But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any other foundation than the one we already have - Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 3:11
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In 1955, an additional church was built about three miles up the hill from Newbattle church. This was in response to a massive growth in population, which led to the existing mining village of Easthouses being virtually "swallowed up" into the new housing development called Mayfield, which today has a population similar to that of a small town. Up until then, services had been held in the Miner's Institute in Easthouses, (initially Easthouses continued to hold a branch of both the Sunday School and Women's Guild there after the church was built). It therefore seemed appropriate, even though the church was in the centre of Mayfield, to call the new building Easthouses Church, in recognition of the beginnings of worship in that particular part of the parish. Unfortunately, this did lead to confusion at times for those outwith the area who came to share in the worship but never thought of looking for Easthouses Church in Mayfield!! So to avoid confusion, the name was changed to Mayfield and Easthouses Church. Mayfield and Easthouses church was built in a more utilitarian and functional style than the one at Newbattle, as it had to double as both a place of worship and a place where the various church organisations could establish themselves, within an ever expanding community. The versatility of the new church was very quickly put to the test, with a Choir, Bible Class, Sunday School, Cubs, Scouts, Brownies, Boy's Brigade, Youth Fellowship, Young Mothers' Fellowship and Women's Guild very quickly becoming established. On Friday 23rd September 1955, the church was dedicated, (i.e. officially opened), in the presence of the Rev. A.E.L. Paterson, Moderator of the Dalkeith Presbytery. The Very Rev. Ernest D. Jarvis, a former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, preached the sermon that day. The Rev. James M. Ewing became the first minister to both churches in the one parish. Mayfield and Easthouses church has seen a number of very distinguished visitors since then. In 1959, the Earl and Countess of Wemyss visited the church, as the Earl was Lord High Commissioner at the time. In 1995, as part of the church's 40th Anniversary celebrations, the Right Rev. James A. Simpson, the then Moderator of the General Assembly of the church of Scotland, visited. We like to think that the same warm welcome is extended to all our visitors, great and small!! Easthouses church has not only served the local community, but also the wider community both in Scotland, (through Summer Missions) and abroad. In 1967, Joyce Foster, who had been the organist at Mayfield and Easthouses church, left to take up a missionary post in Kenya. This was the beginning of a tradition of mission overseas, which still continues today with Moira McInnes and Elizabeth Macaulay, of whom you can read in our Mission section. Such was the growth within the church and the subsequent demands on space, that in 1963, work began on the construction of a purpose built church hall, to better facilitate existing organisations and others which were beginning to build up. Down through the years, a number of other organisations, such as the Life Boys, Girl's Brigade, Youth Club and Men's Fellowship have all made use of the opportunities the hall has made possible. |
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