Since 2020, more than three churches a month have permanently closed their doors in Scotland. Many of these buildings have been places of community, fellowship, faith and sanctuary for hundreds of years and their loss has been keenly felt. Rev George Cringles has penned our latest blog, in which he reflects upon what the closure of one Highland church has meant to him and the community it once served.

As a retired minister of the Church of Scotland living in Argyll, I am well aware that there are many sites of historical interest associated with the Christian Faith scattered throughout the mainland and the islands. These are sacred places that have a special meaning and significance to many people, who like to visit them for a variety of reasons, some out of interest in the architecture of a particular building, others as part of a group who are going on a pilgrimage.

A prime example of such a place is the Abbey Church of St. Columba on the Island of Iona. The Church is a historic structure which had been left to become a ruin, but has since been beautifully and tastefully restored, along with its various ancillary buildings. It is probably the main tourist attraction on the island and is visited by large numbers of holiday makers and pilgrims alike. It is the spiritual home of the Iona Community. There are regular acts of worship, and opportunities to stay in the Abbey as part of an organised retreat.

I have only had the privilege of staying in the Abbey on one occasion, when I was part of a residential week exploring facets of Celtic Christianity in Argyll. I have heard many people refer to Iona as a ‘thin place’, meaning that they find there an awareness of how close the reality of the spiritual realm can be to the physical and material reality of this world. The dividing line between the two is barely discernible. Sacred places with historical associations to particular saints or religious events from the past can somehow speak to us in meaningful ways that may be challenging and helpful to our Christian faith and life today.

I would be the first to admit that the experience of the ‘thin place’ is not something with which I am familiar. Even spending a week living and worshipping in the Abbey of Iona, I was no more aware of God’s presence being there in a special way than anywhere else. While I appreciate and enjoy visiting beautiful church buildings, I was always ready to acknowledge that the Church was not the building but the people who gathered in the building to worship God. Sacred places are only sacred because of their association with the devotion and service of God’s people. 

became one of the main dormitory towns for industrial expansion in the North East, with the aluminium smelter at Invergordon and the oil rig construction yards at Nigg. We also built a new hall which was erected at the rear of the church and regularly put to good use by both the congregation and the community.

The church building was erected in 1843 (the date being inscribed above the main door) which was the year of the Disruption when the Free Church of Scotland came into existence. It served the Free Church congregation until
the time of the reunion of the churches in 1929. Prior to then, the Church of Scotland congregation worshipped in the Old Parish Church which is situated in Alness Burial Ground approximately half a mile on the road to the west of the present church. After the union of the two congregations, when it was decided that the 1843 building would be used for worship, the Old Parish Church was allowed to fall into disrepair and is now a forlorn and roofless ruin standing in the middle of its church yard.

When the Old Parish Church was abandoned, the single manual pipe organ, built by Ernest Lawton of Aberdeen in 1909, and gifted to the church by Andrew Carnegie, was moved to the other church, where it continued to be used to lead the congregational praise up until recent years, when it became silent simply because an organist was no longer available to play it. Knowing that the church was threatened with closure I took the opportunity recently to make a recording of the organ, which is still in reasonably good playing order. You can listen to a short piece and find out more about this historic organ here.

I realise that it is a natural reaction to feel upset and distressed at the closure of a building where I had led the worship of a Christian congregation for over seven years, a building that is special to me as the place where I began my ministry, and which will always have a significant place in my heart and life. But attempting to put personal feelings aside, I began to explore the reasons behind why I should feel such emotional distress. I admit to being very surprised at my initial reaction to the news that Alness Parish Church was to be closed. Why should it have caused such an overwhelming sense of grief?

Never having given any thought to the concept of the Theology of Place, I began to consider the possibility that there might be something in this after all. I decided to explore what others had written on the subject in the hope that it might help me to come to terms with what I had so unexpectedly experienced. With the help of Google I made some searches on line and consulted a number of articles that appeared as a result.

John Inge, the author of  A Christian Theology of Place points to what I had always regarded as the normal position taken by Protestant theology, that what counts as the Church is the community of faithful believers and not the buildings where they gather for worship. That is what I had always believed and accepted as true. It is what I taught throughout my ministry and what I still continue to hold as a basic tenet of my belief. Why do I feel that this remains significant and vitally important? John Inge hints at one reason with which I could readily identify. He writes about the significance of place in the Bible, which Christians accept as the word of God and the supreme rule of faith and life. From this he argues for a ‘sacramental’ theology of place which allows the possibility of steering a middle course between ignoring the significance of place on the one hand, and 

exalting it to the position of idolatry on the other. That, I think, points to the danger facing every congregation, and one of which I was particularly aware. It is all too easy to become so attached to a building that it is liable to become the object of worship in itself and so becomes an idol that takes the place of God in the heart of those who gather in the building to meet for worship. The suggestion that it should be possible to find a middle course between ignoring the significance of place and drifting into idolatry is an attractive idea. The difficulty will always be in finding the correct balance between the two.

While it is true to say that the church is not a building, the reality of buildings acting as sacred places for those who worship within them is something which many people will recognize and acknowledge to a greater or lesser extent. The level of spiritual significance attaching to a church building will inevitably be reflected in the measure of distress experienced in the reaction to the news that the building is to be closed. Church buildings are bound to have a greater level of spiritual significance when they are linked with the rites of passage that mark important events in family life such as baptisms, marriages and funerals. This aspect of sacred place is one that often appears to be completely overlooked when decisions are taken to close a building. It will result in understandable distress, because that church building is bound to mean something special to those who were baptized, married, or attended family funerals in the church over many years.

Having kept in touch with a number of friends in Alness who were regular worshippers and faithful supporters of the work of the church, I found I was able to identify with the sadness and distress they felt when they learned that their church was to close. I shared the grief they expressed and did what I could to support them pastorally, as they are the ones who clearly felt most deeply the loss of this sacred place that meant so much to them.

the future ‘mission’ of the Church of Scotland. From my own past experience the closure of a building only leads to the loss of church members and a reduction in income. The loss of such sacred places in many rural communities will inevitably leave a large gap in the provision of a spiritual focal point for people who may have already lost a school, shop or village hall. It is tragic to think that many will see the closure of a local church building as the Church simply deciding to give up its work and witness by deserting their community. 

It is to be hoped that many of the church buildings which are being disposed of will not just be sold to the highest bidder and turned into housing. Surely it is not beyond the ability of the Church to find an alternative strategy for the future of its buildings that may no longer be required for regular worship, to be retained and used in some other way for the benefit of the communities where they are found. Where a building is in good condition it is always possible for it to be re-branded and made readily available for all kinds of different events. If the Church no longer wishes to be responsible for the upkeep of a building, and if the local community is willing to take it on, rather than sell it, could it not simply be given and entrusted to the care of the community. It could then still be available for worship services if and when required and remain a sacred place in the hearts of those to whom it has a special significance. For this reason the retention and maintenance of pipe organs and other church furnishings in such buildings also needs to be given serious consideration.

Our sincere thanks to Rev Cringles for sharing his reflections on such a difficult and challenging subject, something communities across Scotland are currently grappling with. If you would like to share your thoughts on any matter relating to Scotland religious built or cultural heritage please do get in touch with us.