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Document 574

Sermon at Stirling

Author(s): A S Borrowman

Copyright holder(s): Mrs Lorna F Borrowman, SCOTSOUN

Audio transcription

M755 Guid fowk, we are conveent here neist the auld brugh o Stirling whilk the auld makar Lindsay, in his "Papyngo" has screevit aboot. "Adew, fair Snawdoun wi thy towris hie, Thy Chapell Royal, park, and tabyll rounde. May, June and July wald I dwall in thee War I ane man to hear the birdis sounde Quhilk doith againe thy royall roche resounde" Ay, it's an auld brugh, steeve and sterk. Gang oot o this biggin and heeze up yer een. Ye get a visie o its kirks and steeples and towris and ayont them aa the abidan bens. Lat us gang this day in our thochts tae the reign o Jamie Fowrt, till his coort assemblit in the keep o Stirling. The year is fifteen hunner an sax. Wha's yon airtin ben til the king? Wha als, think ye? John Damian, the Freir o Tongland in the Stewartry. Some fowk jalouse he cam frae Italie, frae the pairt caad Lombardie; ithers jalouse he came frae France, a leech wha has begowkit the king, deavin him wi wanchancie ferlies anent makin lede intil gowd. Whatna ploy noo? He ettles tae flee frae Stirling intil France? Flee! [laugh] Fegs, he isna blate, yon Faither Damian! Ma certes, isna he sclimin up the parpane! Whatna unco sicht! He has strappit on a feddreme o fedders alow the oxters and owre the shouthers! Wow, he has loupit frae the waa. He hasna gaen up in the lift! Doon, doon, doon, - wheech - he's coupit, tapsalteerie in the glaur! Lippen tae yon auld deil, Dunbar. "He schewre his feddreme which was schene And slippit out of it full clene And in the myre up to his een Amang the glar did glyd." Puir Damian! Sair forfochen Freir! He socht the lift and the starns, and endit in the glaur. Twa thochts, guid fowk, anent Faither Damian. Ane: Gin we tak tent tae the story o Damian we ken it's a parable we can tak til oursels. Aften we rax for the starns and feenish in the sheuch up til the een in glaur, our guid thochts, our guid wark, our heigh ambitions aa cuisten doon and we staucher frae the myre brizit and dang doon wi aa the ills o life. Aiblins we hae tint our Faith and life maun be fushionless and toom. Twa: when we are hunkert doon in the muck we hae a glisk o the licht abune us. Some, wha hae tholit the ill straiks o life hae seen in the daurk, a Licht glintin throwe the mirk. Whatna Licht? Shairly the Licht o God in Jesus Christ. Lippen til John wha screevit: "The Licht glintit throwe the mirk, but the mirk cudna tak haud o it. The Licht is beamin for ilka man wha comes intae the warld" Heeze up yer een tae the Licht. Yon's the gait frae glaur tae glore.

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APA Style:

Sermon at Stirling. 2025. In The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. Retrieved 18 September 2025, from http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=574.

MLA Style:

"Sermon at Stirling." The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow, 2025. Web. 18 September 2025. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=574.

Chicago Style

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech, s.v., "Sermon at Stirling," accessed 18 September 2025, http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=574.

If your style guide prefers a single bibliography entry for this resource, we recommend:

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. 2025. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk.

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Information about Document 574

Sermon at Stirling

Audio

Audio audience

Adults (18+)
General public
Informed lay people
For gender Mixed
Audience size 21-100

Audio awareness & spontaneity

Speaker awareness Aware
Degree of spontaneity Fully scripted
Special circumstances surrounding speech Sermon delivered to conference delegates.

Audio footage information

Original title Sermon at Stirling
Year of recording 1973
Recording person id 15
Size (min) 5
Size (mb) 18

Audio footage publication details

Published
Publisher/Broadcaster Gordon Wright
Place of publication/broadcast Edinburgh
ISBN/ISSN SBN 9030

Audio footage series/collection information

Part of series
Contained in Lallans, No. 1, Mairtinmas 1973

Audio medium

Radio/audio

Audio setting

Religious/ceremonial
Other Part of SLS's annual conference
Recording venue Lecture Hall
Geographic location of speech Stirling University

Audio relationship between recorder/interviewer and speakers

Family members or other close relationship
Speakers knew each other Yes

Audio transcription information

Transcriber id 689
Year of transcription 2005
Year material recorded 1973
Word count 485

Audio transcription publication details

Published
Publisher/Broadcaster Gordon Wright
Place of publication/broadcast Edinburgh
ISBN/ISSN SBN 9030

Audio type

Lecture/talk, sermon, public address/speech

Author

Author details

Author id 755
Forenames A
Initials S
Surname Borrowman
Gender Male
Decade of birth 1910
Educational attainment University
Age left school 17
Upbringing/religious beliefs Protestantism
Occupation Parish Minister
Place of birth Stirling
Region of birth Stirling
Birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Country of birth Scotland
Father's occupation Shop assistant
Father's place of birth Stirling
Father's region of birth Stirling
Father's birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Father's country of birth Scotland
Mother's occupation Dress maker
Mother's place of birth Dunblane
Mother's region of birth E & SE Perthshire
Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area Per
Mother's country of birth Scotland

Languages

Language Speak Read Write Understand Circumstances
English Yes Yes Yes Yes all circumstances
French Yes Yes Yes Yes
German Yes Yes Yes Yes
Scots Yes Yes Yes Yes for literary purposes

Participant

Participant details

Participant id 755
Gender Male
Decade of birth 1910
Educational attainment University
Age left school 17
Upbringing/religious beliefs Protestantism
Occupation Parish Minister
Place of birth Stirling
Region of birth Stirling
Birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Country of birth Scotland
Father's occupation Shop assistant
Father's place of birth Stirling
Father's region of birth Stirling
Father's birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Father's country of birth Scotland
Mother's occupation Dress maker
Mother's place of birth Dunblane
Mother's region of birth E & SE Perthshire
Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area Per
Mother's country of birth Scotland

Languages

Language Speak Read Write Understand Circumstances
English Yes Yes Yes Yes all circumstances
French Yes Yes Yes Yes
German Yes Yes Yes Yes
Scots Yes Yes Yes Yes for literary purposes

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