Blog on the Learig

  1 March 2026 I was speaking to a granny. She told me about two of her grandchildren. One was in the police. The other was in social work. Neither of them were working for the money. They both loved their jobs and, as a result, had a deep sense of fulfilment. I would say their response was vocational. Everyone has at least one vocation – the vocation to be, to be a human being which is given to us in birth. We are all made in the image of God and carry something sacred within us. This shapes our life and our relationships with others. Some   have a second vocation – the vocation to be a Christian which is established not in birth but in baptism. This develops in some but not others. You can tell whether someone is a Christian if they bear the fruits of the Spirit in their lives – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The one in the middle is very important – kindness. It doesn’t cost us anything to be kind – to sp...

  28 February 2026 – From My Diary 1996 On 28 February 1996, I started writing a daily diary. I didn’t know whether or not I would succeed in keeping it up. As it happens, I have been making an entry every day for the past thirty years. It has now extended to forty-two volumes, mostly ‘Black n’Red’, A4 ruled notebooks. When I went to Logie Kirk in 1990, we established an afternoon Sunday service in Hanover Court. It was a sheltered housing complex of flats for older people within the community. In those days, it had a very caring warden who would let me know about illness etc. Thirty years ago, she told me about the two George’s. One was a member of the Kirk, the other was a Roman Catholic. They were both in Stirling Royal. There was nothing else for it but to visit them both. One of the George’s was in Intensive Care. When I arrived, his wife and son were there. His wife asked me to take his hand. I prayed. His son said anxiously, ‘You’ll be back in a day or two.’ When I r...

  27 February 2026 Pope Leo took his name in honour of Pope Leo XIII. He famously wrote the encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’, which is the foundation of contemporary Catholic social teaching,   addressing the relationship between management and worker, government and citizen etc. Consequently, the Pope has been interested not in the changes wrought by the Industrial Revolution but the technological revolution and,   in particular, AI or Artificial Intelligence. On Ash Wednesday, he addressed priests from the Diocese of Rome about the temptation to prepare homilies using AI. He raised four   important issues. Firstly, we should be exercising our own brain.   ‘Like all the muscles in the body, if we do not use them, if we do not move them, they die.’ he said. ‘The brain needs to be used, so our intelligence must also be exercised a little so as not to lose this capacity.’ Secondly, the preacher is called to share faith. This is behind every sermon – a strengthen...

  26 February 2026 It is deeply concerning to hear about formerly strong congregations diminishing in size and, more significantly, vitality as time passes. One I know well used to have large numbers of children and young people but now   counts few   amongst their membership. The nearby Baptist Church still attracts families etc. Why is this? There are five things which could be considered. Firstly, conservative evangelical denominations seem to attract more young people. Surveys confirm that young men are turning to Christianity in larger numbers. Perhaps the espousal of more traditional male/female roles and more theological certainty is attracting them? Secondly, it is obvious (but not so obvious that congregations act on it) that making provision for specialist ministries to work with children, young people and their families will highlight their importance and nurture growth. Children don’t come alone. This ministry reaches adults too but it all needs to be fi...

  25 February 2026 In his brilliant ‘ Markings’, Dag Hammarskjold, the former Secretary General of the United Nations, killed in an aeroplane crash in 1961, reveals the contours of his own spiritual journey. He memorably says, ‘ The longest journey is the journey inward.’ The journey begins by unmasking our humanity, peeling back the layers which conceal our poverty of spirit, our lack of generosity, our bitterness, jealousy, greed. Through this painful process, need is exposed and pity aroused within us. As the journey continues to get longer, even more is demanded of the traveller. There is the emptying of self. ‘ Not I, God in me.’ is a favourite quotation. Life, as in him who is the Way, the Truth and the Life, can only be discovered by those who empty themselves in order to be filled with the Spirit of God.   The courage is to embrace humility rather than fulfilling personal desires. It is a life’s work. ‘ You will know life,’ he writes, ‘ and be acknowledged by...

