Tibbermore Kirk

Tibbermore Kirk in the Scots county of Perthshire has been redundant since 1986 and, repairs being cited, is locked to the visiting public. Dating to 1632 (though inevitably improved and meddled with since) it would have still looked fresh when the Battle of Tippermuir (sic) was fought in the adjacent fields in September, 1644. Parts of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, and what we English typically consider to be the Civil War, Tibbermore Kirk would have been an excellent place to watch the progress of the battle (a more excellent place would have been anywhere far, far away). The site of the battlefield is rather large and includes the Kirk and its grounds. Few Royalist and Covenanter troops would have noticed the shiny new church in the vicinity as they busily concentrated on killing each other and/or keeping themselves alive, but it is still officially designated as part of the battlefield.

People often remark how peaceful and lovely is the location of Salem Chapel. Yet we, too, are in a battle zone, albeit one that is invisible, the weapons less physically lethal. Paul tells the Ephesians:

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. (6:12)

Little wonder there are problems in faithful churches as the fallen princes employ divisive persons, dangerous charlatans and deceptive tares to hamper the ministry and compromise the outreach. Evil forces do not want us to reach the lost or worship God in spirit and in truth. We are soldiers of the Cross; our churches and chapels are in the thick of the fighting and we should not be surprised when drubbings and bruises come our way.

A D