Rector’s Letter – November 2026
St James the Less Penicuik and St Mungo West Linton
Scottish Episcopal Churches
The Rectory
23 Broomhill Road
Penicuik
EH26 9EE
01968 678254
07950 607574
Rector.pandwl@gmail.com
28th October 2026
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Rector’s letter for November 2026
Personal Notes
We are entering the season of Remembrance. 1st November is All Saints’ Day and 2nd November is All Souls Day, quickly followed by Remembrance Sunday on 8th and Remembrance Day itself on 11th.
We shall mark All Souls Day at both churches. During the service of Prayers for Healing at St Mungo’s on Sunday 1st at 5pm there will be a time for remembering those we love but see no longer. There will be a short service at St James at 3pm on Sunday 1st for All Souls Day too. Both services will be followed by refreshments.
Our series of four sermons on the theme of forgiveness draws to a close on 1st November. We have two more weeks of the faith development course after that, and a showing of ‘’The Choral’ film at 5pm at the Penicuik Town Hall also on 1st November. Feedback on the faith development course has been encouraging and the numbers attending has been good. It has been nice to share the course with members from St Matthew’s Roslin and Rev Gill Hitchen, their priest. There are still other related events to complete this time focussing on forgiveness. See the monthly lists and information further on in this letter.
November is also when the annual Diocese Clergy Conference takes place, and I will be attending this for my last time as a stipendiary priest. I have tried not to consciously think of ‘last time..’ as the months fly past towards my retirement, but at certain points it is hard not to. The clergy conference is a time to connect with fellow clergy, a time to relax a bit, and eat some lovely food. Depending on the weather it may be possible to get out for a decent hill walk up Ben Vrackie, or else a visit to the House of Bruar (sometimes both can be achieved). At this year’s conference the Bishops of the three dioceses we are twinned with will be joining us online to share worship. The bishops are:
- Bishop Anne van Gend, Bishop of the Diocese of Dunedin, New Zealand
- Victor Atta-Baffoe, Bishop of the Diocese of Cape Coast, Ghana.
- Hintikka Kaisamari, Bishop of the Diocese of Espoo, Finland.
The Diocese of Espoo was created in 2004, and the Bishop Hintikka is the third Bishop in the Diocese, installed in February 2019.
I shall be in charge of the Zoom account for these sessions, so I am praying the technology work well.
At the conference I shall be handing out information leaflets about Cursillo in Scotland. I suspect many of our clergy are unaware of Cursillo and how it can help nurture and encourage someone in faith. If you are interested in knowing more about a weekend Cursillo event, or would be interested in attending an evening gathering to experience something of the Cursillo ways, please let me know, or speak with David McGavin, Val McGavin, or Catherine Pow who have all attended a Cursillo weekend.
On Saturday 24th October St Mungo’s hosted a fundraiser for Breast Cancer Research and ‘Lavendar Touch’ ( a Scottish Borders based charity that offers various massage and related therapies to people undergoing treatment for cancer). Over 100 people came during the four hours. There was a lot of cake and other goodies on sale as well as crafts and jam. A puppet show entertained the children, and quite a few adults. £1,116 was raised, which is a wonderful amount, and many people said how nice the church was and how warm the welcome.
On Saturday 10th October Alan Murray and friends entertained a full church hall at St James, and raised in excess of £600 for church funds.
Today is the Saints Days for Saint Simon and Jude. Jude is famous for being the patron saint of lost causes. It is thought he was given this title and role because his name is similar to Judas Iscariot, so he was rarely invoked in prayer and it seems likely that because of this , interceding through him was seen as a final resort when all else failed.
On 31st October, Martin Luther commemorated by many churches (although in Scotland he is commemorated on 19th February). This year, it is 480 years since his death. Commemorating him, reminds me of the interesting week I had in the former monastery (now church conference centre) in Erfurt, Germany three years ago, with the Iona Community.
On Thursday 21st October I attended a meeting of the Scottish Faiths Action for Refugees Group, and Interfaith Scotland’s new offices in Parkhead, Glasgow. As per usual it was an interesting meeting with members of different faiths as we shared ideas and received a briefing on the latest proposed legislation and on various initiatives to support asylum seekers and refugees (new Scots). I went straight from that meeting to the Diocesan Synod meeting, held in St Mary’s cathedral. Warned to bring plenty of warm clothing, for a change it wasn’t too cold in the cathedral. It was Bishop Dagmar’s first Diocesan Synod, and it went well. Bishop Dagmar is encouraging the Area Councils to become more purposeful, collegiate and supportive of each other in our charges.
Sunday 22nd November is the last Sunday of our liturgical year (year A). Sunday 29th November is Advent Sunday, the start of our new liturgical year (yes, Year B), when the Gospel of Mark is used for much of the year.
