The origins of Balerno Parish Church date back to 1826 when a group of ‘inhabitants of Balerno’ met to press for a church in Balerno. At that time Balerno was in the parish of Currie Kirk. The leaders of the Established Church were reluctant to upset the status quo so the group turned to the independent Presbyterian church of the United Secession. “Seceder” churches were independent of local patronage, this gave the congregation the freedom to select their own minister rather than have one imposed by the local land owner but it also meant that they had to be self supporting financially.
Balerno Parish Church has been at the heart of the village community since 1826. The original building opened in 1828 but was sold to the Roman Catholic Church in 1884 becoming St Joseph’s Church, when our present sanctuary was built. The Congregation, like the village, has grown in that time from the original 100 members to a peak of over 1000 in the 1990’s. The current roll is circa 300.
The bright interior provides comfortable flexible seating. and a space that has become an excellent concert venue as well as a beautiful church. Overhead projection is used to enhance worship by providing the words of Hymns as well as other useful information. In the mid-2000s the St Joseph’s building became available, the congregation purchased it, in 2007 made it wind and watertight and completed a major refurbishment in 2012. In April 2012 “The Mill café” came into being as a major outreach to the community. In December 2012 the Balerno Village screen started showing films to the community. On the 24th of April 2017 Balerno Parish church celebrated the 5th anniversary of the Mill café with a thanksgiving afternoon tea attended by volunteers and staff.
Our Ministers 1826 –
The first minister of congregation was Rev Andrew Tod who was inducted 1829 – 1846, he was followed by Rev William Dickson 1846 – 1855. The other ministers of the parish can be seen below.
More detail can be found in:-
- Iain F Maciver’s excellent history of the congregation 1826 – 1984 written to mark the centenary of the current church building and updated in 2016 his wife Lesley Maciver Burt – available from the Church Office..
- A timeline of significant events in the history of the congregation prepared by Malcolm Fergusson.