Rev Gordon Kennedy is Moderator Designate for 2026-2027

An Edinburgh minister has been named as the next Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Rev Gordon Kennedy said he is happy to have the full support of his family as he prepares to be the Church's new ambassador at home and abroad next May, succeeding Rt Rev Rosie Frew.

The 62-year-old has served as the minister of Craiglockhart Parish Church since 2012.

Asked how he felt after being told he had been named Moderator Designate 2026-2027, he said: "My first reaction was surprise, I had never thought of being Moderator, it's not something that's been in my mind.

"A good friend, someone I trust, asked me to think about it last May and that was the first time I seriously thought about the possibility.

"During conversations with my friend, who recommended me, and with my wife it became clear there was the possibility that this was God's call for this time.

"But I am delighted and what it means to me is an opportunity for service."

The Moderator chairs the General Assembly which involves commissioners - ministers, elders and deacons - examining the work and laws of the Church and making decisions that affect its future.

During the next 12 months, they act as the Church's ambassador, meeting with ecumenical partners and faith leaders, visiting presbyteries and projects and representing the Church at home and abroad.

Mr Kennedy hopes to use the position to support and encourage local church members in their mission to follow and proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Prior to his role at Craiglockhart Parish Church, he served New Cumnock Parish Church in East Ayrshire (1993-2000) and Portpatrick Parish Church linked with St Ninian's Parish Church in Stranraer, Wigtownshire (2000-2012)

The minister is married to Rev Fiona Kennedy, an OLM (Ordained Local Minister) who works with churches in Edinburgh, and the couple have two adult sons, John and Andrew, who is married to Bonnie.

Mr Kennedy grew up in Glasgow, attended Crookston Castle Secondary School and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Strathclyde.

Between 1985-1989, he worked for Strathclyde Regional Council in the roads department before leaving to study a Bachelor of Divinity degree at the University of Glasgow.

Mr Kennedy did his probation at Bearsden North Parish Church in Bearsden, East Dunbartonshire from 1992-1993 before taking up his first full-time ministry role at New Cumnock Parish Church.

Over his 32 years of ministry, he has held multiple leadership roles in three presbyteries as well as the national Church.

His national roles include serving on the former Council of Assembly, the Theological Commission and the Church Without Walls Special Commission.

Mr Kennedy said: "Being Moderator provides an opportunity for me to meet lots of people whom I wouldn't usually get the chance to meet in the Church, to learn from them and be encouraged by them.

"And conversely, it will enable me to encourage and support them in their work and service, wherever they are in the country.

"For me, the most important part of the Church of Scotland is the local church: local congregations, chaplaincy and pioneering work."

The minister acknowledged that the Church is continuing to grapple with the challenges of reforming to sustainably and effectively share the Good News of Jesus Christ in the second quarter of the 21st century.

Be confident and bold

Asked what his message is for members who are feeling disillusioned, he said: "Somebody once described faith as not just standing at the edge of the cliff but leaning out over the edge with only the wind of God's Spirit to hold you up.

"Not only is it frightening, it is exciting.

"The way we've been doing church over the past 30-40 years was great for then, but it isn't great for this moment in time.

"We need to change but the challenge is we're not always sure about how we need to change and in what direction we need to change.

"If we're going to be disciples of Jesus, let's be disciples of Jesus, let's not hide that, let's not be ashamed and we should be confident and bold.

"We know Jesus as our Lord and Saviour so let's walk in His way and that will lead us into paths of service in our community which are outward facing."

Power of prayer

Mr Kennedy said Christians believe prayer changes situations and circumstances.

"When I think that I can't do anything, I remember that prayer is doing something and I can pray," he explained.

The minister said the world is in a state of flux at the moment but Christians have the power to act during unsettled times.

"Being well informed and being active in prayer are two things that we can do and let's try not to panic because the danger is we spiral and think ‘everything is terrible and it's never going to get better' and we end up doing nothing," he added.

"Let's trust God and pray."

