SCoT
SCoT (Scottish Co-ordinating Team) has been charged with managing the
on-the-ground organisation of the Edinburgh 2010 World Mission
Conference.
SCoT has a core team of nine and works closely with Dr Daryl Balia,
International Director, and Dr Daniel Kim, his assistant. Members come
from the Baptist Union, Church of Scotland, Methodist, Roman Catholic,
Salvation Army, Scottish Episcopal and United Reformed churches, and the
Evangelical Alliance. They have a wide range of personal and
organisational skills along with vast experience of and sensitivity to
ecumenical collaboration.
SCoT is responsible for the event office, welcoming participants, local
venues and travel, stewarding and all the other day-to-day details
involved in running a major international conference. Working Groups,
drawn from across the churches and mission bodies, are being set up to
cover particular aspects of the event management.
SCoT is promoting Edinburgh 2010 across the UK. We will produce
materials for local discussion groups. When ready, these will be
available on the web. We are also setting up an Edinburgh 2010 'Fringe'
Programme, which is sparking off a lot of interest across Scotland. Like
the annual Edinburgh International Festival Fringe, local groups will be
able to run events around the official 2010 conference programme. These
should encourage a wide variety of creative mission based workshops,
services and celebrations open to local people and visitors alike. In
this way, Edinburgh 2010 will engage and enthuse many congregations and
groups far beyond the official few days of the conference.
SCoT has established good relations with the Scottish Government,
Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh City Council and the local and national
churches. Working closely together with these important civic and
religious bodies, SCoT hopes that Edinburgh 2010 will provide a
welcoming and enjoyable experience for our visitors from abroad - and an
opportunity to stimulate new relationships and cooperation with our
friends at home.
Stephen Smyth
Br Stephen Smyth fms is General Secretary of ACTS (Action of Churches
Together in Scotland). He took up this post in July 2007.
Stephen is from Glasgow, Scotland, where he has lived and worked for
most of his life. He is a member of the Marist Brothers, a Roman
Catholic Religious Congregation with a focus on education. He has wide
experience of teaching at secondary and adult level and in group
facilitation. For seven years he was Ecumenical Officer for Glasgow
Churches Together and has been involved in organising many local and
national ecumenical conferences. Until taking up his current post he had
been an active member of an ecumenical Contextual Bible Study Group for
many years.
Geoffrey Baines
Geoffrey Baines has served as a Methodist minister for almost 28 years, but it was a new missional challenge that brought him to Edinburgh in 2006, serving the Methodist churches in the City. He is never happier than when he is partnering others in their discovery of their God-given creativity and potential. For Geoffrey, the future is about people living their lives remarkably in love of God and people - the Missio Dei. He has been married to Christine for almost 28 years and they have three grown up children.
Bill Slack
Bill Slack has been General Director of the Baptist Union of Scotland since 1995. Prior to that, he was the minister of Livingston Baptist Church (1974-82) and the International Baptist Church in Aberdeen (1982-95). As a member of the Executive of the European Baptist Federation and Vice Chairperson of the Division of Evangelism and Education of the Baptist World Alliance, he has travelled and preached extensively across the world. His vision for Edinburgh 2010 is that it will help the church better understand the challenge of mission in a post-Christendom, post-modern world.
Alistair Stevenson
Alistair Stevenson works as the Public Policy Officer for the Evangelical Alliance Scotland, the largest body uniting evangelicals to speak as good news for spiritual and social transformation. Alistair’s role is to present Christ credibly to the Scottish Parliament and Government, society and media while also encouraging and facilitating Christians as they seek to understand what it means to be politically active and transform their own local communities. Alistair and his wife live in the West End of Glasgow.
Helen Hood
Helen Hood, a lay theologian and church worker in the Scottish Episcopal Church, is Ecumenical Officer at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh. Her varied ecumenical involvement has included organising Lent study groups for local congregations, Scottish YWCA leadership roles and participation in international events, 14 years as a trustee of Christian Aid, and work on ‘Overcoming Violence Against Women’ for the World Council of Churches 2000-2006.
Sister Elizabeth Moran
Sister Elizabeth Moran is the Roman Catholic representative on ScOT. She was born in Scotland and is a graduate of Glasgow University (B.Sc) and of Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines (M.A.). She was the RC consultant on the WCC Mission Team on the Geneva staff from the Salvador Mission Conference(1996) until the beyond Athens Conference (2005). She missioned as Columban Sister in the Philippines, Ireland and the U.K. She is based presently in Montrose, N.E. Scotland. Her interest include: multicultural ministry, adult education, spirituality and retreats, and group facilitation.
Mitchell Bunting
Rev. Mitchell Bunting (Bungie) is a member of the Iona Community and a Minister of the United Reformed Church, ordained in 1985. He was Minister at Carrs Lane Church Centre in Birmingham 1985 - 90 and also nearby Nechalls URC 1988 - 90. He then became the Director of the Church of Scotland Sea of Galilee Centre in Israel from 1990 - 1995. Returning to Scotland he was called to be the Minister of Augustine United Church in Edinburgh from 1996 - 2007. Augustine is part of a Local Ecumenical Partnership. He is now the Ecumenical Officer of the National Synod of Scotland of the United Reformed Church and remains the part-time Ecumenical Officer of Edinburgh Churches Together, a post he has held since 2002.