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Church Buildings & History
"Carnoustie has a
Church that any community might be proud of: a beautiful
example of Norman architecture, lofty of roof and equipped
with aisles and a gallery, which alone seats 250. High arches
spring from massive pillars on the east, and lower arches
line the west nave, beyond which a narrower aisle is seen. As
one looks down the Church from the south door, into the deep
choir behind which steps go up to the Communion Table, a
feeling of the vastness of the sanctuary is aroused. Verily
it was in the hearts of that generation to build a house to
the name of the Lord their God, and right worthily did they
do it".
Baillie - "The Old Parish Church of Carnoustie"
The church building,
pictured and described above, was designed by the famous
Scottish architect, Peter McGregor Chalmers, and was opened
for worship in 1902. It replaced the former Parish Church
which was located on the opposite side of the main street on
the site now occupied by the Army Cadet Force and Air
Training Corps Drill Hall. A few yards further East stood the
old Free Church of Carnoustie, later called St. Stephen's
Church. That structure was demolished in 1976 subsequent to
the re-union in 1969 of the two congregations which had
separated at the Disruption of 1843. The town's Health Centre occupied
the St Stephen's site from 1978 to 2007. It, in turn, was demolished
to make way for the houses of St Stephen's Court in 2008.
The side chapel in the
north-east portion of Carnoustie Church has been designated
St. Stephen's Chapel and contains furnishings and photographs
of the former Free Church. St. Stephen's chapel was fully
refurbished early in 2000 - the pews were removed and
carpeting and comfortable individual seats installed. Banners
made by our banner group now hang here also.
The Church Hall, the
"Philip
Hall", sits adjacent to
the Church, just across Dundee Street. It is used by the
congregation for a variety of purposes such as Sunday School,
committee meetings, the holiday club, organisation meetings,
social evenings and coffee mornings. It is also available for
community use for a small charge.
This resource is well appointed and contains a large hall
with stage; smaller ante- room; the Duthie Room; modern fully
fitted kitchen; and all the usual facilities.
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Children's Ministry
SUNDAY SCHOOL
classes are held on a Sunday morning, with
the children starting in the Morning Service. A children's
section is always included (apart from Communion Sundays).
The children leave for their classes following this point in
the service. The teaching material used is "SALT",
produced by Scripture Union.
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A CRECHE
is available during the morning service.
Youngsters are made welcome by voluntary staff in a
recently refurbished and homely room within the main
church building. Parents attending the service are
easily accessible if required. |
A week-long fun-filled HOLIDAY
CLUB for children of (approximately) primary school
age is held annually.
Note: In
line with Church of Scotland Policy, all adults who work with
children are subject to the checks and procedures outlined in
the church's Child Protection Policy.
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The Guild
The Guild meets every
second Wednesday (September - April) at 7.30pm in the Philip
Hall. Assistance with transport is
available for frail members.
The Church of Scotland Guild is a
movement within the Church of Scotland which invites and encourages both
women and men to commit their lives to Jesus Christ and enables them to
express their faith in worship, prayer and action. Here at Carnoustie Church the Guild try to
follow that example and in so-doing members find, also,
friendship and enjoyment in all they do together. Members
find much to do and try to share their enthusiasm with the
congregation as a whole.
Currently the Guild has
39 active members. A very warm welcome awaits all who are
interested in joining them.
Church
Music & The Choir
Church Music
Carnoustie Church
possesses an excellent pipe organ and enthusiastic choir, of which more information
follows.
The Church of Scotland's Church Hymnary Fourth Edition
(CH4) is used at the morning service with occasional additional songs
being introduced from other sources. Items of praise at Sunday evening
services are selected from Complete Mission Praise. The
Church possesses licences from Christian Copyright Licensing and Calamus
that allow projection of the words of hymns and worship songs during
services.
The
Organ
The organ in Carnoustie
Parish Church was built and installed by H.S.Vincent & Co.,
of Sunderland. Unusually for this period, some of the
pipework appears to be of German origin. There is some
evidence that some components of the instrument date from
thirty years previous, although whether they were ever in
another instrument is not known. The organ blower (originally
water-driven) was converted to electricity in 1965, but this
was the only work carried out on the organ other than tuning
until 1972. In that year, Rushworth & Dreaper cleaned and
overhauled the instrument. By the mid-1980s however, it was
becoming clear that major work was required. With Dundee City
Organist Robert Lightband as consultant, John Lightbown of
Whitley Bay was given the contract to completely rebuild the
instrument in 1989, at the cost of £50,000. Electropneumatic
action was fitted along with a handsome new console. The
whole organ was completely overhauled, with new slider
soundboards being manufactured and sound deflectors
positioned. Considerable tonal alterations also took place in
order to enhance the instrument's presence down the church.
New pipework was installed in all divisions, including a
stunning 16' Trombone on the pedal organ. The organ was re-opened
and rededicated at a special service on 20th October 1989. Subsequently, Brindley & Foster pedal pipework from the
former Arbroath Old church became available. The opportunity
was taken to obtain these in autumn 1999, replacing the weak
and poor Sub Bass and Open Diapason ranks on the Pedal organ.
The new pipework is of excellent quality and has transformed
the organ, giving it much greater presence and definition in
the church. Two new stops were added a bold 8' Octave, and a
32' Acoustic Bass was created, massively underpinning the
whole ensemble to create a magnificent organ, capable of the
entire organ repertoire, and ideal for leading God's people
in praise.
Click here
if you wish to view the organ specification - or visit the
website of the
National Pipe Organ
Register.