Asked what he thinks the Church needs to do to attract new members, Mr Kennedy said: "If we are going to be relevant to the 95% of folks who don't know Jesus, we need to align ourselves to God and his mission through our prayers, and then be empowered by God's Spirit to step out in the direction He is leading us."

The minister said he was greatly encouraged by news of what is called the ‘Quiet Revival', which sees an increase in engagement with church and Bible Reading amongst young people.

"We need an active call to discipleship to encourage people to come and join us and stay," he explained.

"We need to challenge the non-Christians around us to follow Jesus and I'm not sure we're doing that clearly enough or with enough conviction, so people are not hearing that call."

Mr Kennedy said going to Church is about a lot more than sitting in a pew on a Sunday morning.

"It's life transforming, it's joining in on Jesus's mission to renew and restore all things - justice, peace, mercy," he added.

"The Gospel can address all of these and if you start following Jesus, you will have an opportunity to engage in God's mission to renew and transform.

"Jesus is King and you can get to be part of his mission of transforming all creation, it's not a passive invitation, it's an invitation to action."

Reflecting on his 32 years as a parish minister, Mr Kennedy said the overarching message he wants to deliver as Moderator is "Jesus loves you and you can trust him, so why not get to know him".

"That message seems to me to be supremely relevant to every single person that we will ever meet," he added.

"Those who already know it need encouraged to keep knowing it and to grow in knowing Jesus more.

"Those who don't know Jesus for themselves as Saviour and Lord need to hear the Good News told in ways that they can understand and engage with.

"But it must be shown to them, we need to say ‘look at my life and here's how Jesus has been good to me and changed my life for the better'.

"Share the Gospel, it is really important, and the key message is ‘there is hope and God loves you'.

Bible study and prayer

Mr Kennedy grew up in a church family and as a child and young person he attended Partick South Parish Church, which is now Partick Victoria Park Church.

He met his wife there and they were part of a mid-week Bible study group which changed his life when he was 19.

"My story of coming to know Jesus for myself as a teenager was at my local church," he explained.

"There was a mid-week meeting for Bible study and prayer every week and a group of seven of us, all about my age, attended.

"And when we met, God turned up every week and when we read the Bible, we heard God speak to us.

"We learned how to pray and four out of that group have been called into ordained ministry and the other three became elders.

"It was such a formative experience of God powerfully at work in local church.

"As my journey started with the Bible, my ministry has focused on how can I help other people read the Bible and how can I make it live for them, the way it came alive for me.

"That experience of being brought to faith with a group of folks, it wasn't a solitary flash of light that suddenly happened, has shaped how I think of local church."

Make disciples of Christ

Mr Kennedy is not sure when the thought that God might be calling him to full-time ministry began to form within him.

He attended the annual Keswick Convention in 1987 with his wife and at the Christian Service meeting he finally surrendered to God's call on his life to serve Him in ministry within the Church of Scotland.

During his time of service in Stranraer and Edinburgh, Mr Kennedy has been involved with local organisations that work with families who have experienced infant death and remembers the first time he experienced such a pastoral situation.

"A young couple's baby died and I sat with them to try and comfort them," he recalled.

"It happened 10 days after our first son was born and I found that really heart breaking because I was going home to my family and here was this young couple who had lost their baby.

"Although challenging the privilege of sitting with families at such times and prayerfully seeking to offer comfort and support is an important part of local parish ministry."

"I hope in my year as Moderator to support and encourage disciples of Jesus, congregations of Christ's church, to walk in all his ways.

"The call to follow Jesus is not a call to personal privilege nor self–satisfaction, but a call to faith and service.

"The Lord Jesus continues to be at work in our lives and in our congregations.

"As we commit ourselves to walking in all his ways we grow in confidence in our faith, we are strengthened in hope and love for one another.

"We are also called into our communities to share this good news and to show this good news in acts of compassion and mercy."

In his spare time, Mr Kennedy enjoys listening to jazz and opera music and holidaying across Scotland with his family.