Mission Plan Review

The decision of the Mission Plan Review Panel regarding our request for a review (of the proposed closure of Killearnan Church as a place of worship) was received earlier this week, so, for those of you who weren’t at Killearnan this morning, here is the text of the email.

​

The Panel’s decision is to reject the request for review and that means the Presbytery’s decision (to close Killearnan Parish Church) is upheld.

As you know, in terms of the Presbytery Mission Plan Act, the Panel’s decision is final.

The Principal Clerk, the Rev Fiona Smith, and I (Christine Paterson, Depute Clerk of the General Assembly) appreciate that this decision will be very disappointing for the Kirk Session and congregation and our prayers are with you.

​

We hope that all involved can now work together with grace and understanding to move forward with implementing the Presbytery’s Mission Plan.

Please do note that the Plan is subject in due course to annual evaluation and development.

​

You will appreciate that this news was not what we were wanting to hear. Sadly, for the last eighteen months, there has been no engagement or dialogue between Presbytery, the Panel, and ourselves. I had reasonably expected that the Panel would at least make contact with us, as part of the review process, or come and see for themselves the church and hall, the people, and the work which we carry out here.

​

I don’t know what will happen next, or what timescale we are talking of, but I sincerely hope that the new Presbytery will properly engage with us on the journey which lies ahead.

​

In the meantime, we will continue as an active congregation of the church, and enjoy the fellowship of all of our Killearnan church family.