Where We Are

The Abbey Summer School takes place at Newhaven Church in Edinburgh. Situated in the conservation area of Newhaven, 2 miles north of the city centre, the church is easily accessible by public transport. There is ample free parking outside the church and in surrounding streets.

Address: 7 Craighall Rd, Newhaven, Edinburgh EH6 4ND.

Newhaven is by the water, with a beautiful harbour and lighthouse. Historic buildings connected with the harbour now house coffee shops and restaurants, where Abbey attendees often gather to eat together in the evenings.

Edinburgh is a World Heritage site, steeped in history, considered one of the most beautiful and unique cities in Europe. At the heart of both the Reformation and the Enlightenment, with world class museums and art galleries, the city has much to offer visitors. Many Abbey attendees use the opportunity to extend their stay and explore Edinburgh, as well as see more of Scotland.

Entertaining Angels Unawares

Schedule Details

Keynote Speaker

Krish Kandiah
Dr Kandiah is a social entrepreneur with a vision to help solve some of society’s seemingly intractable problems through building partnerships across civil society, faith communities, government, and philanthropy. He is a well-known broadcaster contributing regularly on BBC Radio 4 and Radio 2, a speaker at both national and international conferences, a consultant, and the author of 13 books including the catalytic ‘Home for Good: Making a Difference for Vulnerable Children’ and the award-winning ‘Paradoxology’ and a regular contributor to The Times of London and The Guardian.
http://www.krishk.com

Krish will be giving us three talks:
The Power of Welcome (Thursday afternoon)
The Cascade of Grace: How Christians can transform nations, cities and neighbourhoods (Thursday evening)
Hospitality as Mission (Friday morning)

Thursday

Stories of Welcome (Thursday): Short talks, panel discussion, and Q&A

Speakers include:
Rev Alastair Duncan of St George's Tron, Glasgow. Alastair took over an empty church on Scotland’s busiest shopping street nearly 10 years ago. It is now an astonishingly busy hub that provides a welcoming space to myriad people and groups. It is a great example of an entire church being given over to providing a hospitable welcome to the surrounding community – the homeless, "the new Glaswegians", shoppers, and clubbers. They work in partnership with a wide range of Christian organisations within the city.
http://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-herald-1130/20170922/281805694112204
http://www.sgt.church/friends-and-partners

Natalia Pelttari, Edinburgh City Mission, Salaam. Edinburgh City Mission has a strong history of working in the city to help and reach the most vulnerable people. Salaam is a ministry that has developed over the past few years and is focused on asylum seekers and refugees in the city. Natalia leads the team.
http://www.edinburghcitymission.org.uk/ministry/salaam/

Canon Mike Parker – Interim Minister: The Priory Episcopal Church South Queensferry

Mike Parker supports people working cross-culturally in Muslim majority countries in the Middle East. He and his wife Helen, a writer of teenage Christian fiction, have lived in Cyprus and Egypt, where he led English-speaking congregations at Cairo Cathedral. Members of P’s & G’s, they're involved with the Mahabba network and Friends International in Edinburgh, the Scottish Bible Society, and he is currently the interim minister of the Priory Episcopal Church in South Queensferry.  

https://www.mahabbanetwork.com

Friday

Rev Richard Cornfield, Pioneer Priest, Scottish Episcopal Church

Richard is a pioneer priest of a community of Good News called Mustard Seed, an Episcopalian church that is passionate about connecting to the local community - especially to those people who are dealing with the issue of homelessness, food poverty, addiction, isolation, or poor mental health. He has been in Scotland for 11 years having previously led Church communities in England for 15 years. He discovered that putting out a table and a few chairs changes people’s lives and has given him the chance to glimpse the Kingdom of God. His way into chatting to people is football, music and knowing a lot of not much at all!
www.mustardseededinburgh.org

Rev David Clark, Author ‘Landscapes of Grace’

David has served as a Church of Scotland minister in Airdrie and Dundee and between these appointments he worked as the general director of Scripture Union Scotland. He continues to be involved in supporting theological education in South India. He has recently written a book providing a personal response to the Scottish landscape, as befits a former Geography teacher, woven with meditations on the psalms.

