilidh on the 9th
March, but they would need to be
removed at the end of the event. The
Team is “on call” for such occasions,
so do not hesitate to contact me if
the need arises.
I noticed that the daffodils in the planters outside the Kirk are just beginning to show
through the very wet soil, so we should have a good display come Easter.
I would like to extend a very special Thank You to all who have placed donations in the
Flower Fund Box. These donations tend to be anonymous, so a direct Thank You is
not possible. I would therefore like to let those of you who have done this know that I
am extremely grateful to you for your generosity, which is very much appreciated. Being
able to put flowers in the Kirk Sunday by Sunday is only possible due to donations.
Using the Donation Box, or requesting a special arrangement to remember an occasion
or person, is proving to be very successful, and will ensure Greyfriars continues to be
beautifully decorated.
Finally, I would like to thank Ann, Kimberley, Isobel, Clem and Angela for all their help
and support during the past year, especially during May, June and July, when it was very
much needed. What a team!!!
With very best wishes,
Mary Macpherson.
Flower Convener.

Our main services are at 11am in English and at 12:30pm in Gaelic every
Sunday of the year. In addition, on the first Sunday of each month at
9:30am there is a service of Holy Communion. There are occasional evening
services and special services during Holy Week and Easter, at Christmas and
at other times.
Midweek worship
The Midweek service takes place each Thursday at 1:10pm. The service lasts
for 20 minutes and is an informal opportunity for prayer and reflection. If
you would like to make a request for prayers to be said during this service
you can email your thoughts in confidence to Richard Frazer, the minister -
minister@greyfriarskirk.com
Ecumenical Partnership
At Pentecost 2002 Greyfriars signed a covenant with two neighbouring
churches – Augustine United Church (United Reformed Church), and St
Columba’s by-the-Castle (Scottish Episcopal Church). We frequently have
joint services, as well as pooling our resources to organise events and trips.
A crèche for babies and toddlers is provided in the Bride’s Room at the west
end of the church each Sunday during the 11am service. Sunday School
meets in the Session Room during the 11am service.
Sandwiches and coffee are served at the back of the church each Sunday
after the morning service, tea and biscuits after the Gaelic Service.
Everyone is welcome at all services in Greyfriars,
whether they are members of a church or not, or
believers or not.
Orders of Service (English and Gaelic) are now available on the website

Holy Week 2013
It is always a pleasure to share the journey through Holy Week
with our ecumenical partners.
Each morning of Holy week at 8am starting on Monday 25th
March and continuing until Saturday 30th March there is a
short celebration of Holy Communion at St Columba’s by the
Castle. This service is followed by a breakfast of coffee rolls and
homemade marmalade and all are most warmly welcome to
attend.
On Maundy Thursday 28th March there is a service of Holy
Communion at St Columba’s by the Castle at 7.30pm.]
On Good Friday 29th March there is a three Hour Vigil at Greyfriars
between 12 noon and 3pm.
On Good Friday evening there is a Service of Tenebrae in Greyfriars,
Tolbooth & Highland Kirk at 9pm.
The Passion Walk is a contemplative journey through the streets of
Edinburgh, in which the city becomes the backdrop for the unfolding
story of Easter. begin their journey at Greyfriars Kirk on Good Friday
(March 29th), 11am-1pm, and Holy Saturday (March 30th), 10am-
12noon. (further details later in the magazine).
On Easter Day our services are at 11am in English (Holy Communion)
and 12.30pm in Gaelic.
Please share with us on the journey through Holy Week to Easter at any
or all of these services.
Here is a quote from a previous Easter Sermon given in
Greyfriars:
Our task is to go from here this Easter Day and proclaim the victory of love,
to go from here and engage in the task of “soul retrieval” and restore human
depth and spiritual imagination to the heart of life. Let’s not get hung up on
the mechanics of Easter, instead listen to what Christ is trying to tell us from
the Cross. For the sake of the life of the world, we should lift ourselves above
the life diminishing and destructive habits that threaten to sweep our world
away and learn from Christ how to live lives that bring life to others and to
the planet. Then we will understand the meaning of Easter and Jesus words of
triumph on the cross “it is accomplished”. For, as the prayer of St Francis
puts it “it is in giving that we receive and in dying that we rise to eternal life”.

