To the Top of the World

As I mentioned in blogs past, the Reformed Presbyterian church in Scotland has been growing. The church in Stornoway has grown to the point where it was ready to call a minister and induct Elders and Deacons. In order to encourage the sister church, groups from the Airdrie and Glasgow made the journey up north. Stornoway is located on the Isle of Lewis which is the most northern island on the western side of Scotland. It is the closest I have ever been to the top of the world (thus far).
Knowing that this adventure would take us five hours in the mini-bus in addition to a three hour ferry ride, I signed up to go along. Even though multiple twenty hour bus journeys of the past had prepared me for this trek, I had only crossed on a ferry once before on the way to Ireland. The plan was to get to Ullapool, sail our on the 5:30 ferry to Stornoway, stay in a hostile (for us youngins), attend the service the following morning, enjoy lunch together and sail back in the afternoon. So Friday morning at 10:30 all of us from Airdrie set out. This included twelve of us in the mini-bus, three car fulls and some more who came over via the air. Pastor Andrew led our group despite his terrible back pain that plagued him the whole weekend. About half way through our ride up, we got a call from the group from Glasgow, who had already boarded an earlier ferry, telling us that there was a distance possibility that our ferry would be cancelled. The caravan stopped for lunch and discussed what the plan of action was: go home or press on. Unanimously, we decided to at least get to Ullapool, the town where the ferry would depart from, and see what the situation was. At this point we had about three hours in the mini-bus left but I cannot complain about the duration of this part of the journey. By this time of the year, God has  Scotland's Highlands all decked out in the fall colors. We passed through some of the most astounding scenery. The grass covering the mountain sides was the a burnt orange velvet against the grey of the rocks that jutted out here and there. Fittingly, against the Autumn background, we happened upon some highland cows (or hiland coos). These lucky creatures have the best seat in the house to witness God's splendor in his creation.

At last, we arrived in Ullapool to find out that the ferry was indeed cancelled and the next ferry to go out was at 5 a.m. the next morning. We only had to look at each other to know that none of us were going home that night. The bulk of us got tickets to sleep on the ferry while a few stayed in a B&B in the town. After our tickets were purchased and our luggage was loaded on the ferry, all of us ate dinner at a pub close by. This time, I had proper fish & chips. At my table it was myself, Graci, Pastor Andrew, his wife Heather and an older couple named Harry and Anne. Graci and I were shocked to find out that none of them had had an ice cream sunday before. Logically then we ordered one for the table to share. Back on the ferry, we banned together and held family worship. I do not think the other passengers minded our singing Psalms too much. Jimmy told us just to tell everyone that we got upgraded to an overnight cruise. I finally got to sleep around 1 that morning but was awoken quickly at 4:30 by the increasing movement of the boat. I was instantly nauseous and spent the remainder of the morning either in the bathroom or passed out with Graci on one of the chairs in the main hall of the boat. Some passersby seized the opportunity to take pictures of us as well as Beth, who was in the other chair, and Fraiser, who was sleeping on the floor between the chairs, in this state.

We landed in Stornoway at about 8 Saturday morning. Some of the members of the church there met us and were kind enough to take us back to their houses for breakfast and showers. At last we arrived at the induction service at 9:30. This was the first time in seventeen years a pastor had been officially called to a Reformed Presbyterian church (Pastor Andrew being the last). The service began with public worship led by the Reverend Kenneth Stuart (the teacher of my theology class). He read from Colossians 4:15-18 and reminded those about to take office, as well as the rest of us, that God remembers those who serve him. Likewise, we should remember who we are serving in the office we are given. He defined Elders as those who oversee the distribution of the gospel and Deacons as those who oversee the distribution of materials and resources. He called them to consider the nature of their offices and to see them as part of their relationship with the Lord. Three men from the congregation then took their oaths and were inducted into the office of Elder. In a similar manner, three other men came forward, took oaths and were inducted into the office of Deacon. Lastly, the congregation called Reverend David Karoon to be their minister. David Karoon was a man from Singapore who had originally come to the Glasgow church to assist Rev Stuart there. Upon journeying north to Stornoway, however, it was laid on his hear that this was the church that God would have him lead. He took his oaths of office and was welcomed in by his new church family.

There were eighty people at the service that day. We all joined for lunch at one of the local hotels. You have not lived until you have had pudding with a bunch of RP's after a worship service. Shortly afterwards though, we from the mainland reboarded the ferry and set sail again at 3 that afternoon. This sailing went much smoother than the first and I was able to make up some of the sleep I had missed the night before. By the time we got back to land and reloaded the mini-bus it was 6 p.m. and already dark. Thankfully we all made it back to Airdrie in one piece...even though Pastor Andrew's car did get a flat tire. We were dropped of in front of the church at 11 that night. Thankfully Scotland observes day light savings and we were able to get an extra hour of sleep to be ready for church today. A similar service is taking place in Glasgow this Friday night. Reverend Kenneth Stuart is officially being called to pastor that congregation and Elders will be inducted as well. God is so great to move among his people and stir the hearts of men who are willing to lead his faithful people.

