A Papal “Knighthood”
Rev Dr Sheila Kesting, the first female moderator of the Church of Scotland General Assembly, was recently awarded the Order of St Gregory the Great, by the Pope, at the request of the Scottish Roman Catholic bishops. Dr Kesting, now retired, was for 23 years the Kirk’s ecumenical officer. This rare “honour” is the equivalent of a papal “knighthood” and is sparingly bestowed on those outside the Roman communion. It is given “in recognition of their personal service to the Holy See and to the Roman Catholic Church, through their unusual labours, their support of the Holy See, and their excellent examples set forth in their communities and their countries”. Dr Kesting said she was “overwhelmed” to receive what she described as a “tremendous privilege.”
It is very sad that one of the leading figures in the Church of Scotland should be awarded, and receive, this “knighthood”, though it is – at one level – an empty bauble. At another level, however, it is a worrying indication of how far away from the biblical truths of the Reformation the leadership of that Church now is. It also shows how useful Rome now sees that many Protestants are in advancing the interests of the papacy. The spirit of false ecumenism, which Dr Kesting so clearly exemplifies, is based on erroneous views of the teachings of Scripture and a consequent spiritual blindness with regard to the real antichristian nature of Romanism. May the Lord open the eyes of the people of this once-enlightened nation to see the dangers of any compromise with Roman Catholicism!
AWM