Welcome to Aberdeen and to Bon Accord Free Church! As a church family, we’re so glad to have you worship with us today. Moving to a new city and trying to find a good church is a challenging process. If we can help you in any way, whether that’s in practical ways, advice or prayer, please let us know.
What our Student Ministry at Bon Accord is about:
If you already know Jesus as your Lord and saviour, we want to help you grow in your love for God through His word. We want to equip you to handle God’s word faithfully and to share it with others, whether that be building up fellow believers or sharing the gospel with unbelieving friends. We don’t want you just to be a separate part of our church as students but an integrated part of our church family across the ages and stages.
If you are just trying to figure out what you think about Christianity, we are so glad you are here and would love to help you explore any questions you might have. Wherever you’re at with it all, you are very welcome here!
Here’s some of what we’re planning this year:
Student Hospitality
Bon Accord is famous for its hospitality! This year there will be three main ways that students will be hosted:
1. Student/Church Lunches - These are held downstairs in the church on a regular basis and everyone is very welcome!
2. Students Hosting Students – some weeks some of our older students will host newer students in their flats. The weeks that students are hosting, you’ll have the opportunity to sign up and Anne, Calum, Olivia, Katie or Robbie will allocate you to a student host’s flat.
3. Church Families Hosting Students – various wonderful people in the church will host groups of students in their homes. Again, Anne or any of the committee (Calum, Olivia, Katie or Robbie) will allocate you to a host and we will also organise transport etc.
Not only will you get a delicious free meal but you also really get to know other students and other folk in our church family, so what’s not to love?!
Weekend Away
Our weekend away is planned for the 11-13th November this year – put it in your diaries! We will be staying in the Windmill Christian Centre in Arbroath and it’s always a fantastic opportunity to build friendships, learn together and have fun. Our speaker will be Andy Pearson and our topic will be ‘Where is Jesus in the Old Testament?’ More info on this will be provided very soon!
Guys and Girls’ Bible Study
Both the guys and the girls meet every second Thursday night in the church. It is a great chance to build friendships of real substance as we hang out together with a cuppa and study God’s word together. All are very welcome.
Life Groups
Life Groups are on Wednesday evenings every second week and are in person in various people’s homes. We study God’s word together and look after each other. If you sign up to our church App, ChurchSuite, you will be allocated a group. Although this isn’t only for students, I highly recommend becoming part of one; it is a fantastic way to really get to know and build relationships with other people in the church of all ages and stages. For more information about signing up, speak to Anne or Judy.
YF (Youth Fellowship)
YFs are a chance for students to learn and discuss together, as well as to just hang out. We cover loads of topics ranging from sexuality and gender to biblical and systematic theology. We typically meet every other Sunday night for food after the evening service in the hall downstairs and the alternate week we have a more informal YF at someone’s flat.
Our programme this term:
September
11th – Informal at Robbie’s flat
18th – Pizza and praise in the church
25th – Identity (speaker Alex Perrett)
October
2nd – Informal – venue TBC
9th – Isn’t it arrogant to suggest that Jesus is the only way? (Speaker Tim Hayward)
16th – Informal – venue TBC
23rd – Baptism with Joe Hall and other (TBC)
30th – Informal – venue TBC
November
6th – What does the Bible have to say about our bodies?
13th – Weekend Away!
20th – Informal – venue TBC
27th – Panel Q and R
December
4th – Carols
(All the above dates are subject to change.)
If you would like any information on any or all of the above, please come and chat to me, Anne MacDonald (BA Student worker) or any of our student team: Calum Maciver, Olivia Turver, Katie Gillies and Robbie Murray.
A map can be viewed here. You may also find Google Earth useful in helping to find your way to us. We have produced several PDF files with directions from various places which you can print out and take with you. You can contact us if you need any other help. Find out more about our city on the Aberdeen City Council site.
Parking can be found either on Rosemount Viaduct, Jack's Brae or Stevenson Street. Directions from Rosemount viaduct round to Jack's Brae/Stevenson Street are here. You can also take the number 3 Bus (Purple line) to Bon Accord Free Church. Further information about buses can be found here or here.
The Church's address is:
Bon Accord Free Church
Rosemount Viaduct, Aberdeen, AB25 1SN
Our co-ordinates for use with GPS systems are 57° 8'54.53"N and 2° 6'34.84"W
As a Bible believing church our emphasis is of course on the Bible. Our simple style of worship means that we both sing from the Bible and focus our whole attention on hearing what God says to us through His Word.
Brief overview of what we believe:
- We believe in one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- We believe that Jesus is the eternal, uncreated Son of God and equal to the Father and Holy Spirit.
- We believe that the Son became a man; and in so doing He became fully human whilst never ceasing to be fully God.
- We believe that His death at Calvary was the once for all perfect sacrifice in which Jesus paid the full penalty for the sins of all those who trust in Him.
- We believe that Jesus rose again from the dead and ascended to Heaven where He lives and rules.
- We believe that, by repenting from sin and by trusting in Jesus’ death and resurrection, a person will be set free from the guilt of their sin and given the gift of everlasting life.
- We believe in the Second coming of Jesus, the resurrection of the dead, and the Day of Judgement.
