In August 2008 Greyfriars adopted a new constitution. As part of this major change in the way our church leadership is structure five new Action Groups were brought into operation.
Each Action Group is served by members of the Kirk Session and members of the congregation. We hope that this allows people who do not serve on the Kirk Session to still play an active part in the leadership of Greyfriars.
To find out more about the Action Groups, click on the names of the groups below.
 The Mission Action Group is convened by Diane Sloan. The purpose of the Mission Action Group is to develop outreach and evangelism strategies to the community and to promote Christian action in the world.
Mission is an important part of the life of Greyfriars. It was once said that the church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning (Emil Brunner) and we certainly want that to be the case in Greyfriars. It is the privilege of those who are part of the church family to share the love that God has for them with others.
Without mission we would not be here. The disciples first shared the mission of Jesus to bring God's love to all people ... and so it should in our generation!
The remit for this group includes:
- implementing ways of bringing both new people and ‘dormant’ church members into active church life in coordination with other Action Groups where necessary, and in partnership with other local churches when appropriate;
- utilising available resources and promoting courses run that will assist in outreach;
- studying what other churches are doing in the way of mission, and sharing what is learnt with the Kirk Session;
- offering a training course to help people share their faith (not Bible-bashing, but living out God’s Good News);
- facilitating cooperation between churches ecumenically, promoting understanding of other religions;
- organise, with the Nurture Action Group, the annual Holiday Club for children;
- regular contact with parish, e.g. Christmas & Easter Cards, communications to all homes;
- visitations and communications to new homes and new occupant in existing homes when necessary;
- organising parish visitations;
- developing with Pastoral Action Group a number of ‘Bridge’ events within the church to which anyone could be invited, particularly the ‘unchurched’ (e.g., concerts, dances, speakers)
The Mission Action Group also work with Marianne Wong to publicise and further the work of the Kenya Aid Project. The Kirk Session have agreed that KAP will be Greyfriars main overseas development project. To find out more about the project please visit www.kenya-aid.org.uk
 The Nurture Action Group is convened by Sheena Thomson. The purpose of the Nurture Action Group is to develop discipleship in the lives of members of the congregation.
Many people in the church are put off by the word 'disciple'. Some think that the term should only be applied to the original friends of Jesus. However, Jesus commanded all his followers to be disciples.
To be a disciple we need to be continually challenged to grown in our faith. Many children go to Sunday School and leave when they are too old and very often we think in the church that we don't need Sunday School after the age of 11. In fact, the opposite is true! We perhaps need Sunday School well into our adult life as we are constantly struggling to apply our faith on a day to day basis in a world becoming more and more secular. It is the hope of the Kirk Session to encourage people of all ages to continue in their learning and in the process help nurture other people as we journey in faith together.
The remit for this group includes:
- leading people into a deeper spiritual commitment;
- helping members see the important of the ‘spiritual’ in day to day life;
- oversight of the Sunday School and other children’s and youth groups (including working with the Mission Action Group to help plan and execute the annual Holiday Club);
- ensuring a regular Membership course is available for new attenders;
- encouraging greater participation by members in church life;
- promoting awareness of the different ministry opportunities in Greyfriars;
- identifying through active liaison with other Action Groups and Coordinating Group where there are new opportunities available for service in Greyfriars;
- identifying people’s talents and gifts and helping them find ways to serve Christ in the church, parish, home or workplace;
- encouraging and providing opportunities for members to develop their prayer life;
- promoting good habits and practices for personal growth as a Christian;
- promoting Christian education;
- developing small / house groups;
- building a Discovering Spiritual Maturity course, using materials available, e.g. Emmaus;
- developing groups for those interested in faith (e.g. Living the Questions);
- developing awareness of justice and peace issues, including fair trade issues, Christian Aid, etc.;
- considering the Christian response to issues of local, national and international concern, reporting these to the Kirk Session, and challenging the Kirk Session and congregation to act on these issues;
- developing the children’s library to provide useful resources for children to grow in their Christian journey;
- seeking advice when unsure how to proceed from, for instance, national advisers.
