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Bulletin 108 Date : 31st Aug 2007
Hebridean Revival

Well, we are back from our short break on the Outer Hebrides, somewhat tanned, somewhat tired after the 2,000 mile drive but deeply impressed by the sheer beauty, remoteness and tranquillity of the islands of Skye, Lewis and Harris. One thing which stood out for me was the way in which church life is so dominant in these parts of Scotland. I am reliably informed by my Scottish colleagues that church attendance in Scotland generally is much higher than in England.

On the Outer Hebrides in particular, everything shuts down on Sunday, including ferries to the mainland. Sabbath observance is so strong that some English people, including Christians, might find it restrictive. Others will heartily applaud their rigid refusal to cave in to the pressures of commercialism. But I also noticed another side to all of this. I admit that I have not studied in detail the Hebridean Revival which took place in the middle of the last century but I was struck by how many church buildings I saw. Regularly I saw a Church of Scotland building only a few yards away from a Free Church of Scotland or Presbyterian Church building and seemingly, never the twain shall meet.

The photo at the top of this bulletin shows a church building on Skye where, on one wall is a plaque (the brown one) advertising the Free Church of Scotland with Sunday Worship at 11am and Prayer Meeting with Bible Study on Thursday at 7:30pm. On the adjacent wall was another plaque (the blue one) advertising the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) with Sunday Worship at 6pm and Prayer Meeting on Wednesday at 7:30pm. Both denominations had their own minister. I don’t know the full story behind the divisions which have arisen between the different branches of the church but I gather they revolve around doctrinal purity or to put it another way, the feeling that ‘them lot don’t do church like it should be done!’ I couldn’t quite understand the wording at the bottom which read, “All Welcome”. Did that include members of the other denomination? Incidentally, this church building was opposite a whisky distillery.

Whilst we all long for genuine revival within the church, I wonder how much rejoicing there is in heaven when the outcome is deep-rooted division. We can be so obsessed with our own rightness that it creates unhelpful distinctions between the saved and the unsaved, the churched and the unchurched, the ordained and the un-ordained or simply, us and them. There’s an interesting little verse in proverbs which reads, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the hearts.” (Proverbs 21:2).

I sensed there was a stark contrast between the beauty, harmony and peace which I experienced as I gazed upon the breathtaking scenery of the Outer Hebrides and the man-made tensions within the church. I watched as one church concluded its evening service at dead on 7pm and I saw the car park clear in a matter of minutes with many of the cars containing only one person (oh the carbon footprint!). Everyone was neatly attired in their ‘Sunday Best’. There seemed to be no socializing – a far cry from the wedding banquet of Matthew 22:1-10. Mind you, if you read verses 11-14 there’s a twist in the tail!