Culbokie Church Centre
Attribution: not recorded or unknown
Dedication of the Culbokie Church Centre
On Sunday 22 April 2012 the former Culbokie School which had been transformed into Culbokie Church Centre, to replace the Church of Scotland of Resolis and Urquhart, was dedicated by the Presbytery of Ross. The participating ministers were: Rev Dr Bruce Ritchie, Moderator of the Presbytery of Ross; Rev Fraser Stewart, Interim Moderator of Resolis and Urquhart; and Rev Willis Jones, locum minister.
Attribution: unknown
The doors of the Church were closed two minutes before the appointed time for the service to begin.
Dingwall Gaelic Choir sang a Choral Introit.
The Moderator and Presbyters proceeded from the hall to the main entrance of the Church.
The Moderator knocked three times on the closed doors and said:
Open to me the gates of righteousness:
I will go into them, and I will praise the Lord.
The doors were opened from within.
A greeting to the people was given from the inner door of the Church in these words:
Peace be to this house, and to all who worship therein.
Peace be to those who enter, and to those that go out therefrom.
Peace be to those that love it, and and love the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
A representative of the Congregation delivered the keys of the Church to the Moderator and said:
This Parish Church has been made for the glory of God and for the proclaiming of the Gospel of Christ.
As Moderator of the Presbytery of Ross, and representing the Church of Scotland,
will you accept these keys, and will you, within the Presbytery,
dedicate this Church to the worship of Almighty God?
Moderator:
In the name of the Presbytery of Ross, and in the name of the Church of Scotland,
I accept these keys as a token of the trust committed to us, and we now proceed to the dedication.
Grace and peace be yours in fullest measure, through knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ.
Peace be to this house and all those who worship in it.
Peace be to those who enter it, and to those who go out from it.
Peace be to those who love it, and who love the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us worship God.
The Service began with the singing of Psalm 24, during which Presbytery processed to the front of the Church, where the Moderator laid the keys on the communion table, following which the Moderator led in prayer and Scripture sentences. This continued with prayer led by Rev Fraser Stewart, and with readings from the Old Testament (Psalm 103) by Richard Fyfe, Session Clerk; from Acts 2: 42-47 by Carol Rattenbury, Elder; and from Matthew 16:13-20 by Stuart Tickner, Session Clerk, Cromarty. Then the congregation stood to recite The Creed.
The Moderator gave the Prayer of Dedication and following the phrase We dedicate this house the congregation responded Amen. The hymn In Christ Alone My Hope is Found was sung prior to the Moderator’s sermon, after which prayers of intercession were led by Rev Willis Jones.
The final hymn, Thine Be The Glory, was followed by the Benediction by the Moderator and a Choral Benediction by Dingwall Gaelic Choir.
Attribution: unknown
