St. John's Renfield Church, Glasgow
Encyclopedia
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
, serving Kelvindale
Kelvindale
Kelvindale is a district in the west of the city of Glasgow, Scotland.-Construction:Construction started in the late 1920s with work being undertaken by the City Corporation. This was followed up in the early 1930s by the Glasgow-based housebuilding company Mactaggart and Mickel...
in the west end of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is within the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Glasgow.
Location
The church building is situated in Beaconsfield Road, Kelvindale (within the G12 postcode areaG postcode area
The G postcode area, also known as the Glasgow postcode area, is a group of postcode districts around Alexandria, Clydebank, Dumbarton, Glasgow and Helensburgh in Scotland.-Former postal districts in Glasgow:...
). The church is visible from the Great Western Road. Gartnavel General Hospital
Gartnavel General Hospital
Gartnavel General Hospital is a teaching hospital in the West End of Glasgow, Scotland. The hospital is located next to the Great Western Road, between Hyndland, Anniesland and Kelvindale. Hyndland railway station is adjacent to the hospital. The name Gartnavel is derived from the Gaelic Gart ...
, Gartnavel Royal Hospital
Gartnavel Royal Hospital
Gartnavel Royal Hospital is a mental health facility based in the west end of Glasgow, Scotland. It provides inpatient psychiatric care for the population of the West of the City; covering Hillhead, Partick, Scotstoun, Yoker, Clydebank, Drumchapel, Bearsden and Milngavie...
and the Glasgow Nuffield Hospital are located nearby.
History
The congregation has its roots in three separate congregations of the United Free Church of Scotland, namely St John's UF Church and Renfield UF Church (both located in Glasgow's city centre) and HyndlandHyndland
Hyndland is a residential area in the West End of the city of Glasgow, Scotland.Bordering the Broomhill, Maryhill, Dowanhill, Kelvinside and Partickhill areas, it is a middle-class area populated mainly by professionals and young bourgeois bohemians including a number of noted authors, poets,...
UF Church. The two city centre churches resulted from the Disruption of 1844, breaking away from Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
congregations of the same name.
In 1923, St John's UF Church and Renfield UF Church united, henceforth using the Renfield UF Church buildings in Elmbank Street (at Bath Street), with the former St John's buildings being sold and later demolished. This was, however, only a temporary development. Recognising the move of population to the suburbs, the congregation further united with Hyndland UF Church in 1927. The church was "transported" (i.e. relocated) to the new church building in Beaconsfield Road in 1931.
Building
The church was dedicated in January 1931. The new building was planned by the United Free Church of ScotlandUnited Free Church of Scotland
The United Free Church of Scotland is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the Free Church of Scotland...
, but by the time of completion the UF Church had already united (in 1929) with the Church of Scotland. On 15 December 1970 the church was designated as a Category B listed building.
The church was designed in a Gothic revival style by the architect James Taylor Thomson (1887–1953). He won the competition to design the church in 1927; it was built between 1929 and 1930. Thomson's wedding took place in the church in 1931. The church also includes elaborate oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
carvings and stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
by Douglas Strachan and Gordon Webster. Also in Glasgow, Thomson designed High Carntyne Parish Church and was involved in designing the chapel
University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel
The Memorial Chapel at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, was consecrated on 4 October 1929, and is dedicated to the memory of the former students and staff of the University who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars. It is located in the West Quadrangle of the Main Building of the...
of the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
and much of the 1937 Empire Exhibition
Empire Exhibition
Empire Exhibition may be:*British Empire Exhibition, held in London in 1924 and 1925*Empire Exhibition, Scotland 1938, held in Glasgow...
site in Bellahouston Park
Bellahouston Park
Bellahouston Park is a public park in the South Side of Glasgow, Scotland, between the areas of Mosspark, Craigton, Ibrox, and Dumbreck, covering an area of . It is based around Ibrox hill in the centre, with commanding views over most of the city, exceptions being views to the east that are...
.
Ministry
The minister (since 2009) is the Rev Fiona Lillie, who was previously minister at StromnessStromness
Stromness is the second-biggest town in Orkney, Scotland. It is in the south-west of Mainland Orkney. It is also a parish, with the town of Stromness as its capital.-Etymology:...
Parish Church, Orkney. The previous minister, the Rev Dugald Cameron, is now minister in Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
.
A former minister (1966–1976) was the Very Rev Dr James A. Simpson
James Simpson (Moderator)
James A. Simpson is a retired minister of the Church of Scotland. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1994-5 - the first from a Highland parish since the Very Reverend Dr James Mathieson in 1975.-Background and career:In 1976 he moved from St...
, who subsequently moved to Dornoch Cathedral
Dornoch Cathedral
Dornoch Cathedral is a parish church in the Church of Scotland, serving the small Sutherland town of Dornoch, in the Scottish Highlands. It was built in the 13th century, in the reign of King Alexander II and the episcopate of Gilbert de Moravia as the cathedral church of the diocese of...
and became Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
The Moderator of the General Assembly of Church of Scotland is a Minister, Elder or Deacon of the Church of Scotland chosen to "moderate" the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every May....
in 1994. His successor was the Rev Colin McIntosh, who subsequently became minister of Dunblane Cathedral
Dunblane Cathedral
Dunblane Cathedral is the larger of the two Church of Scotland parish churches serving Dunblane, near the city of Stirling, in central Scotland.-History:...
(in 1988).
The Very Rev Dr Sheilagh M. Kesting
Sheilagh M. Kesting
Sheilagh Kesting is a Scottish minister and the first female minister to be elected Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland...
, the first woman minister to be Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
The Moderator of the General Assembly of Church of Scotland is a Minister, Elder or Deacon of the Church of Scotland chosen to "moderate" the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every May....
, was a Probationer for the Ministry at St John's Renfield (prior to being ordained and inducted to Overtown Parish Church in Lanarkshire).
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