Skene Parish Church facts for kids
Skene Parish Church is a church in Skene, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is part of the Church of Scotland. This church community has two main places where people worship. These are Skene Church in Kirkton of Skene and Trinity Church in Westhill, Aberdeenshire. The person leading the church right now is Reverend Stella Campbell.
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Skene Church: A Look at Its History
Skene Church has a long and interesting past. The first time we hear about a church in Skene was in 1296. A person named Patrick of Skene signed his name as the "Clericus of Skene." This means he was a church leader or clerk.
Early Buildings and Records
The very old church building from the Middle Ages stood near a Roman road. This road went from a place called Normandykes all the way to Donside. Records from the Skene Kirk Session, which is like a church meeting group, started in 1676. Before the current church, there was another building from the 1600s on the same spot.
The Church Building from 1801
The Skene Church you see today was built in 1801. It was a simple, rectangular building. The pulpit, which is where the minister speaks from, was in the middle of the south wall. Because this was one of the longer walls, people sat to the left and right of the minister.
There was also a gallery, like a balcony, around the other three walls. Each end wall had a door.
Changes Over Time
In 1932, the inside of the church was completely updated. The sanctuary, which is the main worship area, was moved to the east wall. The door on that wall was closed off. The old gallery was replaced with a smaller one on the west wall.
Church design ideas in Scotland changed. So, the communion table, used for special services, became the main focus. The pulpit was then placed to its left. Outside the west door, there is a mortsafe. This was a heavy iron cage used long ago to protect graves from robbers. It's a cool piece of history!
Joining Together
After a big event in 1843 called the Disruption of 1843, a new church was built nearby. It was called the Free Church. But in 1941, this church community joined back with Skene Parish Church. The old Free Church building was later used as a workshop for a blacksmith. In 1872, the church also built a small mission hall in Lyne of Skene. They kept this hall until 1970.
Trinity Church: A Church for Everyone
Trinity Church in Westhill is a special project. It brings together three different Christian groups. These are the Church of Scotland, the Scottish Episcopal Church, and the Roman Catholic Church. That's why it's called "Trinity," which means "three in one." It shows how these three groups work together.
This church building was first built in 1981. It was made bigger in 2003. It's a "hall church," which means it has chairs that can be moved around. This makes it very flexible for different uses. The 2003 addition gave the church a second hall. This means two different church groups can have their services at the same time. The new part is mostly used by the Sunday School during worship. A new church building is also being built for the Scottish Episcopal group in Westhill.
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