The Princess Royal, second from right, with Richard Gray, David Bale, Sarah Earley, Suzanne Bunton and Rev Neil Meyer. (Photo: Alan Gorvett)
Princess Anne recently paid a special visit to Bennachie Parish Church in Aberdeenshire to learn how the reformed parish is finding fresh, creative ways to share the message of Jesus Christ.
Arriving in the village of Kemnay to the sound of the Kintore Pipe Band, the Princess Royal was warmly received by Deputy Lord-Lieutenant for Aberdeenshire Lorna Smith and Rev Neil Meyer, parish minister.
She also met local and presbytery leaders, including Rev Shuna Dicks, moderator of the Presbytery of the North East and the Northern Isles, and Rev Stella McBurnie, the presbytery clerk.
Formed in 2023, Bennachie Parish unites six congregations — Monymusk, Cluny, Kintore, Echt and Midmar, Kemnay, and Blairdaff and Chapel of Garioch — covering large rural areas of Aberdeenshire.
With a pair of ministers overseeing ministry across five congregations, the parish has embraced digital tools such as livestreaming, pre-recorded sermons, and shared services to sustain worship across its communities.
During the visit, Princess Anne observed a live digital link connecting all five churches, allowing her to see how congregations in Monymusk, Kintore, Echt, and Chapel of Garioch join together for worship.
Local worship leaders also shared how they lead services and foster community in the absence of a resident minister.
She then toured the Commonwealth War Graves in Kemnay Church cemetery, guided by Duncan Downie, a local historian and Scott Laird, the Commonwealth War Graves representative, before continuing to the Kemnay Church Centre where she met volunteers running the parish’s three community cafés — Loaves and Fishes in Kemnay, the Thursday Drop-In at Kintore, and Hope Café in Echt — each serving as spaces for fellowship and outreach.
Displays at the centre highlighted Bennachie Parish’s local and global initiatives, from children’s ministry and youth programs to charitable partnerships with Christian Aid, WaterAid, and Famine Relief for Orphans in Malawi. The parish also supports local efforts such as the Aberdeenshire North Foodbank and a hospital transport service.
Princess Anne learned about an environmental project at Monymusk Church to restore a swift colony and the recent relocation of the Cluny War Memorial, which was rededicated at Cluny Cemetery on October 19.
She unveiled a commemorative plaque marking the occasion and received gifts, including a painting of Bennachie by Ian McCracken, a local artist, and a photo of the parish’s 121st toilet twinning.
In a heartfelt gesture, Elder Emeritus Agnes Ryle, aged 102, presented the Princess Royal with a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the congregation.
The visit concluded with tea in the main hall, where Princess Anne met more than 80 volunteers.
Rev Neil Meyer thanked the Princess Royal for her visit, saying: “We decided that we didn’t just want to show you the “best little church in Aberdeenshire”, even though I, of course, think we are that.
“We wanted, instead, to give you a picture of ‘every church’ in Aberdeenshire.
“We are very conscious that we have colleagues and friends in churches across the whole of the north-east who are facing the same challenges as we are with diminishing resources and congregational readjustments.
“We are all having to find new and creative ways to continue worshipping God and serving our communities, and we are doing so.
“We are doing so because the hope for the world lies in congregations of men and women who believe that the power which has the final word in human affairs is represented by a man hanging on a cross.
“We believe it and we live by it – and that is why we continue to serve as we do.”