  24 February 2026 The list of temptations which Jesus struggled with has two important things to say to the Church today. Firstly, our leadership should be shaped by the character of Jesus which shines through his failure to succumb to these temptations. Some argue that Matthew was writing at the time when the Zealots were making a stand against the Roman Empire. They were using weapons of violence to overcome an unjustified tyranny. This was not the way of Jesus who came into the world to reconcile it to God through the love which suffers and dies. Secondly, the Church is not called to be successful – turning stones into bread, testing God, accruing power and influence, silver and gold. Of course, there have been periods of time when the Church was conceived to be successful – medieval wealth, power and influence, Presbyterian control of civic Scotland. One of our temptations is to be successful again by fulfilling the ‘Five Marks of Mission’ and showing the world what we...

  23 February 2026 When you examine the temptations of Jesus, you can see that when the particular circumstances are removed and the temptation is laid bare, it becomes more obvious that each one is a temptation to succumb to fear. One is the fear of having nothing. Whilst it would be handy to turn stones into bread and lead into gold, the real temptation is the fear of having nothing. One way of coping with this fear is to succumb to the temptation to have too much. Two is the fear of being nobody. Isn’t that behind the temptation for glory and authority? One way of coping with this fear is to succumb to the temptation to be somebody. But this isn’t the way of him ‘ who emptied himself’. Three is the fear of living by faith. Isn’t there too much uncertainty living like this? Don’t we have to give up control? It’s like stepping over the edge. What will happen next? One way of coping with this fear is to succumb to the temptation to distrust God and his promises. You will ...

  22 February 2026 - Lent 1 Our Statement of Christian Faith (1992) says, ‘By his death on the cross and by his resurrection, he has triumphed over evil.’ But this triumph begins in a very deep and spiritual encounter with the Devil, the personification of evil. Consider these four things. Firstly, whilst the Devil does not exist, evil certainly does. How could we deny it. Look at the murder of Alexei Navalny! Look at the web of evil woven by Epstein and his supporters! Look at Sudan and the raping of women on an industrial scale!   Secondly, there is nothing wrong with temptation. Everyone is tempted – even Jesus. That’s an eternal comfort. However, temptation exposes a dilemma and brings with it a struggle sometimes of immense proportions. That’s where the problem begins. Thirdly, temptations never end. In St. Luke’s account of Christ’s temptations, we learn that ‘ the Devil departed from him until an opportune time’. There was more – but Jesus doesn’t share his stru...

  21 February 2026 My mother had a story about her childhood. It was 1 September 1939. War had just been declared. The news was so absorbing that everything around her had changed! She had to do something! She went to the kitchen and found a packet of chocolate digestives, a rare treat in those days. She ate one and then another. A third followed. Her thinking was interesting. Because we were at war, she thought her mum would understand why she had eaten all these biscuits. But her mum did not! What she did understand was that her daughter had been tempted by greed to eat more than her fair share of chocolate digestives and had deprived her mother and three brothers of their fair share! The changed context made it easier for my mum to succumb to temptation. It proved an easy way in to justify her greed and her inability to resist temptation. We are all experts at changing the context and living in a more conducive environment whereby we can justify our actions and, in particu...

  20 February 2026 Last night the Presbytery organised an act of worship at Cellardyke   Church to celebrate the recent union of St. Ayle with Pittenweem and the new linkage with Crail. During the service, the congregation was invited to recite the Kirk’s ‘Statement of Christian Faith’. This was composed by the Panel on Doctrine and authorised for us in worship and teaching by the General Assembly in 1992. It is one of five items in our recently composed ‘Book of Confessions’. The other four are – the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds, the Scots and the Westminster Confessions of Faith. This official ‘Statement’ was an audacious initiative at a time of doubt and decline. And now   it marks our place within the Church of Scotland at a difficult time in its history. Like the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds, it follows a Trinitarian pattern celebrating Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Unlike the historic creeds, it does not mention Pontius Pilate by name. Mary is not described as ...

