Next meeting: tuesday 4 november

Parish of St. Mary Magdalene 

Pastoral Council Minutes

Tuesday 2nd September 2025 7pm

St. Paul’s House

Present: Father Philip, Barry Corkey, Jacqueline Crawford, Liz Gronkowski, Jane Miezitis, Sally McElroy, Tony Ward.

Welcome and reflection: Luke 4: 31-37 

Apologies:  Lijosh Joseph

1. Points following last meeting.

The Coptic Orthodox Faith Community in Kirkcaldy remains a possible opportunity for us to connect with another faith community.

2. Adult formation.

a) Review of points from Volunteers’ Evening:

1)  Hymn books are now available in St. Paul’s for those who have difficulty reading the screen.

2) The Social Justice Group is looking at points from the Volunteers’ Evening which are relevant to their remit.

3) Suggestion boxes are now ready and will be available periodically, beginning with the month of September. A notice will go into the newsletter.

4) Series 5 of “The Chosen” will commence on Wednesday 8thOctober. This series portrays the period from the Last Supper leading to The Passion which will be dramatized in series 6, so people can come along and view it without necessarily having seen the previous series. 

5) The Robert Barron dvds “Catholicism” consist of ten programmes, and will be studied during the daytime sessions in Advent and Lent on Tuesday mornings after Mass in Romero House.

6) The Youth Group has taken off and is being well supported.

b) RCIA

1) The “Come and See” session will take place next week.

2) Now that the new session has begun, hopefully we can liaise with the school to participate in a meeting for P1 parents who would like to know and understand more about our faith.

c) Baptism

Some parishioners  have voiced an interest in forming a Baptismal team. At the moment there are no planned Baptisms.

3. Holy Year

a) The Hour of Prayer will continue at Carmelite Convent Hot Pot Wynd, Dysart on the last Sunday of every month.

b) Our parish event was combined with the feast of St. Mary Magdalene and was well attended.

c) Staged walking of the Fife Pilgrim Way has begun and around thirty people participated in the first stage.. 

d) A  performance of Stephen Callaghan’s one man play, “Pilgrim of Hope” is a possible deanery event in October or November. 

4. Glenrothes Churches Together

a) There will be an ecumenical service tin St. Margaret’s Church to commemorate the St. Margaret Declaration which will take place on Sunday 16th November.

5. Safeguarding

No items

6. Report from the fabric and Finance Committee

a) The current account balance has taken a hit due to a number of high cost repairs

b) There will be a talk regarding Gift Aid.

c) There has been a meeting with a representative from the Archdiocese about the replacement wall.

d) Fundraising opportunities were identified.

e) The roof of St. Paul’s house is now watertight.

f) Permission has been granted to complete the necessary repairs to the windows.

g) The Woodland Trust and Fife Council will be contacted regarding the dangerous trees surrounding St. Paul’s.

7. The Synodal Process

a) Following on from the publication of “Pathways for the Implementation Phase of the Synod 2025-2028, a national committee has been formed chaired by Bishop Brian McGee of Argyll and the Isles.

b) As yet there is no guidance from our archdiocese.

c) As part of our synodal journey it is important that we continue to communicate with parishioners by publishing Pastoral Council minutes. 

d) Further ways of communicating online will be explored. 

e) The new suggestion boxes will enable parishioners to communicate their comments and concerns. Thank you to Frances Crichton Stewart for supplying the boxes.

8. A.O.B.

Seasons of Creation

“Ribbons for Peace “ service was shared, it may be something for the Youth Group.

a) SCIAF

SCIAF is celebrating its 60th anniversary and this would be an opportune time to raise awareness of the work SCIAF does. A special hymn has been written by John Bell and recorded by Michelle McManus. The music is available online and hopefully can be introduced to the parish.

b) Diverse Communities

It light of the diverse communities within our parish, it would be good to learn more about and celebrate their traditions and cultures. An International Afternoon would be an opportunity to get to know some of the communities better. We could have a map pinpointing the many places around the world where some of our parishioners have come from.

9. Date of next meeting

Tuesday 4th November at 7pm in St. Paul’s House.