A person with a backpack, headphones, and cap walking on a busy city street, with pedestrians, buses, and historic buildings in the background. 
Who We Are

The Edinburgh Festival of the Sacred Arts brings a highly distinctive spiritual dimension to the wonderful mix of shows and performances that make up Edinburgh’s famous Fringe. For two millennia, the Christian religion has stimulated a wealth of music, painting, poetry, drama, sculpture and architecture, as well as tapestry, embroidery and floral art.

Historic cityscape of Edinburgh with traditional stone buildings and lush green trees in the foreground.
Crowded street scene with many pedestrians walking between historic stone buildings.
A black background with white text listing the names of several countries.
Diagram of a human brain with labeled parts.

Now in its 8th year, the Festival uses many of Edinburgh’s most beautiful churches as Fringe venues where residents and visitors can experience recitals, exhibitions, tours, screenings and performances that draw on this rich Christian inheritance. The Festival is an initiative of the Edinburgh Sacred Arts Foundation, whose purpose is enable the sacred arts to make a significant contribution to the cultural life of Edinburgh during the middle week of the Fringe.

Edinburgh Sacred Arts Foundation

In recent years, the Foundation has also sponsored competitions for young people who compose sacred music and write religious verse. These competitions have attracted widespread interest, and the Festival gives finalists an opportunity to present their winning work to an international audience.

The Edinburgh Sacred Arts Foundation is a registered Scottish Charity (SC051554). It relies on grants and donations to cover the cost of organization and publicity, to fund prizes for its competitions, and to ensure that ticket prices for its events can be kept as low as possible. The Foundation gratefully acknowledges all the Supporters on our Home Page for their financial and administrative help.

Patron:  Paul Mealor LVO, CStJ, CLJ, OSS, FRSE
Chair and Trustee: Revd Professor Gordon Graham FRSE
Secretary and Trustee: The Hon Barnaby Miln
Trustees:
Christine De Luca; Professor David Fergusson CBE, FBA, FRSE; Professor Alison Jack MA BD PhD; 
Sir Timothy O'Shea FRSE; Dr Eve Poole OBE FSA
Independent Examiner: Kenneth Ramage CA