General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
Sermon in St. Giles’ Cathedral.
On 20th May, 1958, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland once more met. But prior to meeting in the Assembly Hall, a service was conducted by the retiring Moderator, Rev. Dr. George MacLeod, in St. Giles’ Cathedral. The theme of his sermon was the apostle Peter and the Church. He said Peter was “one of the first to die for his God.” He asserted that God had founded His Church “on this rock,” meaning of course, the apostle Peter. This is the well-known Roman Catholic theory, repeated by Dr. MacLeod in St. Giles’, famous in Covenanting history. A Jenny Geddes would have threatened the composure of this retiring Moderator, if present to hear this Romish doctrine. Then he expatiated on Peter as the average man and that God had been founding the Church on the average man.
For a Doctor of Divinity this is miserable teaching and contrary to the Word of God, which states, “none other foundation can man lay than that is laid, even Jesus Christ.” He was also characteristically frivolous when he said that the Church of Scotland was run by Peters, not by saints, or sinners, or evangelicals, or social gospelers, but by Peters. We ask, what can the “average man” in the street make of such rubbish, as purporting to be part of a sermon before a distinguished congregation? If we were to venture an answer out of all the muddled thinking evident above, we would say: “It is run by sinners not yet saved by grace.”
He is further reported as saying in his sermon, that, “without grace, the average man remained an average man,” and yet before this, the retiring Moderator said the Church was built upon the average man. This must have been all very confusing to his hearers—the Church built upon the graceless average man and Peter included, as he referred to “Peter, the average man.” And the people love to have it so from the pulpit of St. Giles. The darkness is great.
THE OPENING ASSEMBLY ADDRESS.
Rev. Dr. George MacLeod addressed the Assembly itself on his demitting office as Moderator. As far as the report of it in The Scotsman is concerned, it was a brief and poor endeavour. He asserted that in Scotland, the Church is not dispirited, nor is the nation decayed. He bolstered up these two points with first, a reference to the 1,300,000 membership of the Church of Scotland, and secondly, by reference to the splendid output of workers per capita at two well-known Scottish factories.
Although he emphasised the numbers of members as a great asset to Scotland, we think little of great numbers of unconverted professing Christians. And as to absence of decay in the nation, the Rev. Dr. had not the common sense itself to touch on the acknowledged religious and moral decay which has set in in Scotland as elsewhere. No! the false prophet cries, “peace, peace,” when there is no peace. In our humble opinion, Dr. George MacLeod’s public orations are brief, superficial, illogical and permeated with unscriptural theories.
THE LORD HIGH COMMISSIONER.
The Duke of Hamilton was the Queen’s representative at the Assembly, as Lord High Commissioner. At the appropriate time, he addressed the Assembly. Apart from an obvious thread of reasoning throughout his address on the present vexed question of Church divisions and unity, it contained dignified and appropriate considerations for such an occasion which were utterly lacking in Dr. George MacLeod’s reported utterances. A most commendable feature of this address was that it contained at least six quotations from the scriptures, e.g. from Job xxviii. 12, “Where shall wisdom be found?” The Lord High Commissioner was referring to the threat of great destruction by a future war.
He also introduced the fact of sin into his address, thus, “Because man was laboured under the limitations set by sin, Christians are still unable to recover the unity once divinely given.” At the very outset of his address, he recalled the famous Assembly of 1638, in Reformation times and at the conclusion he spoke as follows: “It was on just such an affirmation of faith that our Covenanting forefathers took their stand, witnessing to a profound belief in the supremacy of Almighty God and the surrender of every allegiance to His will.”
MINISTERS AS LIFE PEERS.
The Assembly decided not to “close the door” against the possibility that ministers might be appointed as life peers to sit in the House of Lords. It was agreed to seek the authority of Presbyteries for the repeal of a 1638 Act of Assembly, which makes it unlawful for ministers to sit or vote in Parliament, to be judges, or assessors in any civil judicatory, etc. An overture from the Presbytery of Edinburgh, which would have declared the existing law to be as set forth in the 1638 Act, was rejected. So it seems that the general mind of the Assembly is to accept the envisaged appointment of ministers to the House of Lords by the Government.
