This is an extended compilation film from the three Christmas Community Concerts held in Skirling, Broughton and Tweedsmuir from 22nd December to the 24th December. the video clips were recorded at the Skirling and Broughton events and the stills used at the end of the film were taken at Tweedsmuir.

The readings from Luke's Gospel were recorded in advance and played through the sound system on each evening.

The Christmas 2020 edition of the Church Magazine, Kirk Matters, has been published and should have arrived on most doormats in the area by now.

This edition contains full details of the programme of events coming up this Christmas. There's more happening than you would think so take a look inside and plan your festivities.
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The Presbytery World Mission Group have been exploring possible links with Lebanon for a few years. This came out of links that Earlston made with Tripoli and continued with Marina Altounian visiting in Augist 2018. Our locum minister, Rev Pamela Strachan, also went out in October 2018 for a 3 month study leave course at the Near East School of Theology (NEST) based in Beirut. We are making progress and hope to bring a report with recommendations to Presbytery in the near future.

As part of this process, the committee had a zoom call with Rev Dr Rima Nasrallah, a lecturer at NEST and also a pastor in a local church in Beirut. She and Pamela struck up a friendship when Pamela was at NEST. Rima was able to give us apersonal update on what the situation is in Lebanon, Beirut and NEST which was distressing in its detail. She described 3 crises. The first last year when political unrest led to the Government having to resign and a new one formed, then COVID hit an already fragile infrastructure. Finally the blast in the port area of Beirut in August which destroyed most of the port, killed and injured hundreds, made 1000's homeless and destroyed the stores of wheat which normally feeds the nation over the winter. With the world gripped in a pandemic and political storms waging in that part of the world, aid has been slow and the Lebanese people face an extremely difficult winter.

We in Melrose and Peebles Presbytery cannot hope to sort the problem but Rima asks that we as a Presbytery pray for our brothers and sisters in Lebanon. The fact that we are concerned and remember them in our prayers goes a long way to help people realise they have not been abandoned. If nothing else this pandemic has made us all realise how small the world really is and how interconnected we all are.

Some Possible Prayer Pointers:

Please share this request with your family and your church family and on behalf of the World Mission Committee, I pray you have a safe Christmas and look forward in hope to 2021.

Best wishes,

Fiona Burnett - Chair, Presbytery World Mission Committee

• News from the Joint Christian Committee in Lebanon - 6th December 2020
• From the Ashes We Shall Rise Again - Film from Beirut - 30th August 2020
• News from Lebanon: Disaster Strikes Beirut - 11th August 2020

With limited numbers in the two of our churches that are currently open, we are facing a growing challenge to fund our services, pastoral care and support, and the maintenance of our buildings and facilities.

The Church of Scotland has a web page which allows you to contribute specifically to the local funds required for this work. If you would like to help out please go to the Donate to the Church page, click on Donate to a Congregation, type in the name of the congregation and proceed from there.

If you buy from Amazon then another way of donating is through Amazon Smile. Skirling and Broughton are now registered with Amazon Smile so if you click on one of the links below and place an order then a commission will go to our churches.