- We believe in the life after death.
- We believe that the Bible is the fully inspired Word of God.
This is only a small summary of what we believe. A full summary of our teaching is found in the Westminster Confession of Faith
Want to learn more?
The best way to learn more about Jesus and what He means to us is to come along to one of our services (Sundays at 11am and 6pm), and you are welcome to stay for tea and coffee afterwards, and to have a chat about what was said in the service, or just get to know us better. If you would rather you can also listen to our services live on the internet, just visit the website at 11:00 or 18:00 on a Sunday and follow the link.
However, if you aren't sure whether you want to go to church, but would like to learn more about Christianity (or us), we would be delighted to hear from you. You might like to attend a Christianity Explored course which is an excellent way to find out more.
The leadership of the church follows the New Testament model and is simply structured with only two kinds of officer: elders and deacons. Of these two, the higher office is that of the elder and, because the church is ruled by elders, it belongs to the family of churches known as ‘presbyterian’ – a term derived from the Greek word for ‘elder’.
Minister
The congregation is thankful to God for the provision of Rev Joe Hall as our new minister. Joe was inducted to Bon Accord on 28th August 2021 at 14:00. We look forward to Joe providing a welcome below, but until then ............!
In the words of our former Minister:
Welcome to Bon Accord! Whoever you are and wherever you’re from!
You may be wondering who we are and what we are about; perhaps the best description I could give is that we are a community of ordinary people with an extraordinary God. Many of us have come to trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour and we gather week by week to worship and serve God and enjoy fellowship with one another.
Of course others, and this may include you, are not Christians but are keen on discovering more about what the Christian faith is all about. All such are very welcome. In truth we are all still learning and have much to learn; I guess that’s why Jesus calls his followers ‘disciples’ which just means ‘learners’.
If you have questions, please do drop me an e-mail here
Elders
Elders are a group of rulers elected by each organised group of worshipping people (congregation) to oversee the spiritual welfare of the congregation. This group will include at least one ruler specially trained and set apart to teach (the minister). As a formal body, they are known as the Kirk Session (or, simply, the Session). In the Presbyterian system, every Session is represented in a superior court (the Presbytery) which consists of a certain number of congregations within a specified geographical boundary. Each Presbytery is then represented in the highest court of the church, the General Assembly. Bon Accord has 11 elders and the congregation is part of the Presbytery of Edinburgh and Perth.
Deacons
Deacons are individuals elected to take care of the material and financial concerns of the congregation and, as a formal body, they are referred to as the Deacons’ Court. Bon Accord has 7 deacons who are involved in looking after the Church's building, finances, communication and as well as practical support for individuals.
The Free Church of Scotland currently has over 100 congregations in Scotland, as well as 2 in London. The church also has links to other denominations in North America and sister churches founded by mission work in India, Peru and South Africa. The Church also has a full time seminary in the heart of Edinburgh for the training of ministers and other Christian workers and sustains an extensive Missionary programme relative to the size of the church.
The Free Church of Scotland is a mainstream church dating from 1843 but with its roots in the Reformation. It owes its distinctive title to its historical struggle to remain 'free' from state interference in its internal affairs.
It has close and active relations with many other Reformed churches of Jesus Christ throughout the world and stands firmly in the tradition which accepts the Bible in its entirety as the Word of God and, therefore, derives its forms of teaching, worship, ministry and government from it.
The Free Church of Scotland is committed to the following core truths:
- The only true God exists in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
- God has created the universe and sovereignly controls it
- Humanity fell into a state of sin through disobeying God and rebelling against him with the result that we are alienated from God and liable to eternal punishment
- God provided his son, Jesus Christ (who is both fully human and fully Divine) as a Saviour
- Jesus Christ provides salvation through his life, death and resurrection, thus making a new reconciled relationship between God and humanity
- We need a personal faith in Christ in order to be brought into this new relationship with God and to be saved from sin and its consequences
- The Holy Spirit is the author and sustainer of the spiritual life necessary for such a relationship with God in Christ
- The return of Christ, the resurrection of the body, and the final judgement are coming events when the destiny of all shall be sealed either in heaven or in hell
All these Bible truths are affirmed in the ancient creeds of the catholic Christian Church as well as the Westminster Confession of 1643, to which the Free Church is commited.
How does the Free Church worship?
The worship of the church follows the New Testament model and is characterised by simplicity. Because of the fundamental importance of God's Word, primary place is given in worship to the reading and preaching of it. The congregation responds to these first by hearing and then by offering itself to God in the other acts of worship which are prayer, the singing of inspired songs and the giving of offerings. The worship is concluded with the benediction. The Lord's Supper is held on a regular basis, although not weekly, and baptism is also administered as needed.
How does the Free Church engage in ministry?
As the New Testament teaches, all members of the church are called to use whatever divinely granted fits they have received by serving the congregation, the wider church, and the community.
This use of gifts is seen in such activities as the provision of Sunday schools and other activity groups for children; special meetings, clubs and a national programme of summer camps for young people as well as many specific local ministries to particularly vulnerable groups, including drug addicts, the homeless and asylum seekers