But how can a man, professing to be called to the office of the ministry of the gospel, discharge his spiritual duties as a pastor or teacher while trammelled with the affairs of State and civil government? A Christian may become a civil magistrate, and would there were more of them, but a Christian minister is wholly devoted to the work of his calling, or ought to be, according to ordination vows and obligations. Of course there are bishops in the House of Lords, and the tendency is to be in line with the Anglicans.
FEWER STUDENTS FOR THE MINISTRY.
Under the report of Committee on Education for the Ministry, it was stated that the Church of Scotland needed 100 men coming out of the colleges each year, whereas only about 60 are coming out to fill vacant charges. It was said by some that the shortage of ministers was on account of the poor stipend; but Rev. J. Mowat, Callander, rightly stated that when God called, no man was held back by a poor stipend. True, this is the case when God converts and calls a man to devotion to Christ, the Word of God, the preaching of the pure gospel and the concerns of His cause. But the sad fact is that Scotland is plagued with worldly men in the office of the ministry who are doing great harm to the Cause of Christ in Scotland. The fewer there are of such the better. God in His own time will raise His Cause in Scotland.
FINANCE AND CHURCH EXTENSION.
The Church of Scotland have certainly a serious and heavy burden in seeking to build new churches in new towns and housing areas, especially in the vicinity of large towns and cities. The Committee looked for £1 million by 1959, and have only received about £400,000 for this work. It has been stated that the work of extension has had to be curtailed owing to a debt of over £200,000.
One comment we would make, and it is, that far too much money is being spent on church buildings already completed. Commodious and comfortable, yet simple in design, ought to be the order of the day for each new Church, in the light of lack of finance. But external beauty in the working of stone and lime is today linked up with the supposed aid to worship which a building can afford. The Covenanter worshipped God in spirit and in truth on the hillside, and many of the godly since. It is the Holy Spirit who alone can enable men to worship the Most High, in connection with the truth and in the beauty of holiness.
THE GATEWAY THEATRE.
Rev. S. T. M. Robertson told the General Assembly that the Church’s own Gateway Theatre, Edinburgh, put on plays which “at times portray drunkenness, sordidness and immorality.” He moved that the Church should investigate the Theatre. Mr. Robertson, from some of his remarks, was not entirely against plays, if they were, as he said, works of artistic and human value. There was subdued laughter when he said he had never himself visited the theatre. But could the laughing members of the Assembly deny his terrible allegations about this Church Theatre? No! Mr. Robertson also revealed that some of the plays shown were written by atheists.
What support did he get in this Assembly of maybe 900 professing Christians? One minister, after a pause, seconded his motion, which was rejected by the Assembly. That was all the support he got, from a Church which Rev. Dr. George MacLeod boasted had one and a quarter million members professing Christ. And Rev. George Candlish, the director of the theatre was elated that a vote had been taken and was so overwhelmingly favourable. No wonder those who endeavour to follow Christ and His truth faithfully in Scotland, can hardly refrain from frequently exposing the caricature of Christianity which obtains throughout the national Church of Scotland.
How is such a blot on this Church supported by its Supreme Court? One simple answer is, that the most of the ministers and elders, if not all, are accustomed to attending theatres and cinemas regularly throughout the year, and the Gateway Theatre is nothing of an obstacle to the “life” of their Church in their estimation.
OVERSEAS ACTIVITIES.
It appears that the Church of Scotland has representatives, ministers, missionaries, doctors and teachers in many parts of the world, such as India, Kenya, Ghana, Israel and many other places. From reports, their missionaries are not as numerous as required; there is a uniting up with Anglicans and other Churches in North India; and there are now no new applicants for work in Israel and contributions to the Jewish Fund are the same as 25 years ago. Missionaries going abroad are not now ordained in this country, but when they arrive at their stations abroad. On return to this country they are not re-ordained, but merely re-admitted to the Church.
WOMEN IN THE CHURCH.
Principal, Sir Thomas Taylor, Aberdeen, in speaking of the laity in the work of the Church said: “How utterly indefensible is the position of the Church of Scotland in relation to the rights of its women members in the courts of the Church.” He does not quote the scriptures to advance and support his argument. This is the method of today ecclesiastically. Scripture is not the guide, but expediency.