OPERATION MANAGER’S
REPORT
This has been a very busy quarter with
much happening in the Kirk.
Arts and Events.
As well as the regular pre-Christmas concerts, the highlight of the Winter season was
the New Year’s day ceilidh.
Nearly 2000 people of all ages visited the Kirk and enjoyed a few reels before moving
on to other ‘lucky 13’ events in the Old Town.
As usual, for many visitors it was their first trip to the Kirk and they were invariably
impressed with the range of activities that happen here.
With this in mind I am producing an advertising card entitled ‘this beautiful space’.
With the aim of increasing lettings and special services, cards will be put out in chair
hymn book holders at concerts and other events that attract large numbers of people
to the Kirk.
Greyfriars Outreach has invested in additional staging platforms. This will allow us to
maximise the available space at the east and west end of the Kirk for performers –
particularly choirs that require galleried staging. This has already been tested to great
effect with the recent west end concert by the John Armitage Memorial Trust. I am
most grateful for the financial support from the Kirk’s Catering fund.

Visitor Preparations.
The Kirk has been closed to visitors but we re-open to the public on Easter Monday
(1 April). Whilst I have not yet secured funding for the visitors’ desk, we have invested
Kirk funds in the refurbishment of the shop with improvements to the shelf lighting.
Initially the shop will be stocked with books (mainly about Bobby) and a few other lines
that we think will sell. The shop represents a very important component of boosting
visitor income. Experience indicates that whilst some visitors are happy to put a few
coppers in the donation boxes, most wish to purchase a suitable memento. Hopefully
the merchandise mark-up will generate the additional revenue to build-up a successful
commercial enterprise. For this season the volunteer welcomers will oversee the daily
operation of the shop during visitor open hours – which will operate on an honesty
box system.
Staff.
Please welcome Mrs Ruth Smith to the Kirk office team. Ruth is an experienced book
keeper and currently manages the books for St Mungo’s Church as well as her husband’s
business. She is going to manage the Kirk’s day-to-day finances and will be
working part-time three half-days per week. As well as managing the Kirk’s books,
Ruth will also be looking after the financial aspects of the Kirk shop. Her email address
is accounts@greyfriarskirk.com.
Steve Lister
Operations Manager

The Great Tapestry of Scotland
Fiona Anderson very kindly sent us this article and picture for inclusion in the Kirk
Magazine. She felt that congregation members might be interested to hear that the
Great Tapestry of Scotland is to include a panel on the signing of the National Covenant
at Greyfriars. Unfortunately she heard about the stitching too late to be involved
in the group working on that panel but she has joined the group from St
Andrews and St Georges working on the panel depicting the Making of the King James
Bible 1611. She tells us they may be going on to stitch a further half panel on the Disruption
of the Church of Scotland which tool place at their church.
“After the success of the Prestonpans Tapestry,
which many of you will have seen on its travels
around Scotland, work has started on The Great
Tapestry of Scotland, the brainchild of one of
Scotland’s best-known writers, Alexander McCall
Smith and designed by Andrew Crummy. (see
more at www.scotlandstapestry.com).
When finished, it will be the longest tapestry in the
world with more than 150 panels depicting
Scotland’s history. With three other stitchers
scattered around Edinburgh, I am lucky enough to
be working on Panel No.40 depicting ‘The
National Covenant at Greyfriars Kirkyard’ in 1638.
Our panel is 1m square and whilst the work is described as a tapestry it is strictly
speaking an embroidery using wool on linen similar to the 70m Bayeux Tapestry. The
deadline for the army of stitchers is June 2013 so it can be assembled to go on show in
the Scottish Parliament in August.”
Mhairi J MacDonald-Greig