On 10th November, both Vestries are meeting with Bishop Dagmar to initiate the process of recruiting my successor. There will be some discussion of timescales, what information is required, what approvals are needed, etc. The congregations will be kept informed of the timetable and consulted about the congregational profiles and priest’s profile, in due course.
News and new things happening
St James the Less Fellowship Lunch – 1st November
On 1st November we shall have our usual fellowship lunch of soup some bread and cheese.
Forgiveness Sermon Series and Faith Development Activities
The fourth and final sermon in our series will be on Sunday 1st November. The Faith Development Discussion Groups, using the booklet called ‘Forgiveness: Making Peace With the Past’, continue, with the last sessions in the week commencing 9th November. The film ‘The Choral’ will be shown at the Penicuik Cinema on Sunday 1st November at 5pm, in the Cowan Institute (aka the Penicuik Town hall).
Penitential Service at Rosslyn Chapel – 7.30 pm Wednesday 11th November.
At the end of the Forgiveness course and associated activities, you are invited to attend a penitential service at Rosslyn Chapel at 7.30pm on 11th November. It will be a time to draw together our thoughts and feelings that have arisen from our discussions, and place them before God in prayer. It will be a time to ask for forgiveness and to let go of hurts.
Bring and Share Lunch -12.30pm Saturday 14th November
And a final activity of the Forgiveness ‘season’ will be a chance to come together on Saturday 14th November, in St James’ church hall for a bring and share lunch, and, as people wish, in an informal setting, reflect on these activities and deepen the friendships and connections made through attending the courses, or the films, or through gathering with others to discuss one of the books.
People may wish to share what other subjects they would wish to explore together, in future.
Games Evening at St James Church Hall– Saturday 7th November at 7pm
Have you ever fancied learning a new board or card game? Do you have a favourite game you seldom play nowadays? Why not join us for an evening of games and a simple meal of a jacket potato with a range of fillings to choose from? Bring Your Own Bottle. Backgammon, Dominoes, Crib, Wordle, Mexican Train (a form of dominoes using tiles up to double-twelve), and draughts will be available. Bring your own favourite game it is isn’t on this list. This is a fundraiser for St James, £10 per ticket. Please email Nick by noon on 6th November of you wish a ticket.
Remembrance Sunday – 8th November
At West Linton St Mungo’s congregation will join with those at St Andrew’s for the annual service, and wreath laying at the War Memorial.
At St James the service will be in church, as usual, at 10.30 am. I shall be leading the civic remembrance, so shall be at Trinity Church for the service which starts at 10:45, with John Urquhart and then at the War Memorial in the park.
Lest We Forget – Sacred Heart Church Sunday November 8th at 6.00pm
The Annual Ecumenical Hour of Reflection, Prayer, Poetry and Music for Remembrance Sunday, will be held at Sacred Heart. Please do come along and support this lovely service, and enjoy the wonderful hospitality afterwards in the Michael Room.
St James the Less AGM – Sunday 6th December
The AGM for St James the Less will be held directly after the service on Sunday 6th December. There are two vacancies for Vestry for members. One of these has been filled by Vestry co-opting Mark Brand into the position that became vacant during the year when Moira Rendall resigned. Mark is willing stand for election to one of the positions. Please consider if you have the skills and gifts to become a trustee for St James, for a three year term on Vestry. Charlotte Kemp, Vestry Secretary, will be issuing forms etc. shortly – contact her if you wish to be considered. The Peoples’ Warden position is a three-year position, and Andy Longomre’s term comes to an end at this AGM. Andy is willing to stand for election again. If you have an interest in this role, representing the congregation at Vestry meetings and in meetings with the Rector and Rector’s Warden on a regular basis, please contact Charlotte.
St Mungo’s ‘Light in the Darkness’ Service – Sunday 13th December at 3pm and Penicuik Churches Together ‘Light in the Darkness’ Service at St James the Less – Tuesday 15th December at 7.30pm
These are our annual services for those who find the time leading up to Christmas difficult, where we are all expected to be jolly and excited. The service is a time to acknowledge that for many, it is not so happy, as people experience sadness, loss, loneliness, etc., accentuated at this time of year, especially those who have lost someone during this year and are facing their first Christmas without that person. Please consider coming along and invite others in our local community who may benefit from this reflective service. We shall serve refreshments afterwards.
Penicuik Churches Together Weekly Prayer Walk
On Thursday mornings from 9.45 to 10.45am a group of folk from various Penicuik churches meet to walk and pray. Sometimes they walk a couple of miles and other times they walk 100 yards. Sometimes they stop and pray together and sometimes pray as they walk. God is part of their conversations and there is usually quite a lot of that. Some of the group usually go for a coffee afterwards but that part is optional. They commence their walk from different points in Penicuik, usually decided on the Wednesday evening via WhatsApp. If you would like to find out more please speak to Marion Mather or Nick Bowry.
