Our church is named for Saint Ninian, who is traditionally regarded as one of the first Christian missionaries to the peoples of Scotland. He is believed to have lived in the late 4th and early 5th centuries AD, although firm historical evidence is limited. Our main written source about him is the writer Bede, who, in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People (731 A.D.), describes Ninian as a Briton who had been trained in Rome and returned to Britain to preach among the Picts. According to Bede, Ninian established a church at Whithorn, known in Latin as Candida Casa (“White House”), possibly referring to a stone-built structure unusual for the region at the time. Archaeological evidence at Whithorn supports the existence of an early Christian centre, though it does not definitively confirm Ninian’s role. Later medieval traditions expanded his story, attributing miracles and a wider missionary influence to St Ninian, but these accounts are less historically reliable. Despite uncertainties, Ninian remains an important figure in Scottish Christian heritage, symbolising the early spread of Christianity in Britain prior to the missions of figures like St Columba. His feast day is celebrated on 16 September.