Nitekirk is happening every third Friday of the month offering a reflecve, sacred, candlelit space
in which people are encouraged to explore a theme drawing out their experience of God through
interacve ‘staons’. Themes provide a means for people to relate to the building and to one
another; bringing needs to the surface and discovering resources within. Over the last few
months we have explored ‘remembering’, ‘waing and expectaon’, ‘opening’ and ‘pilgrimage’.
Silence alternates with music, people move around, finding what they are drawn to and their
own reacons to foci placed around the building; staying as long or short as they wish. There is
always a place of hospitality at the back where people can chat and normally there is a creave
corner with art materials. The presence of the laer makes it easy to incorporate any children
who aend.
Church aendance has noceably dropped in recent years; yet many surveys indicate people
increasingly speak of and report spiritual experiences and would affirm their belief in
‘something’. Nitekirk is a way to use church buildings, opening the doors in new ways, literally
and internally, aiming to pass on the tradion through this new type of engagement..
Interesngly, Nitekirk is also aracng regular church members who find refreshment in this
reflecve worship style.
A recent development is that Nitekirk is now moving around the sanctuaries of The Local Church;
St Columbas by the Castle and Augusne United Church. This happens when there is a concert in
Greyfriars. The first happened in February and appropriately we used the theme of pilgrimage.
As usual it was a candlelit space, this me with a labyrinth at its centre, informaon about
pilgrimage routes throughout Scotland, Richard Frazer offering a powerpoint of his Camino
journey, art table, and hospitality. It was a beauful evening, numbers aending remained
constant ‐ there were teething problems, it was extra work, and we found a very warm and
supporve welcome by folk at St Columbas.
Volunteers to help make Nitekirk happen are always welcome. You can do this just occasionally
or regularly. We have a monthly preparaon meeng and those who aend form together the
structure of the next months Nitekirk. Or you can come and help in praccal ways, seng up or
taking down. Let us know – we would love to have you!!
The themes for the next few months are
March 15 th – Water
April 19 th ‐ Earth
May 17 th ‐ Fire
June 21 st ‐ Light

New building update
We are pleased to announce we have now moved into our new building at 86 Candlemaker Row and
we are up and running with our first week of activities. We held an open day on the 15 th February
for members and friends which was very well attended. Richard Frazer gave a speech and we
provided tours around the building – it was great to see so many people here and gives an idea of
the buzz that future events could have. We are taking bookings for events in the building –
weddings, ceilidhs, conferences, you name it! If you are interested in booking the hall or one of our
smaller rooms contact Mario on mario@grassmarketcommunityproject.co.uk for more details.
Current programme
Since there will be a big transition whilst we get settled into our new building, we have decided to
stick with the same programme that we were running in St Columba’s for now. Once we have got
more settled we will be adding more activities to the programme, such as IT skills which we can now
accommodate in our new IT suite. We will also be starting up the drop-in meals to feed the
homeless at the end of March. If you have any ideas for new activities you think our members will
enjoy please get in touch.
Inductions
Since our new building is a lot larger than before, we are asking that everyone must attend a building
induction before they can volunteer or participate in a group. There will also be a separate kitchen
induction for anyone who wishes to participate in any form of kitchen activity. We held a week of
inductions to get as many members induction as possible which went really well – if you could not
make this but would like to attend an induction we will be holding regular sessions on Thursdays.
Please contact Sue on sue@grassmarketcommunityproject.co.uk if you would like to sign up for a
session.
Celebration Wall
To celebrate the opening of our new building, we would like to offer all our friends and supporters
the opportunity to have their name or the name of a loved one on a special celebration wall. This
wall will be made up of “bricks”, hand-crafted out of oak in our wood workshop. If you are
interested in purchasing a brick for the wall, you can pick up a form at the project. We have now
started to build the wall, so you can also get an idea of how it will look!
Lastly we would like to thank everyone at Greyfriars for their support, without whom our fantastic
new building would not be possible!

New GCP reception desk
With the new building nearing completion (at the time of writing this article) there has been great
excitement in the workshop with everyone playing a part in producing some of the cafe and
reception.
The GRoW team have been commissioned to
produce six solid oak cafe tables, a large reception
desk and a coffee table. After some deliberation
over the design of the cafe tables, and after a lot of
hard work and perseverance, they are now nearing
completion and looking great.
Tables for the GCP entrance hall
The last two weeks has probably been the toughest
period ever for the team. With the opening of the
new building coming upon us, the guys have
worked non stop in manufacturing the new
reception desk. Once again this is a solid oak piece
of furniture complimented by some materials
"borrowed" from the building site! The desk is
now looking pretty impressive but there is still a
fair bit of work to be done to it.
As much as I describe this as being a tough period for the guys, it has also been great to see the
pride they have in their work and the way it boosts their confidence and self esteem.
The team have also started producing the "bricks" for the Celebration Wall in the new building. The
Celebration Wall is a cladding of oak bricks in the cafe area personalized to your own requirements.
The bricks cost a £40 minimum donation or £1000 for a keystone. To order your brick please
contact Tommy Steel at tommy@grassmarketcommunityproject.co.uk or call 07889169155.
Tommy Steel
GRoW Workshop Manager
Grassmarket Community Project
86 Candlemaker Row
Edinburgh
EH1 2QA
Email: tommy@grassmarketcommunityproject.co.uk
Mobile: 07889169155