Welcome Pack Initiative – It Needs You to be Proactive!
If you notice someone moving into a house near you, please post a ‘welcome pack’ through their door. Even better if you were to be very neighbourly and hand them a useful gift (the proverbial apple pie?) and a welcome pack from church? The welcome pack contains our tri-fold leaflet about the church and our services, along with the latest monthly lists, and Rector’s letter, and the most recent In Touch magazine, with an invitation to come to church.
There is normally one envelope in church with these up to date items in (when I remember to take out old information and put in the most recent information) – or else ask me for an up to date welcome pack.
Assisting at Care Home Services
Due to the changes in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme, only people who have clearance for working with ‘adults’ for the church can attend and assist at these services. If you would like to help out but do not have clearance we can arrange to make an application for a PVG. It is mostly completed online which makes for a speedier process. You do need to obtain a Scot Account, which is a Scottish Government site that confirms your identity and through which Disclosure Scotland interact with you in the processing of the PVG, and the notification of clearance.
In Other News…
Thank you to those who responded to last month’s letter where I reflected on what changes I have made to my life in the last year, to reflect my commitment to care for God’s creation. Quite a few people have made changes, so I am not alone. It is heartening to hear that others have found it quite easy to make changes and to stick with them.
SNCF (French Railways) release tickets for their TGV services for April in mid-November. I have set up an alert so I can buy tickets for the journey (Paris to St Jean Pied de Port) to take me to the start point of my post-retirement Camino Frances pilgrimage. It will start to feel very real when I buy those tickets! I have been in discussion with my daughters about when they will meet me in Santiago de Compostela, to celebrate my safe arrival (I hope) and be ready to walk with me to Finisterre (Fisterra in Galician) and Muxia (only 110 km). I will need to book hotel rooms in Santiago for us early in the New Year. 2027 is a ‘Holy Year’ for the camino (when St James’ Day falls on a Sunday), so even more pilgrims are expected to walk in 2027. Then all I need to do is get fit enough to contemplate the first day’s walk, up and up and up over the Pyrenees and down into Roncesvalles, let alone the remaining 760km to Santiago. The route on the first day will depend on the weather. If there is still snow lying, or thick fog, then the highest route will be closed. Luckily after that first day, there won’t be anywhere near the same amount of ascent and descent each day. One friend is joining me for the first few weeks and is contemplating walking all the way to Santiago with me. A few others have thought about joining for a somewhat shorter distance somewhere along the route. When I celebrated my 66th birthday, a year ahead of my retirement, it felt like a long time ahead. Now it is just five months away, and time is flying past at an extremely fast pace.
Nick Bowry
Regular Activities
Ministry in Care and Nursing Homes
Cowan Court, Penicuik: We are part of a rota with the other Penicuik churches, visiting Cowan Court on a Sunday afternoon. Our next visit is on 15th November. Due to the changes in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme, only people who have clearance for ‘adults’ with the church can assist.
Aaron House, Penicuik: We are part of a rota with the other Penicuik churches, visiting Aaron House on a Wednesday afternoon at 2pm. As with Cowan Court we will visit once every 5 or 6 weeks. Our next visit is on 2nd December. The same issues related to PVG’s applies. We also will be taking part in a Carol Service at Aaron House on 16th December.
Whim Hall, Lamancha: We visit Whim Hall Care Centre on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month. Our next visit is on 12th November.
Glencorse, Penicuik: We are part of the rota with the other Penicuik churches, visiting Glencorse Care Home on the last Wednesday of each month at 3.30pm. Our next visit there is on 31st March 2027!
Faith Development ‘Faith Books’
When we have a fifth Monday in the month, we hold a discussion at 7.30 pm about a book as a way of introducing people to different authors which may pique an interest to read more of their work (or not!). In looking for new or used books, I have often used www.bookfinder.com I am sure there are other search sites that will help people find the books on our reading list. The books we shall be discussing in 2026 are:
30th November: ‘Places of Enchantment: Meeting God in Landscapes’ by Graham B Usher (published by SPCK ISBN 978-0-281-06792-3) – The Bishop of Norwich, who preached at Bishop Dagmar’s installation.
Morning and Evening Prayer
We meet online Monday to Friday at 9.00 am and at 5.30 pm. It is a good way to start and end our day, coming together for worship, with daily readings including the psalms; a good rhythm for worship in the Anglican tradition of saying the Daily Offices. Please do consider joining us.
If you wish to access the Daily Office liturgy with the daily scripture readings, go to the Provincial Website, www.scotland.anglican.org and place your cursor on the ‘Spirituality’ heading. A submenu appears and you can select the appropriate Daily Office from the right-hand side of the page.
Mid-week evening services on Zoom
On the first Wednesday of each month, at 7.30 pm, we hold a service of Prayers for Healing online. If you wish someone or a situation to be prayed for, send an email to me or Marion Mather.