  19 February 2026 In 2016, the Church of Scotland borrowed the ‘Five Marks of Mission’ from the Church of England and has been using them as a managerial instrument to determine the health of a congregation and, more especially, to determine its future use of buildings. There are five things that disturb me about this. Firstly, there is no instrument which we can create to ensure that we have determined what God is doing in a particular congregation. The Spirit is like the wind, ‘it bloweth where it listeth’. We cannot pin it down. Secondly, the ‘Five Marks of Mission’ are used to encourage congregations   to share with the world what they are doing. Instead of forgetting self, taking up the cross and following Christ, we are to do the opposite. We have to tell people what we are doing in order to gain a commendation. Thirdly, this instrument suits more evangelical congregations where people are used to giving their testimony, sharing with others what God is doing in ...

  18 February 2026 Although the Transfiguration was  enfolded in stern warnings about keeping the experience a secret, it must have been a profound event, certainly it has been preserved in three of the   Gospels – Matthew, Mark and Luke. John doesn’t include it. He reveals several other signs of Christ’s   glory. He manifested his glory at the wedding in Cana of Galilee where Jesus turns water into wine and, most especially,   in his crucifixion. ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.’ he says. ‘Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains just a single grain but if it dies,   it bears much fruit.’ And here on top of the mountain, Jesus is transfigured. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appear and start talking to Jesus. A bright cloud overshadows them. They hear a voice and fall to the ground overcome by fear. This fear is something like awe or wonder. I...

  17 February 2026 The drama of the transfiguration is enfolded in a cloud. Historically, God’s presence was to be found in the cloud which led the people of Israel across the desert by day. It was a bright cloud but it both revealed and concealed the living God. ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with him I am well pleased.’ said the voice confirming the identity of Jesus in a word, resonating in the memory of   his baptism in the Jordan. The cloud enfolds the voice in mystery. We cannot see who speaks and we only hear a fragment. It is as tantalising as that! Towards the end of the fourteenth century, an anonymous text appeared for the benefit of those who wanted to become contemplatives. Instead of focusing on the humanity of God, it focuses   on the divine nature of God through a process of unknowing. The teaching is austere. When the student asks how   he is to achieve this work of contemplation, the teacher beseeches God to teach the student himself. ‘ For,’...

  16 February 2026 Jesus and his friends have come to Caesarea Philippi and he asks them, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ Some thought he was John the Baptist, some Elijah, some Jeremiah. ‘Who do you say that I am?’ asks Jesus. It is Simon Peter who answers, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’   But when Jesus reveals the nature of his   Messiahship, Peter gets it all wrong. The Messiah’s   true identity is hidden in the great suffering he must endure in Jerusalem and their identity is to be found in a true discipleship of forgetting self,   taking up the cross and following Jesus. It is a way of hiddenness and   anonymity!   In a former day, anonymity was common place. Who painted the mammoths in the pre-historic caves? Who wrote the words and composed the tunes of our beloved   folk songs? Who wrote the book of Genesis or the accounts of the books of Kings or even the Gospels? Do we really know? We have the te...

  15 February 2026 One morning, my daughter brightened up my day. She sent me a white envelope addressed to ‘Dad Scott’. When I opened it up and pulled out the card, I got a big surprise! Bright red and yellow spots fell onto the floor! Inside there was a homemade card. It had a lovely big ‘S’ spiralling on one side of it. In the centre, there was another yellow spot – and some writing. ‘Hello dad! Happy Birthday!’ it said. ‘Here’s a spot of Birthday Brightness!’ On the back of the card, there was some more brightness – eight kisses and a little love heart. This lovely card was full of surprise. It certainly brightened up my day – and as a result, I caught a glimpse of the glory of God! It is important to brighten up the day if you can! Better doing that than making people feel miserable. When Peter, James and John went mountaineering with Jesus, he brightened up their day! When they got to the top, his friends were astonished because his appearance changed. His face was ...

  14 February 2026 The rain has stopped and the light has come! Walking at 7am   has been gloomy but the morning light has begun to break through   the darkness. The prospect of Spring days ahead is cheerful and hopeful. ‘Arise, my love, my fair one and come away.’ sings Solomon, the lover. ‘For now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.’ The snowdrops are blooming on the banks of the Kinnessburn. They are truly Candlemas Bells for they were not to be seen in their glory in January. This is not in keeping with global warming unlike the grass which has grown convincingly during the last week. I don’t usually cut the grass until March. The crocus is now colouring the edges of the rockery. Tulips are up but not out and daffodils too. On the Lade Braes they are further on with heads forming but no blooms. People have been buying them up in the supermarket for 90p a bunch. ‘What about the pickers?’ asked one compassionate member of the church. At such a cheap p...