 The Pastoral Action Group is convened by Lilias Tennant. The purpose of the Pastoral Action Group is to develop fellowship within all ages of the congregation and ensure that the congregation is adequately cared for and communicated with.
At Greyfriars we believe that it is important to care for all those who are part of the church family. Some people may want visited more than others, some may only want to be kept informed of what is happening in the church. The groups seeks to find out what people want from the church! It also hopes to improve the communication within and outwith the church family.
The remit for this group includes:
- oversight of the current Pastoral system, developing new approaches for pastoral care / visitation;
- providing pastoral care to the Minister and his / her family;
- to maintain the church roll, complying with Church of Scotland audit requirements;
- ensuring church magazine is regularly produced;
- ensure effective communication is employed across the church;
- promoting the work of Greyfriars in the wider community, e.g. keeping local press informed of church activities,
- church web site, etc.;
- developing fellowship groups;
- baptismal follow-up;
- organising fellowship events for the congregation
 The Resources Action Group is convened by Jack Lumsden. The purpose of the Resources Action Group is to maintain and develop Greyfriars fabric in order to enable better the work of the other Action Groups, to provide the financial wherewithal to support the other Action Groups in their work and to have responsibility for staffing within the congregation.
Whilst we understand at Greyfriars that the church is about people more than buildings we have a beautiful building that has been cared for for many generations. The group aims to keep the buildings in good repair as well as ensure that our finances are well maintained. We recognise that without the financial backing it would be very difficult to be the church that we want to be! To find out more about our church finances and download our annual report and accounts please see our finance page.
The remit for this group includes:
Finance
- maintaining and controlling Greyfriars finances: overall income, expenditure, budgets, forecasts to be reported to Kirk Session as and when determined by the Kirk Session;
- oversight of the work of the Treasurer, providing support when needed;
- assisting each Action Group in developing their budget, monitoring progress, and agreeing guidelines for the operation of Action Group budgets with the Kirk Session;
- seeking ways to fund special projects from internal and / or external sources;
- playing a key role in developing the financial stewardship of church members: promoting Christian giving, and explaining Christian spending within Greyfriars and the wider church;
- actively promoting awareness of the financial situation of Greyfriars, good or bad, through the church magazine, Church Notices, flyers, etc.;
- taking advantage of advice available from national advisers on stewardship when necessary.
Property
- creating a positive environment for all current and possible future church uses;
- developing a clear programme of maintenance and renewal of church fabric including a timeline for actions and budget estimations;
- ensuring that insurance cover is adequate for all buildings;
- arranging letting of buildings, maintenance of any rental agreements and to liaise with property users, ensuring this is reported to the Coordinating Group;
- developing the fabric in order to meet the needs of outside organisations;
- overseeing special building and fabric projects as requested by the Kirk Session;
- active liaison with other Action Groups to find out what needs they may have in order to best meet their goals.
Staffing
- ensure that staffing structure meets the needs of Greyfriars Church
- provide line management for all members of staff
- seek funding for new members of staff within the church locally and nationally and outwith the church.
 The Worship Action Group is convened by Bryan Kerr. The purpose of the Worship Action Group is to develop the worship life of the congregation.
Worship is central to everything we do in Greyfriars. We have a weekly service of worship each Sunday with around 180 people attending each week. We also try to take the worship to those who cannot come to church through no fault of their own. We offer a free CD delivery service to those who would love to join with us as part of the worshipping congregation. This service is greatly appreciated by those who receive the CD.
Each month, on the last Sunday, we hold a traditional communion service which is attended by around 40 people. The group is also committed to developing other times to worship during the week.
The remit for this group includes:
- encouraging participation in worship services by church members;
- special worship services;
- developing new initiatives in worship;
- developing ways to promote worship at times other than Sunday morning;
- planning a service with the minister on a regular basis;
- arranging pulpit supply for when minister is away;
- developing drama;
- organising readers rota;
- encouraging musical involvement;
- developing participation of children and youth in worship;
- ensuring resources for worship are available;
- coordinating arrangements for the Sacrament of Communion with Session Clerk;
- ensuring the CCLI license is up-to-date
Membership of an Action Group is open to anyone who is part of the church family at Greyfriars. If you are interested in serving on one of the groups please
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
. |