At 9pm every Wednesday evening we hold the service of Compline. Please do join us for this short service of calm and settling prayers before sleep.
Continuing our Mission: Leading Your Church into Growth Prayer
Each weekday morning, we pray for growth in our church. If you are not able to join us online for Morning Prayer at 9 am, can I encourage you to pray this once a day. The prayer is given below.
God of Mission, who alone brings growth to your Church,
send your Holy Spirit to give:
vision to our planning, wisdom to our actions, and power to our witness.
Help our church to grow:
in numbers, in spiritual commitment to you, and in service to our local
community, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
In Touch Magazine for St James the Less and St Mungo’s
In Touch is circulated to all on email and is issued in paper format to those who do not have email. The cost of a paper copy is £2 for an A4 version, and about £1.50 for an A5 version. We print a very limited number of paper copies to keep out costs down, and to reduce our consumption of paper. If you receive an email version but would also like a paper copy, please let Sue Owen know and we invite you to make a suitable donation (preferably by bank transfer rather than in cash) to cover the cost. The deadline for content to be submitted for the next issue is 1st November 2026. I would like to encourage you to submit something for inclusion in the magazine; a poem, a review of a book or a film, an article on a subject of interest. If you wish to submit an article, please send them to intouch@stjamesthelesspenicuik.org
Financial giving to St James the Less or to St Mungo’s
If you are able, can I ask you to prayerfully consider setting up a recurring monthly payment to the church via on-line banking, to contribute financially on a regular basis. Details of the bank accounts are given below for each of the churches.
St James the Less:
Monthly donation by bank transfer (include your name in the reference line when setting this up – only the Treasurer knows the name of the donor). Bank details are: St James Episcopal Church Penicuik, acct no 17117264, sort code 80-22-60. If you wish to make a donation by cheque, please make out the cheque to ‘St James Episcopal Church Penicuik’.
St Mungo:
Monthly donation by bank transfer (include your name in the reference line when setting this up – only the Treasurer knows the name of the donor). Bank details are: St Mungo’s Vestry, acct no 00817851, sort code 80-09-39.
Ecumenical Relations and Community Involvement Work
The Penicuik Ministers continue to meet every month in the Storehouse for a chat. Once a month the Penicuik Churches Together (PCT) has a joint Sunday evening service. The schedule detailing where the services are each month is on the PCT website. http://penicuikchurchestogether.org.uk/
Diocesan and Provincial Activities
There are no meetings arranged, just yet, beyond the Diocesan clergy conference.
The Ministry Team
We continue to meet to plan for the coming months; planning services and faith development activities as well as exploring other aspects of what is offered to the congregations and to our local communities.
Zoom Links for Services
We have a regular pattern of services. Details of these are set out below. You can access them using the Zoom links.
Morning Prayer at 9 am, and Evening Prayer at 5.30 pm, Monday to Friday. (Zoom only)
https://zoom.us/j/6289561588?pwd=aGtNeE1ZM3l1Tkluckp3bVJtZkRHQT09
Meeting ID: 628 956 1588 Password: 040775
St Mungo, Holy Communion at 10.30 am on Sunday.
https://zoom.us/j/93417190423?pwd=K1ZoS0xKUWpRVENGTzFYL3NvakFHQT09
Meeting ID: 934 1719 0423 Passcode: 062021
St James the Less, Holy Communion at 10.30 am on Sunday.
https://zoom.us/j/92002197798?pwd=REp5NHQwVEdSd3A4a09lN1lHOUdnUT09
Meeting ID: 920 0219 7798 Passcode: 040775
1st Wednesday Evening Service at 7.30 pm (not July or August) (Zoom only)
https://zoom.us/j/96303841875?pwd=YmZiYkdNNzZJeWI5cmtZL2RLUWc1Zz09
Meeting ID: 963 0384 1875 Password: 040775
Wednesday Evening Compline at 9 pm (all year) (Zoom only)
https://zoom.us/j/95345457224?pwd=TDNoT20vR2dYMVQ5STdsS0lzR0dMQT09
Meeting ID: 953 4545 7224 Password: 040775
Zoom Links for Activities
‘Monday Evening Studies’ at 7.30 pm (Zoom only)
https://zoom.us/j/97670406222?pwd=WWUzL0dLNHdWdFJ0YVNnLzdvY2w2Zz09
Meeting ID: 976 7040 6222 Passcode: 202101
Use this link for Monday Evening Studies and the ‘Faith Book’ discussions.
Weekly Bible Study: Tuesdays at 2pm (Zoom only)
https://zoom.us/j/92510962481?pwd=L1hsaCtiWTh0ZFFib3N0WlluaVlaUT09
Meeting ID: 925 1096 2481 Passcode: 040775