It seems that the Assembly this year, went as far as to agree to Deaconesses being invited to attend Kirk-Session meetings when matters affecting their work are to be considered. There are 80 Deaconesses in the Church of Scotland, all being paid salaries from £350 to £550.
MINISTERS’ SALARIES.
The Assembly and appropriate Committee could not see the way open to increase ministers’ salaries beyond the present figure of £660. It had been proposed that they should be increased to £750. Secretaries to Standing Committees get £1,200 salary. Dr. Whitley, St. Giles, stated that £750 only represented £292 of pre-war value.
REVISED CATECHISM.
In bringing forward a draft revised Catechism, the Youth Committee to the General Assembly was subjected to some criticism. It was agreed to allow it to be published as an instrument for teaching the main doctrines of the Church. If this is the draft we saw a year or two ago, it is a poor and miserable substitute for the Shorter Catechism. Rev. Dr. G. M. Dryburgh, Convener, said there was no intention of displacing the Shorter Catechism.
We doubt this inasmuch as its fundamental doctrines are not acceptable to the most of the ministers and members of the Church of Scotland. A campaign against the teaching of the Shorter Catechism in the public schools has all but eliminated it from the schools in Scotland in recent years. And Church of Scotland people are involved in this opposition to a great extent.
COMMISSION ON SPIRITUAL HEALING.
This Commission has now given in a report after four years investigation into Spiritual Healing. The press report, which is quite lengthy and in detail, leaves us in a maze as to what these Churchmen and others mean by “Spiritual Healing.” There are references to laying on of hands, consultation with the doctor, medicine as a part of science and failure to discover a single example of spiritual healing effecting a cure of physical disease. It has also been stated that the inexperienced amateur “healer,” working independently, however good his intentions might be, could do untold harm.
Now, what all this means, it is difficult for us to follow. There has been a Commission in the Church of England too.
THE BISHOPS’ REPORT.
The debate, and result of the same, on the Bishop-in-Presbytery Report, was not a surprise to us. The Report is being sent back to the Presbyteries of the Church of Scotland for official and formal comment. This has to be returned to Church Headquarters by 16th December 1958. And so Dr. A. C. Craig succeeds in keeping the Bishop question alive in his Church. Professor Forrester made his speech, appeal and motion to depart from the Report, before, as he said, it does irreparable harm to the Church of Scotland. But he lost the day.
Again we find the Rev. Dr. W. J. Baxter, the President of the Scottish Reformation Society of Scotland, on the wrong track in this question. He was the man who seconded Dr. Craig’s deliverance to send this evil business back to Presbyteries. Dr. Baxter, among other unsatisfactory things said, that they were not asking people to be for or against bishops in sending down the Report to Presbyteries. Such talk deceives no one with their eyes open, and it is time Dr. Baxter resigned from the Scottish Reformation Society.
Rev. John MacKay, Gorbals-John Knox Church, Glasgow, protested against the view of some of the joint-report’s supporters that the people of the Church did not understand it. This, he said, was an insult to the intelligence of the Church of Scotland’s people. And so this infamous report, aiming at organisational union, has deeply divided the Church of Scotland people, and the promoters appear quite complacent about this state of affairs.
THE MODERATOR’S CLOSING ADDRESS.
The Rev. Dr. John A. Fraser, of Hamilton, who had been appointed the new Moderator of the Assembly, revealed in his closing address that he was no opponent of the Dr. Craig school of thought, although he said much about the Church of Scotland, its constitution and ministers. He declared that many of them had an open mind as to whether a modified form of episcopacy might not with advantage be grafted on to their system. His final words, however, had a significance which many need to heed. He said: “The individual was apt to be lost sight of, and the Christian forgot that beyond all his corporate acts of worship and service there was the individual and solitary aspect of a man’s life before God . . . It is the supreme apostasy to find no time to cultivate our own souls. There never was a time when the world needed true inward Christians more than it does now.”
We see in these observations, the picture of the formal, unconverted, professing Christian, actively engaged with others in public worship and many other Church activities; and when it comes to a real, personal consideration of his inward, soul religion, he is quite ignorant of the life of grace and the inward, personal experiences of the regenerated sinner, “the true, inward Christian.”