Malawi Partnership Renewed
A partnership between churches in Aberdeen and Blantyre
Malawi has been renewed. At a special service in South Holburn Church last
Sunday evening, the leader of a group of visitors from Malawi, Rev Gertrude
Kapuma, signed a Covenant of Partnership Agreement, along with the Moderator
of the Presbytery of Aberdeen, Mrs Maureen Simpson.
In November 2003, The Presbytery of Aberdeen was twinned with Blantyre City Presbytery of Malawi. Since then eighteen congregations in the city have twinned with eighteen individual congregations in Blantyre. Now that partnership has been renewed for a further three years.
The Church of Scotland has had strong links with
the Christian Church in Malawi for many years and the two Church’s share
many similarities.
Part of the twinning agreement between the two Presbyteries is exchange
visits both to and from Malawi and so 20 ministers and church members have
come to Scotland and are at present well into their programme of events.
(See attached).
One highlight for the visitors was a visit to Blantyre in Scotland, the
birth place of David Livingstone, the Scottish missionary. Livingstone is
held in high regard in Malawi. There have also been trips to local schools,
hospitals, the University of Aberdeen and St Machar’s Cathedral. On
Saturday, the visitors will attend the opening ceremony of the General
Assembly of the Church of Scotland followed by the Garden Party in Holyrood
Palace.
It is hoped that the visit will remind local congregations that they are
part of a worldwide Church which, in places such as Malawi, is growing
rapidly. It will also continue to strengthen the strong links which have
been built between the Malawian Christians and those here in Scotland.
Churches in Aberdeen have supported Malawian Christians through a number of
fund raising projects.