Tiree Parish Church’s Vision for the Future

Tiree Parish Church is small but active and visionary congregation within the community of Tiree, the outermost of the Inner Hebrides islands, off the West coast of Scotland.

Tiree has a very active community, and the church plays an important role within island life. At present we have two church buildings. We have recently taken the difficult and brave decision to close and sell one building (Kirkapol church), using the proceeds as the core of funding for the necessary repairs and renovations to the remaining building, Heylipol church.

As a church, we seek to spread the Gospel, serve the needs of the community and to inspire people through our worship, our faith-inspired life values, and our hospitality. We are particularly keen to encourage more young people to take an active interest in the church, so they can discover for themselves the life-transforming nature of faith in Jesus Christ. We seek to reach out to all people, residents on the island and the many visitors, with the love of God.

In order to do this, we need a flexible space in which to hold worship services, as well as meetings, fellowship meals, and weddings, funerals and school services.

The Church of Scotland is at present the only church on Tiree which has usable buildings, and the only church which has a minister. We have regular joint services with the Baptist church. There are also members of both the Catholic and Episcopal churches living on the island, and we welcome these church groups into our churches, both to hold their own services and to join with our worship.

All church based school services, funerals and weddings on Tiree take place in either Heylipol or Kirkapol at present, once Kirkapol is closed, these will all take place in Heylipol.

We therefore require a building which is flexible enough to accommodate the whole school and parents; a large funeral (there have been 3 during recent months with around 230 mourners at each); weddings; and also regular Sunday worship, smaller worship events, meetings, Sunday school, fellowship meals, and also to provide a chapel of rest. (There is no other facility on the island where a coffin can lie prior to a funeral.)

We are currently in talks with various groups and agencies regarding the church buildings, in order to establish the best way forward so that we can fulfil our vision to become a really welcoming and ecumenically- minded church, providing for the needs of the community, and demonstrating God’s love to all.