Welcome to
St Andrew's Church of Scotland
Corby
Rev. Dr Jim Francis
Dear Friends
I am writing to you to introduce myself as your Interim Moderator. It will be my job to help steer you through the vacancy following Norman’s retirement. I have placed a biography in the News section which will tell you a little bit about me.
This is a strange time for us all which is forcing us to adapt in so many ways. Ordinarily, I would be in Corby in person but for the moment that is not possible. In the meantime, we will have to do as much as we can through digital means. Whilst far from ideal, it does allow a certain degree of connectivity.
Currently I am making plans with various people to try and achieve some kind of status quo that from which we can look to the future. In terms of worship, there are a number of online resources available for folk to follow. More locally, I have agreed with Rev Peter Mills, Interim Moderator at St Ninians, that we will share services on a monthly basis so that there will be a contribution from both of Corby’s Church of Scotland Congregations.
I am also working on arrangements for pastoral cover – normally that would be done by a locum. I’ll publish the details as soon as I can. Finally, I am working with the Kirk Session to coordinate a way forward. This last bit is important as we are trying to discern a future for the Church of Scotland in Corby that fits with the Presbytery Plan for the Presbytery of England, but also has an eye on the Radical Action Plan of the wider Church of Scotland.
That Plan is all about reviewing our resources in order to ensure that we have the right buildings and facilities in the right place to facilitate the mission of the church. And now we have to take account of the financial impact of COVID. So, all in all, a pretty big challenge.
That said, I’m absolutely sure that with God’s help and your support we can meet any and all of these challenges. I am very much looking forward to working with you and getting to know you all over the next few months.
With all good wishes