Scottish ministers take to the streets with bread and wine

Church of Scotland ministers will be taking bread and wine into the streets to mark Good Friday and show the sacrifice Jesus made for the world.

Instead of inviting people into the church for a Good Friday service, the ministers have decided to go out amongst the public to spread the word of Christ, with events scheduled to take place in Glasgow, Bo'ness, Dunfermline and Dornoch.

In Glasgow, over a hundred people are expected to gather at George Square for an ecumenical march of witness led by the Rev Peter Gardner. They will carry a six foot cross and their route through the city centre will mirror the movement of Christ's own Way of the Cross.

The driving force behind the scheme is Rev Albert Bogle, minister at St Andrew's in Bo'ness.

He explained, "What I am trying to achieve by taking the bread and the wine to the streets is to cause people to draw breath, to think, what is this?

"I want to reach people who have been far away from God and to bring them near."

He stressed that passers-by will not receive Communion: "It is not a Communion service, it is a preparation for people coming to the table some day.

"It's a reminder that something of universal significance happened the day that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified, on a rubbish dump, near a busy street, beside a thief and a murderer."

After Easter, Mr Bogle will be working on his next project The National Gathering, an event that he feels will be "the biggest thing the Church has seen in the last ten years".

It will take place over the weekend 3/4 May at Ingliston's Royal Highland Centre, and key speakers include the Archbishop of York John Sentamu.