This year, Rev Eddie Sykes is leading three Advent studies to help us in our preparation for Christ’s coming. Sessions are on Zoom on Thursday mornings at 10:30am, and last for just over an hour. If you haven’t have received the meeting details direct, please email Eddie at minister@rosythmethodist.org.uk for an access code.

Everyone is warmly welcome to join with us – no previous Bible study experience is necessary – just bring a Bible, and perhaps a cup of coffee, and enjoy the conversation!

Our topics will be:

• 2 December Preparing the Way (Luke 3:1–8)
• 16 December Embodying God’s Love for Others (Luke 1:26–56)
• 23 December God Sends the Church into the World (Luke 2:1–20)

Before each session Eddie will email you a reminder of the joining instructions and some study material. The study material will also be linked to this post.

This morning the Rev Dr Michael Paterson presided and preached on his first Sunday as our newly-licenced Priest-in-charge, and we celebrated the Feast of Christ the King with a special liturgy for the day.

The occasion was also our first service as an independent congregation. As you can read in this service sheet, we also gathered round the font and Paschal candle, both symbolically placed in the centre of the congregation, to rededicate ourselves, using the deeply-moving words of a covenant for Shared Ministry.

Before choir and congregation sang the Old Hundredth we also managed to mark the occasion in typical St Margaret’s fashion, firstly by our sacristan, Pam Pryde, presenting an inscribed quaich to Michael, using some of the words lovingly written on the accompanying card by Lesley Yellowlees on behalf of the congregation.

Then Lesley herself presented a basket of flowers to our Vestry Secretary, Sandra Young, in recognition of the enormous amount of extra work Sandra had carried out in recent months, dealing with the consequences of both pandemic and interregnum.

This happy picture was taken after the end of the service on 18 November at which the Revd Dr Michael Paterson (right) was duly licensed as Priest-in-Charge of the Scottish Episcopal Church of St Margaret, Rosyth by the Right Revd Ian Paton, Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane (left).

There was some formality – you can’t escape having the Very Revd Graham Taylor, in his role as Dean, read the words of the Licence – and much symbolism, in the presentations made to Michael of an icon of Christ, a Bible, holy oil, the bread and wine of communion, and the church keys. But above all, there was much joy at welcoming our new priest, much hearty offering of praise in music, and much unity on display, with representatives from our Methodist partners and other local churches as well as the wider Episcopal community.

There was also much challenge in what Bishop Ian had to say in both sermon and prayers. He ended his sermon, centred on the Gospel reading of three parables of the kingdom, by reading R S Thomas’s “The Bright Field” and reminding us of the need to give all that we have to possess that pearl of great price. Highly appropriate for a congregation whose patron is St Margaret, when we remember that her name derives from the Greek μαργαρίτης … pearl!

Thanks to David Salthouse, the service was recorded, so you can hear Bishop Ian’s words in full through the media player below.