Katy Emslie-Smith, Author ‘Landscapes of Grace’

Katy lives in Dundee and has spent her career as a GP working in challenging urban circumstances. She is an elder of the Steeple Church, Dundee where David Clark was minister for some years. She contributes regularly toSanctuary First and has written prayers and reflections for the joint publication with David Clark.
https://www.falkirkpresbytery.org.uk/churches/www.sanctuaryfirst.org.uk

Shirley Berry, Foundation Manager, Chaplain & Head of Counselling, Peter Vardy Foundation, and Ministry Development Lead, Findlay Church, Glasgow

Shirley works part time at Findlay Church, Glasgow and part time for the Peter Vardy Foundation and is a member of various Boards and Advisory Teams. She is a trained Psychotherapist, holds various qualifications from Glasgow University and Strathclyde University in the area of addictions and psychology as well as a Masters in Theology from the Nazarene Theological College and Manchester University.

Dr Alison Strang, Honorary Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Global Health and Development, Queen Margaret University

Alison’s research on the wellbeing and integration of refugees and local receiving communities has shaped integration policy in the UK and globally over the past two decades. She led Scotland’s ‘New Scots’ refugee integration strategy until 2018, has worked closely with the Scottish Refugee Council, and UK Home Office.

Workshops (Friday afternoon)

Psalm 151 with Rev David Clark & Katy Emslie-Smith
 
The workshop will allow participants to hear more from David and Katy about their publication, Landscapes of Grace, and there will be an opportunity to respond to the local environment by creating your own psalm within a small artist's book using a variety of materials provided. No talent or experience or requirement to walk is necessary!
  
Writing for Reading Aloud with Fiona Stewart
 
A practical writing workshop at which people may or may not create something that they can perform or present at the open mic night. Start to write from scratch at this workshop, or if you wish to be helped to work on your reading or performance style bring something you have already written.
 
What’s on the Menu? with Shirley Berry
 
An interactive workshop thinking about the intentionality of the table gathering as discipleship, evangelism and mission - come and feast! The aim is to inspire and encourage each person to imagine discipleship, evangelism mission around a table and create their own version. 

Over the past few years Abbey has hosted an "Open Mic" night. An opportunity for those at Abbey to gather together and share poetry, stories and music (either their own, or favourites written by others). Always a wonderful evening.

Fiona Stewart is the Creative Director of Foolproof Creative Arts, a charity that aims to resource the church and encourage creativity. She has a portfolio career that includes writing, performance, broadcast, and podcasting. During the pandemic she published poetry under the hashtag #poemsofhope. You can find her at www.fionacstewart.com or www.foolproofcreativearts.com.

Saturday

What now? After all we have heard, discussed, and enjoyed together how can we take these things and put them into practice?

Andy Lippok, Director, Connecting Scotland

Andy Lippok gained considerable experience and skills from a career in HR and project management, Systems Thinking interventions, training, and coaching, and several years of contracting in different roles in many organisations and sectors. He helps people and organisations make life and work meaningful, through the practices of self-organising and self-management, considering wholeness, and purpose, and the art of participatory leadership and democracy.
https://www.connectingscotland.org/contact/

As ever, we finish our time together with a walk - a pilgrimage - which will culminate with sharing communion together. This walk is full accessible and fill leave from (and return to!) the doors of our venue, Newhaven Church, Edinburgh.

Alistair Hector worked for many years in education, most recently as headmaster of George Heriot’s School, Edinburgh. He took early retirement and retrained as a blue badge tourist guide for Scotland and leads tours mainly of Americans and German speaking groups across Scotland. He is Chair of the Board of the Leith School of Art and sits on other boards of schools in Scotland.
https://www.scotlandinsight.co.uk