Abba Father, We long to be with our dear beloved child, our hearts are heavy with deep sorrow and our breath is shallow. Please carry us, for we are overwhelmed by the pain of our grief. Words can not express the depth of our loss or the heartache we feel. We know you are with our dear beloved son (daughter), your heart is overjoyed by him. His breath is new life in Heaven. Please come and nurture our precious one. Thank you for the hope of eternal life that he has now received. Lord, you will keep him safe until we meet. We entrust him into your care now. Amen.
Held annually between 9 – 15 October, this is an opportunity for bereaved parents, family members and friends to commemorate the all-too-brief lives of their babies and pregnancies, knowing that thousands of other families around the world understand how they feel and will be doing the same.
The week also presents the chance for people to talk openly about the subject of and raise awareness of baby loss and pregnancy loss.
The week culminates with Baby Loss Awareness Day on Sunday 15 October and the poignant global Wave of Light at 7pm. During this wave of light, we remember the babies that have died during pregnancy, at, during or after birth by lighting a candle at 7pm and leaving it to burn for at least one hour.
You can also choose to share your candle with everyone on Facebook and/or Twitter and/or Instagram, if you so wish. However you choose to mark your loss, you will be uniting with others across the world in honour of those pregnancies and babies who lit up our lives for such a short time and we hope this event can bring some comfort.
From Saturday 10th OCtober the Church will be lit up each night in blue and pink in a show of support for all those affected by baby loss
This Sunday (4 October), following this weekend’s General Assembly proceedings, Christians across Scotland will join together in prayer once more at 7pm in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We continue to join in prayer with 13 other Scottish Christian churches and organisations each Sunday in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
As with previous weeks during lockdown and the phased easing of restrictions, 14 Christian churches and organisations across the country, including the Church of Scotland, have co-signed the letter calling for prayer.
Scottish Christians have been continuing to answer the call to pray at the same time each week, and Rt Rev Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, has been taking part alongside them.
“I’m delighted to have read that in the last couple of months online searches for ‘prayer’ have increased dramatically,” Dr Fair said.
“But reading about what prayer is and how to do it is only the start of it. After that it’s time to actually pray.
“And what better than to join with brothers and sisters from across the nation at 7pm on Sunday to pray our way through this ongoing crisis. I commend it to you and look forward to being with you, in Spirit, on Sunday evening.
“As we journey through these days, we will come to occasions of real significance that will mark out its future shape and course. However, we might only come to appreciate the significance of those occasions as we look back and reflect. We are not yet in a place where we can look back and understand all that has happened in these past months. History has yet to be written. However, the events of our times will shape that history in ways that we can only anticipate.
“The journey of the people of Israel described in the Book of Exodus takes them to many places and occasions of significance. The journey to Mount Sinai and the significance of receiving the commandments of the Lord is one such. Traditionally, we refer to these as the Ten Commandments and their giving is a moment of profound significance in the Exodus story.
“This part of the story begins with a recalling of the fact that it is the Lord their God who has delivered them. In turn, the Commandments offered set out the boundaries within which the community of Israel may live and flourish (Exodus 20: 1-4, 7-9, 12-20). In these difficult times, let us recollect that it is the Lord our God who will deliver us and who offers to us life and the hope that our communities will flourish once more.”
We pray:
Lord our God, We recall that you are the One who journeys before us. As you have journeyed with us in times past, Journey with us now In all that we face as the people of God. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Lord our God, We recall that you are the One who offers life To all who call upon you. We call upon you now And trust that you will answer in your good time. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Lord our God, We recall that you are the One who speaks to your people And offers to them the word that brings life. May your word spoken to us this day Bring life and the promise of hope once more. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Lord our God, We recall that you are merciful and gracious And that you abound in love. Grant us understanding to speak words of comfort And wisdom to speak words of hope. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Lord our God, We recall that your Son invites us to love you With heart and soul and mind And to love our neighbour as ourselves. Grant us grace to do so in these times. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Signed by:
Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
Rev. Lindsey Sanderson, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)
This Sunday (27 September), Christians across Scotland will join together in prayer at 7pm in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As with previous weeks during lockdown and the phased easing of restrictions, 14 Christian churches and organisations across the country, including the Church of Scotland, have co-signed the letter calling for prayer.
Scottish Christians have been continuing to answer the call to pray at the same time each week, and Rt Rev Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, has been taking part alongside them.
“I’m delighted to have read that in the last couple of months online searches for ‘prayer’ have increased dramatically,” Dr Fair said.
“But reading about what prayer is and how to do it is only the start of it. After that it’s time to actually pray.
“And what better than to join with brothers and sisters from across the nation at 7pm on Sunday to pray our way through this ongoing crisis. I commend it to you and look forward to being with you, in Spirit, on Sunday evening.
“For the second occasion, in the course of a journey that was now set to be much longer than originally anticipated, the people of Israel complain to Moses. At the heart of the complaint is the question: ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’ The first occasion is recorded in Exodus 16 where ‘bread from heaven’ is provided by the Lord in response to that complaint.
“Now, as the journey is set to continue for a longer period, a complaint is raised again. In response, the Lord calls Moses to go ‘ahead of the people’ and lead them to the place of renewed provision. In response, Moses leads the people of Israel to the place where water is provided in the wilderness (Exodus 17: 1-7).
“For the second occasion, in the course of a journey that is now set to be much longer than originally anticipated, we are being asked as the people of God to share, in the communities of which we are a part, a renewed challenge in relation to the Covid-19 crisis.
“We are not where we wanted to be on the journey and we cannot go back to where we started. At this time, the question we might well ask is this: ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’ As we go forward together, we ask that the Lord will lead us to the place of renewed provision, so that we can say, humbly and with thanksgiving: ‘Yes, the Lord is among us!’”
We pray:
Living God, We journey in hard places today And in the company of many who are weary and fearful. We journey in hard places And we confess that we are weary and fearful ourselves. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Living God, As you have heard our cry in times past, Hear our cry renewed. As you have provided for your people in times past, Renew your provision today. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Living God, You have watched over us And brought us safe thus far. You watch over us now And we trust that you shall lead us to the place of safety renewed. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Living God, In our remembering of the journey past, We do not forget those who are no longer with us. In our remembering of the journey past, We do not forget the depth of the challenges we have faced. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Living God, Go before us we ask And lead us to the place of your presence. Go before us And bring us to the place where your presence is renewed. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Lord God, In our journey onwards, May we know that you are among us. At journey’s end, May we know that you have always been with us. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
BELLSHILL: CENTRAL PARISH CHURCH OF SCOTLAND 