Celebration Wall
To celebrate the opening of our new building, we would
like to offer all our friends, members and supporters the
opportunity to have their name or the name of a loved
one on a special celebration wall in our new building.
This special wall will be made up of ‘bricks’, hand-crafted out of oak by members of the project.
Grassmarket Community Project works with people who feel disengaged or marginalised.
Recognising that people need people, we create a safe environment for people to re-engage, whether
that be through attending a variety of classes, learning catering skills, tending our herb garden or
through working in our Social Enterprise wood workshop – GRoW.
All proceeds will help us to engage with more people and create a bigger
community in our new home.
To reserve your place please fill in the form or for more information please call
0131 225 3626
Celebration Wall
Please reserve me a:
Regular Brick (21cm x 6cm, two lines of text)
Large Brick (21cm x 13cm, two lines of text or small company logo)
Keystone (21cm x 21cm, two lines of text or large company logo)
Enter your text here:
Line 1
Line 2
Name
Address
Postcode
Company Logo Required
(Large/Keystone only)
We will contact you for details
Telephone
Email
(Recommended minimum donation: £40 for regular, £250 for large, £1000 for Keystone)
I enclose a donation of
£_____________
I wish the Grassmarket Community Project to treat all donations I make from the date of this declaration until I notify otherwise as Gift Aid
donations. I confirm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at
least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities or Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for
that tax year. I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand the charity will reclaim 28p of tax on every
£1 that I gave up to 5 April 2008 and will reclaim 25p of tax on every £1 that I give on or after 6 April 2008.
I am happy for Grassmarket Community Project to keep me informed of news about the project. (We promise we will never pass your details
onto others).
Signed ____________________________
Please return to:
Grassmarket Community Project,
86 Candlemaker Row, Edinburgh, EH1 2QA,
Grassmarket Community Project is a registered charity SC041674, and a registered company limited by guarantee 368576.

For the attention
of fly fishers!
The wood workshop in the Grassmarket Community Project has made a few fly tying work benches
as samples of a new product line to test whether they may be of interest to fly fishers who make their
own flies. The bench is made of recycled timber, mainly oak. It provides a secure platform to which
a fly-tying vice may be attached as an alternative to clamping it to the kitchen/dining table (avoiding
the risks that that entails). There is space for tools and materials to be stored and at hand when flies
are being tied. It is approximately 21” long and 10 to 12” wide - the tray/base having four rubber feet
to protect the surface on which it is placed. The arm for the vice protrudes by 1 ½ inches so that the
vice clamp is clear of the table. The vice arm has pre-drilled holes for holding scissors, bobbin
holders, hackle pliers etc. and a deeper hole to the rear for safe storage of a dubbing needle. For
someone who uses a pedestal vice, a bench could be ordered with the arm repositioned from the usual
(offset right of centre) position. It comes with a separate block for holding details of the pattern
being tied.
Anyone interested should phone the workshop on 0131 225 3626 for a specification sheet or visit the
Centre at 86 Candlemaker Row, Edinburgh EH1 2QA to see a bench for yourself.

Sunday 11th March
Sunday 8th April
Monday 16th April
Sunday 13th May
Sunday 10th June
Sunday 8th July
7.30pm to 9pm ALL WELCOME

Here is a Summary of forthcoming events
Saturday 9th March 7.30pm
An Evening of Scottish Country Dancing
Saturday 16th March 7.30pm
Garleton Singers
Friday 22nd March 7.30pm
Edinburgh University Music Society concert
Tuesday 9th April 3pm
National Youth Orchestra of Scotland
Wednesday 10th to Saturday 20th April
Holyrood Art Club Exhibition
Friday 26th April 7.30pm
Tradfest Ceilidh
Sunday 28th April 7pm
Tradfest Storytelling event
Full details of our forthcoming programme of concerts and events
on the ARTS and EVENTS page on our website
www..greyfriarskirk.com