Hidden away in the close-knit town of Bridge of Allan is one resident who goes above and beyond for his community. Reverend Aaron Moffat-Jackman of the Saint Saviour’s Scottish Episcopal Church is continuing to develop new ideas angled at improving the lives and wellbeing of locals.
Reverend Aaron has many successful endeavors behind him despite only being at Saint Saviour’s for less than a year. He is a firm believer in community and connections, beliefs which he strives to include in his community.
“It’s very rare to find places where you can just be“
“I think it’s very rare to find places where you can just be and I think that’s what a church can offer. It can be a space where you just turn up and be still,” he shares, one of the reasons he believes so strongly about inclusion with such limited space to rest from working life.
“For next year, part of my focus is to try and connect more with younger people and their families,” Aaron states.
“I recognise that there’s a particular demographic that go to church, and that’s not my demographic,” he chuckles. “My aim is to try and create space where younger people feel welcome, whether that’s services at different times of the week, [or] connecting more intentionally to the university, [or] creating spaces outside of this building so young people can have conversations about spirituality and make those connections between spirituality and our lived experiences.”
Community Garden
A sensory garden has been revived for locals to use as a safe space to take a breather. It also gives gardening lovers an escape to tend to the greenery. Aaron said: “We’ve always had a community garden but no one knows about it. People still don’t really know about it.”
The garden is tended to by volunteers who have been working on a new patch of plants. These will feature plants which you can smell and touch to engage those with sensory needs.
“There will be a patch within the community garden that is sensory. If we have children who come, if we have people with visual or hearing needs, that opens up a world to them,” he said. Aaron also shared that he has chickens and cats that come through to the garden too, and they have plans to purchase more benches for the space. He describes the garden as “a little oasis”.
Discovering this forgotten area led the gardening group to think about ways it would be put to good use. So, with Aaron’s permission, they decided to include a sensory patch.
“It’s about trying to be as inclusive as possible. Part of us trying to be inclusive is making sure that we’re thinking about people who don’t see or experience the world in a typical way,” said Aaron.
Saint Saviour’s and inclusivity
Saint Saviour’s church is listed as an “inclusive church”. The label keeps Aaron thinking of new ways to be as inclusive as possible so that everyone feels welcome there.
The church holds a Wednesday Welcome each week where people can come along from 11am to 3pm and have free soup, hot drinks, and use the church as a place to chat. Children are welcome and crafts and music are available too.
Alongside his inclusive plans, Aaron worked with other local churches to attend Stirling Pride in September to represent Christians at Pride.
“For too long the church has been a voice that has, and still does, stand against the LGBTQ+ community. It’s stood against women; it’s stood against black people. It’s ridiculous,” he said.
“I recognise, as a black person, the very church I’m part of spoke in support of slavery and was part of the institution of slavery.
“Any form of inequalities, the church has unfortunately been part of perpetuating those systems of oppression. My belief, when I look at the life of Jesus, I’m inspired to turn upside down those systems.
“Being at Pride was one of the ways of showing that actually, this is what it means to be a Christian – it means to love your neighbour as yourself,” he smiles.
He summed up his goal at the end of our chat – he doesn’t seek to convert people to Christianity, rather he wants to make people aware that the church is a space that welcomes everybody. It’s open every day of the week for those who need a breather or someplace to sit and talk with others.
Featured Image Credit: Saint Saviour’s Church / Facebook
Fourth year student journalist studying Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Journalism Studies.
Words at Brig, The Daily Evergreen, Alloa Advertiser, Discovery Music Scotland, and The Mourning Paper.
