The Church of Scotland
The Moderator of Assembly on this occasion was Rev James Simpson, minister of Dornoch Cathedral. He succeeded Rev James Weatherhead who reverted to his position as Principal Clerk of the Assembly. The Lord High Commissioner, representing the Queen, was Lady Marion Fraser, the wife of Sir William Kerr Fraser, Principal of Glasgow University. During his term in office, Dr Weatherhead stirred up controversy by questioning the reality of the Virgin Birth. He reiterated this view at the time of the Assembly maintaining that the story need not be taken literally. He said: “Many adhere to a more literal interpretation. But I shall not be party to any conspiracy of silence which implies that no other interpretation is allowed in the Church.” Though Dr Weatherhead’s questioning of this doctrine raised a storm of protest among evangelicals, yet Dr Weatherhead is secure in the knowledge that he will not be taken to task by the Courts of the Church. The new Moderator appealed for unity and said it saddened him that so much time was spent in throwing poisonous darts at allies within the Church who shared their love of Jesus Christ. It grieved him to hear of men and women turned off the Church by their small minded feuds, their dogmatism and lack of grace. Such is the estimate of Mr Simpson of the conflict over one of the cardinal beliefs of Christianity. Dr Weatherhead, for his part, held the view that belief in the Virgin Birth had never been regarded in the Church of Scotland as of the substance of the faith, taking refuge in this way, like the framers of the Declaratory Act of 1892, in the nebulous concept of ‘the substance of the faith’. At the same time he said that he recognised that those who adhered to a more literal interpretation of the Bible were entitled to their opinion and he had never said they were wrong. Such is the comprehensiveness of the Church of Scotland in our day, accommodating all shades of belief, with all being equally valid.
The question of the Church’s finances arose in connection with various items. It was agreed that the running of Carberry Tower, which is used for various courses, youth weekends and conferences, be looked into to prevent it being a continued burden on Church finances. A controversial proposal to sell the Church Offices at 121, George Street, Edinburgh was overwhelmingly defeated. The Assembly agreed to seek the views of presbyteries on a plan which would mean, in the event of a vacancy, a congregation would not be permitted to call a new minister until it had cleared its debts to the central funds of the Church. The report of the Board of Stewardship and Finance showed that although the average givings per member had risen in the last year, the number of members had fallen by 20,000. The need for sacrificial giving was emphasised. A plan for the retirement age of ministers to be reduced from 70 to 65 will be considered by presbyteries before a decision is taken by the Assembly next year. A proposal that ministers, elders and diaconate members would cease to be presbytery members at the age of 75 was passed. Also a maximum age limit for new ministers was approved by the Assembly, the maximum age being lowered from 58 to 45.
The Assembly was afraid that new education policies on religion, would mean no mention of God in school morning assemblies. It was decided to seek urgent meetings with Lothian and Strathclyde Regions, and check the policies of other regional and islands councils on religious observance in schools. It would appear that the religious adviser in Lanark had issued guidance to schools that there was no place in assemblies for the God of the Christian, the God of the Jew or the God of the Muslim. Religious observances, he claimed, must accommodate all and offend none, with no mention allowed of God, morality, faith or love. It is sad to think that in a land where the gospel was once known, that such views would ever be given expression to by those who are ostensibly religious advisers. We trust that such views will not be given place to, so long as a measure of Christian belief remains in the land.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, who was present at the Assembly, was invited to address the Commissioners. He told the Assembly that faith and action, service and evangelism must go together. He said that what was wanted was a credible Christianity — a robustly argued faith which speaks to people in terms that they can readily understand, and which helps them to make the moral and practical choices they face in their lives. “Practical Christian action,” he said, “is the outworking of Jesus’ challenge to his people that ‘by their fruits you will know them’.” We know, that for the Archbishop, the credible Christianity of which he speaks, does not embrace fundamentalism for which he has no place.
On the subject of terrorism in Northern Ireland, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland said that his Church condemned all murders and violence from whatever source they came. The Church of Scotland Assembly called on all paramilitary organisations in Northern Ireland to lay down their arms in the cause of peace, and to encourage the governments of the United Kingdom and the Republic to continue moves towards peace. There is little understanding in Church circles, or elsewhere, of the nefarious role played by the Church of Rome in the troubles of Northern Ireland. Until this is recognised, there will be little prospect of peace in Northern Ireland.