For
details of organ recitals, visit www.organrecitals.com
The Choir
Carnoustie Church has a
well established balanced four-part choir of 16 members, under the direction
of our Organist and Choirmaster, Colin Armstrong.
The Choir leads the congregation in worship at the morning service each Sunday, singing an introit each week and an
anthem on appropriate occasions. It also aids worship in
special ways. An example of this is that over a number of years the choir has presented a Cantata on Good Friday, from
the traditional John Stainer's "Crucifixion" to the
modern "Hail Redeemer" by Christopher Tambling.
At Christmas a special carol service is held, the offering
being distributed to local charities.
The choir practises every Thursday evening from 7.15 p.m. - 9.00p.m.,
from September till May and always welcomes new
members.
Flower Committee
The ladies of the Flower Committee
arrange the church
flowers to enhance the beauty of the sanctuary for worship. The arrangement
for Pentecost 2010, shown above, symbolises the coming of the Holy Spirit
"as tongues of fire".
Flowers are donated each week
throughout the year by
members of the congregation. At the close of each
service Committee members on duty make a number of
bouquets and deliver them to members of the congregation who
may be housebound, ill, or suffering bereavement. Names are
suggested by the minister and the flowers are much
appreciated by recipients.
Banner Group
The Banner Group has
become very proficient over the years and has gifted the
church many banners which celebrate the
seasons of the year, the Christian calendar, sacraments and
special occasions.
The
Banner Group Portfolio
The Three Crosses 1996
An overall picture of gloom
and starkness was envisaged to simulate the scene at Golgotha.
Welcome Banner 1995
The Banner hangs in the vestibule of
the Church to be seen on arrival. The idea for the Banner was taken from
the old clock dial of the former St. Stephen's Church. The praying hands
have been quilted, overlocked, cut out and stitched in place on the
brushed cotton base. Gold braid was used to outline the lettering. A
member of the congregation mounted the material on board and secured it
to the wall.
The Window Banner
This banner is on
permanent display in the Philip Hall. It is positioned where the area
previously housed a window prior to the building of the extension, known
as the Duthie room. The squares represent the glass panes of the old
window, each one depicting as aspect of Carnoustie such as its trades,
schools leisure activities and its people, with the Church at the centre
of life in the town.
Baptism
This was deliberately made not to reflect infant
baptism alone. It was decided to symbolise with the Hands for Blessing,
The dove for the Holy Spirit and the river for Water.
The Millennium Banner
This Banner
was taken from a design by Angela Madden in a book called "Pieceful
Scenes" It took approximately 11 months to complete. As the word
"pieceful" suggests, the work consists of patchwork, quilting,
embroidery and flower making. A plan was drawn to scale by one of our
male members, while another worked out schedules of pattern and cloth,
meticulously numbering each piece. Only two of the group had previously
done patchwork, prior to their knowledge being handed down to the rest
of the team. Some of us enjoyed the work more than others but when the
end result was revealed, all felt the effort had been worthwhile.
Centenary Banners
The Banners
celebrating the 100th anniversary of our church building were dedicated
on 30th June 2002. The banner hanging on the front of the gallery depicts how people may have dressed throughout the century as they made
their way to church.
The remaining Banner depicts
the words of Hymn 96, "You are before me, God, You are behind."
Easter 1995
When the Banner Group first met in September 1994,
it was decided to create a Banner for Easter. Each member of the group
did some work on it, taking several months to complete. We worked from
the top, starting with the sky and rising sun then the hills and so
on, until the picture was complete.
Come Ye Thankful People Come
This banner was produced for use at harvest time, although there are other appropriate themes portrayed.
For
example, the vine, which is so important to our belief that Jesus is the
true vine.
The Burden
This is a somewhat loose
interpretation of the John Bunyan Story depicting the load of sin
carried by us all. We have to journey the "road of life"
weighed down by our burden, reluctant to accept the means of ridding
ourselves of the load. As we struggle on, Christ's message eventually
begins to break through and as we see the sky lighting up in the
picture, so our load lightens as we lay it at the Cross and accept
forgiveness. The figures are quilted and stitched on a wool tweed base.
other materials used were felt, net and metallic ribbon.
Father Son and Holy Spirit to be hung on Trinity
Sunday
Christmas Banner
Connecting the birth of Jesus with his ultimate
death on the Cross
The Dove of Peace
We will remember them
Lest we forget
Roman Soldiers Gambling
Form the text in John 19 V23 where the
soldiers drew lots for Jesus' robes. The dice give a modern interpretation
to the text.
Pentecost
Portraying the atmosphere of that special day when
Jesus' friends were gathered together. Suddenly there was a noise of a
strong wind blowing flames of fire, touching each person and filling
them with the Holy Spirit.
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Prayer Group
The prayer group,
currently of about 12 people, meets on Mondays in the Duthie Room of the Philip Hall at
12.15 p.m.
The group prays together for the needs of the local community
and of the world.
If you have a
particular prayer need which you would like the group to pray
for click here
to give brief details.
Coffee & Chat
In the Philip Hall
on the first and third Fridays
of the month
10.00 a.m. -11.30 a.m.
"Coffee and Chat"
operates on the first and third Fridays of the month from September to June. It is
an important event in the life of the congregation, affording
the opportunity to meet informally for fellowship over a cup
of tea or coffee (and lovely home baking!). Members of the
congregation prepare and serve the refreshments as part of
their service.
If you are in
Carnoustie, come and join us - there's a warm welcome waiting
for you!
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