Presbytery Meetings (D.V.)
Western: At Laide on 8th December at 6 p.m.
Southern: At Glasgow on 11th February 1993 at 6 p.m.
Outer Isles: At Stornoway on 19th January 1993 at 1 p.m.
Skye: At Portree on 9th February 1993 at 11 a.m.
Zimbabwe: At Bulawayo on 8th March 1993 at 2 p.m.
Day of Prayer
At the Synod in May the following motion was passed:—
“In the light of the increasing apostasy of the age in which our lot is cast, and the determination to enlist the law on the side of evil-doers, that Wednesday 16th December or Thursday 17th December 1992 be held throughout the whole Church as a day of humiliation and prayer for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit to stem the tide of religious and moral corruption.”
Report of the Tomatin Church Opening
On Wednesday 23rd of September 1992 a full congregation gathered at Morile, Tomatin for the opening service in the new Church building. Rev. A. MacPherson preached on Exodus 25: 8. “And let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” After the sermon Mr MacPherson and Rev. D. Boyd, both former ministers of the congregation, each gave a short address. Among other remarks reference was made to the ministry of Rev. D. MacFarlane in Tomatin (1879-1889), and his faithful protest against the introduction of the infamous Declaratory Act. Rev. A. F. Mackay who was interim moderator for many years made mention of the late Rev. D. J. Matheson, first minister of the joint congregation of Daviot, Stratherrick and Tomatin, who died in 1962. The Lord’s kindness in providence was acknowledged in providing this place of worship. Acknowledgement was also made of the kindness of many persons who gave of their labour and substance, especially the gift of an excellent site on which to build the church. After the service a large number of those who attended retired to the village hall for refreshments. In thanking the ladies of the congregation for their ample provision Rev. N. Ross made reference to the Apostle Paul’s commendation of “Phebe our sister and servant of the church . . . a succourer of many” (Rom. 16: 1, 2).
Excellent work was done by the builders (most of whom are Free Presbyterians). A most suitable church has been constructed at a very reasonable cost. The building stands in sight of the original church and manse occupied by Rev. D. MacFarlane and it is worthy of note that this new church has been opened exactly one hundred years after he tabled his protest against the Declaratory Act, which led to the formation of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Contrary to pessimistic forecasts that this denomination would be short lived, we are still here. It should be a matter of humble gratitude with us that the Lord has seen fit to preserve the scriptural witness of the Gospel of Christ among us. Our holding fast to the truth has made us many enemies so that we are left “as a cottage in the vineyard and as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.” Yet, hitherto the Lord has helped us.
We believe the prayers and desires of many, some of whom are now in eternity have been answered thus far, in the restoration and continuity of a Free Presbyterian place of worship and witness in Tomatin and we hope that the Lord Himself will be meeting with souls in mercy as He did in former days in this place, raising by His own grace, a seed to do Him service.
It will be of interest to those with a concern for the cause of Christ in Tomatin to observe the continuity between the present Free Presbyterian congregation and those who separated from the Church of Scotland at the Disruption in 1843. The minister of Tomatin in 1843 was a Rev. Dr Thomas MacLauchlan. The whole congregation are reported to have followed him out of the Church of Scotland. In 1844 the Rev. Archie Cook came to Daviot and took the oversight of Tomatin until 1862.
Some of those who took their stand with Rev. D. MacFarlane in 1893 were converted under the preaching of Archie Cook. One example of these was Mrs S. Davidson, Findhorn Bridge, who attended Mr Cook’s ministry for many years. In her father’s house Mr Cook held regular diets of catechising and she entertained him in her own home. When Mr Cook’s Gaelic and English sermons were published in 1907 she received them with delight and read them over and over again. Mr Cook was succeeded in 1862 by the Rev. John Baillie who subsequently became minister of Gairloch. The Rev. D. MacFarlane came in 1879 and remained ten years. His ministry was greatly appreciated by his people who nearly all followed him in 1893 although by this time he was minister of Raasay. Preaching on the Monday of the last Communion at which Mr MacFarlane officiated in Tomatin he said, “I am going to heaven, will you not come with me?”
List of Communions
The list of Communions on the inside front of the Magazine has been corrected for 1993. The editor would be grateful if ministers would let him know of any further corrections required.