Pictured: Falkirk Council employee Jessica Paterson in St Francis Xavier Church, which will feature in a new book she is contributing to.

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There's a serenity and a calmness that you can’t find anywhere else, and a distinct smell that reminds you of bygone years, tradition, and ceremony. The Italians call it the 'odour of sanctity’. For everyone else, it is a smell that is equally comforting and authoritative at the same time.

There are also the sounds. Of footsteps lightly trodden, of doors being softly closed. Conversations held in hushed tones and, in many of these buildings, colours dance mesmerisingly across the floor when the sun streams through stained glass windows.

I am, of course, talking about churches, of which Falkirk town centre has 13. From the Tattie Kirk to Falkirk Trinity Church, these buildings each have their own unique story to tell – and a Falkirk Council employee is helping well-known local historian, Ian Scott, capture these tales in a new book.

Putting pen to paper

Having accidentally signed up for a creative writing class while at Sheffield Hallam University, Jessica Paterson developed not only an appreciation of poetry but also unearthed a talent she didn’t realise she had.

As with many things that bring us joy, however, life got in the way. Work, moving to Scotland, starting a family, it all made it increasingly difficult to set aside time to write. That was until 2015 when she took part in a local poetry competition run by the then Falkirk Community Trust.

Although her poem didn’t place, her joy of writing had been rekindled. Then a chance conversation with Ian Scott led the 48-year-old Community Partnership Officer to suggest she write a poem for each of the 13 churches that will feature in a new book due to be published next spring.

"I’d met Ian while working on the Zetland Park project, but it wasn’t until last Christmas that I had a wide-ranging conversation with him about heritage and local history. He mentioned he was hoping to write a book about churches in Falkirk town centre and I plucked up courage to ask if I could write poetry to be included. Thankfully, he thought it was a great idea."

The aim of each poem is to capture information about the building and its architecture as well as the feelings that arise for visiting and stepping inside each church, either to attend a sermon or simply to get a sense of the history and important role it has, or once had, in community life.

“We all know that church attendance has been in decline for some years and the Church of Scotland has its own version of the Strategic Property Review, with many churches closing and being sold off and congregations merged. Because of that, Ian thinks this is a significant moment and it is important to try and capture, as best we can, the role these buildings have in people’s lives and the history of our town. The book will include former congregations like the Tattie Kirk, St Modan’s, and the Erskine Church.”

Faith, serenity and inner peace

In Primary School in South Africa, Jessica joined an Anglican church and acknowledges the sights, sounds and rituals made a lasting impression on her. Although a Quaker now, she still retains a love of religious art, music, and architecture.

“I often visit St Francis Xavier’s Roman Catholic Church, as it is the only local church with long opening hours. Being able to sit down and feel the peace and the quiet, it really is very calming. There is a serenity that you feel sitting in a church, and I hope that comes across in the poem I’ve written for St Francis Xavier titled ‘Saint Thérèse and the Brick Wall’.”

So far Jessica has drafted five poems, with the remainder being penned and refined over the coming months to complement Ian’s prose.

“When I began writing at university, I was surprised I could do it and do it well. Getting this opportunity to use that skill, and work with Ian, who is such a wonderful writer, is illuminating and tremendous fun. I hope that when the book comes out people will visit the churches and look at them with new eyes and with an appreciation of what these buildings stand for and their architectural beauty.”