St Ninian's & St Clement's, Catholic Churches Together
The CC Juniors met for their monthly meeting on Thursday. It was a lovely afternoon despite the rain and the expected meeting with the Park Ranger postponed Their spirits weren’t dampened at all. They enjoyed the healthy snacks and checked out the daffodils they’d planted and which are now in full glory.
Lent is a special season for reflection and action through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, when we celebrate the memory of our Lord Jesus Christ in His passion, death, and resurrection. We know that Creation also eagerly awaits for redemption (cf. Rm 8:19-23), therefore Lent can be an opportunity every year for Catholics worldwide to grow deeper in their faith that Jesus Christ is the redeemer of the whole cosmos, of all creatures, of all creation. This year in a special way, as we celebrate the Year of Jubilee, 10 years of Laudato Si’ and Laudato Si Movement (LSM) , and 800 years of the Canticle of Creatures, Lent can prepare us to live this year faithfully and fruitfully. We invite all Catholics to embrace this special season of Lent by reflecting on how we can care for our Earth, making small changes to our daily actions, and reconnecting with creation through meaningful steps toward healing and sustainability. The daily actions proposed in this calendar which you can download below, revolve around LSM’s three pillars: eco-conversion, sustainability, and advocacy and were developed in collaboration with the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
Bishop Andrew visited St Clement’s Primary School on Monday, where he received a warm welcome from both staff and pupils. The children were delighted to meet him and the House Heads had the special opportunity to be pictured alongside him.
Challenge yourself to a green resolution in 2025 
The easiest way to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill is to reduce how much we consume in the first place.
Doing a ‘no buy challenge’ and only spending on the essentials for a week, month or even the year if you’re feeling ambitious is a great way to challenge your habits and save a bit of money in the process.
Willing to give it a go?
On Thursday, Fr Johney and a group of 20 parishioners from St Ninian’s and St Clement’s came together to spread the joy of the season by singing Christmas carols at Roxburghe House. Their beautiful harmonies and heartfelt melodies seemed to be appreciated by both the patients and staff filling the space with warmth and festive spirit.
A big well done to the choir for bringing light and music to those who need it most during this special time of the year. Your kindness and effort truly embody the Christmas spirit. Once again a big ‘thank you’ to Maureen for making this possible and for her keyboard accompaniment
Link below to a verse of ‘Away in a Manger’:
Mary, our Mother,
As we prepare to celebrate the birth of your Son Jesus,
we reflect on the difficulties you faced.
We seek your intercession.
May our hearts and minds be opened to the many expectant mothers who face great uncertainty giving birth and the mums and dads struggling to feed and keep their children safe.
Help us to love and support our sisters and brothers in need.
Amen
We are thrilled to announce that we have been awarded the Eco Congregation Scotland Gold Award for our “outstanding practice in caring for creation shown in your spiritual life, practical action and global awareness.”
We are now one of only 11 congregations in Scotland to be awarded Gold and the first Catholic parish to achieve this honour.
We are incredibly grateful to everyone involved and look forward to continuing our eco journey together responding to Pope Francis who says, “I urgently appeal, then, for a new dialogue about how we are shaping the future of our planet. We need a conversation which includes everyone, since the environmental challenge we are undergoing and its human roots, concerns and affects us all..” (Laudato Si’ *14)
As we enter September, the Season of Creation, we, at St Ninian’s are considering ways of ‘hoping and acting’ with creation. The times we live in show that we are not relating to the Earth as a gift from our Creator, but rather as a resource to be used. “Creation is groaning” because of our selfishness and our unsustainable actions that harm her. So this month, we’ll focus on having a more sustainable approach to clothing……
We are planning to to set up a ‘Clothes Share’ through a Whatsapp group, help parishioners learn how to sell their items on Vinted, and a parishioner will alter and repair clothes to improve their appearance and longevity.