  13 February 2026 Entering the silence of God and listening to his Word has a very important consequence. It helps us to listen to others and to speak words which have come from his heart. Both Eli and Samuel were men of prayer and the words which they spoke had their home in the silence of God. They each illustrate a different dimension of this. When Eli heard Samuel’s prophecy about the destruction of   his own family. He simply said, ‘It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.’ He made no attempt to justify himself nor his family.   No amount of words could change the truth of this situation. His relationship with God gave him the self-control not to say any more than needed to be said. When Samuel grew up, he spoke to the people and the writer says, ‘All Israel listened.’ The words which he spoke were powerful precisely because they came from God. In order to speak, Samuel had to listen and in listening to God, he discovered the right words to speak on ...

  12 February 2026 A month ago, I mentioned briefly a conversation I had with the dentist’s receptionist. I was trying to make an appointment. She began the conversation in a patronising way. ‘What are we wanting today?’ she said. To which I replied, ‘There’s just one of me today!’ I am sorry to say that his way of speaking is not uncommon and it isn’t just dental receptionists who are guilty of speaking like this. It has been widely observed in the medical world. It’s called elderspeak and doctors are some of the worst culprits. In an article entitled, ‘Spin Doctors’, Philip Hensher tells his own story. He was suffering from an infected ulcer which had gone into the bone. The consultant summarised his treatment. ‘We’re just going to take a kind of little nibble at the toe.’ he said. Hensher replied. ‘Could you explain the distinction in surgical terms between ‘a kind of little nibble’ and partial amputation?’ The consultant was disconcerted. But why was he talking to a wel...

  11 February 2026 Last Sunday, I was conducting morning worship at Crail and St. Adrian’s. The latter is a union between St. Ayle, which is a union between Anstruther and Cellardyke, and Pittenweem. There are three church buildings in the union and the services in St. Adrian’s rotate around the three buildings. This week, the service was in the Pittenweem Church and I was astonished to see how many people were there. Before the union, there would have been around twenty worshippers at Pittenweem. Now there were around a hundred. This must have been an encouragement to the former congregation. In fact, to everyone. The singing was energetic with a strong lead from the organist. And because there are a number of men in the congregation, the singing of the tune ‘Desert’ was outstanding. The former St. Ayle have been used to alternating between their two church buildings for some time now. It is remarkable how faithful members of the former two congregations have been in atten...

  10 February 2026 There is a playfulness in the parables featuring salt and light. Does it surprise you that there is no agreement amongst Biblical scholars about the meaning of these two very simple parables, featuring these two very ordinary images – salt and light. One of the problems is that they are recorded differently in different Gospels. In Matthew, the Church is the lamp which will shine in the world. In Mark and Luke, it is the parables themselves that shed light in dark corners for they appear in the context of unravelling their meaning. In this way, the teaching of Jesus is not contradictory as much as playful. He uses the image of the lamp in different ways in different contexts. But it all adds up to an even richer mosaic of understanding. It requires humility before the text and the discernment which   comes from the Spirit of God. ‘No one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God.’ says St. Paul. And so we must wrestle with the Holy Spi...

  9 February 2026 Jesus describes the Church as both the salt of the earth and the light of the world.   There is a tension between the two images. The work of salt is hidden from view. We benefit from its diffusion but we cannot see what it is doing. Once it has done its work, we cannot reverse it, separate it from bread, bacon or soil! This is in contrast to the image of light which is clearly seen. Whilst both describe the Church, we are on safer ground embracing the image of salt and work which is hidden from view. This is evident in the corporate activity of the Church. The outcome belongs to everyone and it’s   often not possible to unravel who was responsible for which outcome. Like salt, we cannot trace it. With light, we are on more dangerous territory. The limelight is attractive to the leader, the celebrity, the politician, the musician. What about the Christian? The work of the Church is to be seen in the sense of illuminating the life of Christ within u...