New church welcomes visitors for festive fun
Perth’s brand new church at Bertha Park will welcome Christmas ‘Christingle’-makers this Saturday afternoon.
Then those who love to sing will get out on the streets and take part in a ‘carol crawl’ on Thursday, December 21 from 6pm to 8pm.
The architect-designed space for worship and group activities in Adamson Avenue, part of the Bertha Park development of 3000 homes and the new high school, has been created from a former retail space and opened in September.
Working alongside the General Trustees of the Church of Scotland, Perth Presbytery formed a Mission Initiative to create a new type of church which would foster strong ties with those living nearby.
The Perth Presbytery Mission Initiative (PMI) chose to transform a retail space sitting in the heart of the Bertha Park development into the Bertha Park Community Hub.
Not quite branded as a church, PMI believed there was an opportunity to inject a fresh perspective, “offering the church an accessible presence in the community while allowing people the opportunity to come together to build relations and connections.”
The community hub, in partnership with local residents, is already hosting activities for all ages: There’s Bertha Blethers, a Soup and Sandwich lunch club, youth drop-ins in partnership with the YMCA Tayside, taster sessions for pre-schoolers, Coffee and Chat drop-ins, Bertha Park Residents’ Group meetings and the hub also hosts community council meetings.
Rev Anne Stott, community minister at Bertha Park said: “I love working with the folk in Bertha Park.
“It’s rewarding to see a new church develop in a completely new housing area.
“Currently we don‘t have a congregation. Two or three folk pray occasionally and volunteers from other churches help me run events.
“It’s also exciting seeing the enthusiasm residents have for building their new community.”
She will have the oranges, ribbons and cloves at the ready when, on Saturday, December 16 from 3pm-5pm, she leads a Christingle-making workshop with lots of festive crafting to enjoy at the same time.
Rev Dr John Ferguson, clerk to Perth Presbytery, said: “We believe that the Bertha Park project points to the exciting future that the Church has in communities throughout our Presbytery.
Bertha Blethers is on Thursdays 12pm-2pm, with free refreshments and community gettogethers, funded by the Warm Welcome Fund.
While there is no church service as yet, there is a community drop-in on Sundays from 2pm.