Once again, largely in caring for the elderly, the Board of Social Responsibility had an operating loss of £2.7 million. Reserves were being used up to fund the shortfall. The Convener blamed the Government and most Regional Authorities, for their persistent failure to fund the cost of such care. He also said, that the Church must deliver the highest standards of care, and that he would rather close homes than reduce standards of care. He stressed that his Board were opposed to euthanasia and affirmed the importance of every individual, under God, no matter how poor their quality of life might appear to others. In connection with betting, horse-racing and off-licence alcohol sales, now to be permitted on the Lord’s Day, the Convener expressed his regret saying: “These seem pathetic alternatives for a day set apart for rest and worshipping the living God,” and he expressed the view that our nation will be the poorer for it.
The General Assembly discussed the Panel on Doctrine’s controversial report on the theology of marriage and the Board of Social Responsibility’s report on human sexuality. Very conflicting views emerged in the discussion. The Board had come to the conclusion that it saw no compelling reason to alter the Church’s position that homosexual acts were contrary to God’s will. The Panel on Doctrine, however, had said that love, trust, forgiveness and faithfulness should be seen as the most significant criteria by which all relationships were judged. The Assembly decided that guidelines would have to be drawn up before the Panel’s Report on the theology of marriage can be discussed by Presbyteries. Earlier it had been decided that no vote would be taken on these Reports at this Assembly. It is sad to think that there is so little agreement by Assembly delegates on these matters that no decision could be taken to uphold Biblical moral teaching and reject what was clearly contrary to the Word of God.
Free Church of Scotland
The Free Church Assembly elected Rev Alex Murdo MacLeod, Kinloch, Lewis as their Moderator. In accordance with usual practice the Lord High Commissioner visited the Free Church Assembly. On this occasion, Her Majesty’s High Commissioner had in her retinue for the visit to the Free Church, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey. Lady Fraser in her address told the Free Church that their stance was respected and valued.
The Moderator in his opening address to the Assembly, stressed the need for one recognised rule of faith and practice. He remarked, that it was as a result of the doctrines of the historic Confession becoming unacceptable, and not as a result of spiritual progress, that relaxation of subscription to the Confession of Faith had come about in the modern Presbyterian Church. Church leaders had taken it on themselves to decide what should be the Church’s confession. As a result the Church’s preaching had been enervated, and Christian witness disunited and impoverished. Mr MacLeod called on churches to repent — a call that was relevant to all Christians and all churches. In particular, churches who denied the deity of Christ and the Virgin Birth, needed to repent of these departures from the faith. He concluded by saying: “Let us all, as one heart, return to the everlasting, tried and tested biblical doctrines of our fathers.” The Moderator’s call for a return to the faith once delivered to the saints, and to the subordinate standards of the Presbyterian Churches, is a timely one. But the call is not one which applies only to the more modernistic denominations, but also to those who profess an adherence to evangelical belief. Many within these denominations have relaxed their hold on the doctrines which the Confession of Faith sets forth. This is true, even though, so far as office-bearers are concerned, they have vowed solemnly before God and man to maintain these same doctrines. Within the Moderator’s own Church we fear that there are those of whom this is true.
Rev Daniel MacKinnon, the Convener of the Public Questions Committee brought before the Assembly the moral bankruptcy of the government. He stated that it had reached a new low in ethics and morality. He referred to the further desecration of the Lord’s Day by recent relaxation of gambling and licensing laws. Many sins in society are now labelled permissive, he said, and even the word “gay” had become debased. In this society people who were endeavouring to live decent Christian lives were called narrow-minded bigots. Another speaker at the Assembly warned of the danger of the “right to die” movement. If its pleas for voluntary euthanasia were granted, this might easily become in practice involuntary euthanasia. He referred to a recent report in the British Medical Journal, which claimed that half of all doctors questioned, would consider hastening a patient’s death, if it became legal to do so. We hardly think that this can be a truly representative sample of the doctors in this country, many of whom are dedicated to the preservation of life.
Free Church people were once more urged to increase their givings so that the minister’s stipend of £11,250 could be brought nearer the national average wage of £16,836. In order to make this increase in the salaries of ministers possible, the Free Church has frozen all building projects and all big grants. The Finance Convener, said that such drastic action was necessary until such time as contributions to Church funds reached a realistic figure.
An attempt is to be made to promote the Free Church College and heighten awareness of the status of the College, as a centre of biblical and reformed teaching. The Rev Alex Murdo MacLeod of Stornoway, who was Convener of the special quinquennial visitation Committee to the College, said that the College was already esteemed as a school in which Calvinism was taught with love and conviction. While questioning this assessment, we are wholly in accord with another statement made by him to the effect that, “when Churches become indifferent to the importance of their theological institutions, they run the risk of exposing themselves, and their future ministers to dangers.”