St Columba landed on the island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland, in AD563. 

He and his followers set up a base there, which later became a monastery, from where they carried the Christian gospel to neighbouring islands and to the mainland. 

Centuries later Viking raiders attacked the abbey and drove away the monks, and the monastery was abandoned.

In 1938, Revd George MacLeod, a Glasgow minister founded the Iona Community, arranging for unemployed craftspeople and clergy to begin the rebuilding and restoration of the Abbey.

Today, the Iona Community offers peace and tranquillity to visitors. Resident staff and volunteers provide accommodation, staff the various facilities and lead daily worship at the Abbey. Visitors, many of whom consider their visit as a pilgrimage, come from all over the world.

George MacLeod once described the island as a ‘thin place’, where one can feel close to the Lord. It is a place to meet with God, to pray, to offer ourselves to his service, and to continue in the footsteps of Columba in making disciples in our own time and place.

Prayer: We thank you, dear Lord, for the opportunity to be in special places where we can meet with you and with each other. Amen