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Glasgow Museum

Greetings all! My apologies for the book length post last week. Since then, our classes have gone back to normal. Our history class is over but that does not mean that we have learned all about Scottish history that there is to learn. This week for our field trip we did not visit a Covenanter site but a more commonly visited site. One of the elders in the church, Sam, took the four of us to the Glasgow Museum. Here we were greeted by an array of faces. In the first main displays that you go through inside there are faces, each with a different expression, hanging from the ceiling above the busts of more recognizable faces (the Queen Mother being among them). As in every museum, on display are things of both national importance as well as international renowned. Featured were works of Rembrandt, mementos of Queen Mary of Scots, and a Spitfire plane from World War II. Oddly enough, there were also different icons of America about the Museum. I happened upon statues of President F D Roosevelt and Elvis. We were fortunate enough to be able to see Salvador Dali's "Christ of St. John on the Cross". It would be unfair to say that I saw all that there was to see there in my short visit or that I could relate everything that I did see. Museums are among the few places that the history buff and tourist could visit together and both enjoy.

https://picasaweb.google.com/108532852514122909750/GlasgowMuseum?authkey=Gv1sRgCI_c9pjL3JrpGA#

A History Lesson

I know I have not posted in some time but that is because we have been all over Scotland this week. I'll preface this by saying if you don't want to read this huge post you can just look at the pictures.

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To finish out our Covenanter history class we spent four days visiting sites significant to the Covenanters and what they stood for. However, first I should explain what a Covenanter is. The Scottish Covenanters were those brave few who pledged to uphold Presbyterianism in Scotland, resisting Erastianism, and adherent of the National Covenant and the Solemn League and Covenant. In each of these documents, Christ’s kingship and headship over the church is promoted. This was in stark contrast to what the kings of England wanted at the time: total rule over the church and state.

It all started with Patrick Hamilton. This young man had been educated on the Continent in Lutheranism. Upon returning to Scotland, he began to his family about the Reformed traditions he had come in contact with. For this, he was arrested, called into account at St Andrews, condemned for heresy and burned at the steak. Today there is a PH on the ground outside the Church of the Holy Trinity where the steak was. This caused an outrage among the people since this man was condemned for merely teaching his family about the bible.

The next martyr was a man named George Wishart. He also had studied Reformed Theology on the Continent. He was responsible for teaching the Greek New Testament. This conflicted with the Catholic Church. With all the threats he was facing, Wishart began to travel with a body guard. The man who was constantly at his side, wielding a double-handed sword, was named John Knox. Eventually Wishart was betrayed into the hands of Cardinal Beaton. Beaton tried Wishart for heresy and condemned him to death. Knox volunteered to die alongside Wishart but Wishart told Knox that he had work to do yet.

It was the spring of 1547 when Protestant nobles took the castle in St Andrews. They had had enough of the tyranny of the Catholic Church. They were later joined by John Knox and persuaded him to become their minister. Up until then he had only been a teacher despite his close relationship with George Wishart. The Protestants dug in and waited for the inevitable attack. The Catholic forces brought in reinforcements from France but were unable to break into the castle for some time. Finally, the Protestants surrendered under the understanding that all within the castle were given life and liberty. The Catholic forces did not honor these terms and the prisoners, Knox included, became galley slaves in the French vessels.

The Cathedral in St Andrews is but ruins now. It was at one time one of the most spectacular Cathedrals. In 1378 a fire partly destroyed the Cathedral and it was not completely restored until 1440. When Protestantism became the dominant form of Christianity in 1559 it was completely stripped of its altars and images. Further destruction of the Cathedral came as one of its walls gave way and instead of being rebuilt, the rocks and rubble were used as building material for new homes in the town.

In 1660, Charles II was invited back to take the throne in what is known as the Restoration. He hated the Covenanters for making him sign the Solemn League and Covenant years earlier when he was trying to hold onto his throne years earlier. Now that he had the crown back he set out to destroy those preachers who thought they could hold his nose to the grind stone. The Presbyterians set out to plead their case and sent James Sharp as their representative. Sharp betrayed the Covenanters and accepted the post of Archbishop.  Charles II believed in the Divine Right of Kings and made it his goal to establish Erastianism in Scotland. Among the first martyrs was Archibald Campbell. Campbell had presided over Charles II coronation in Scotland after his signing of the Covenant. He was quoted as saying “I set the crown on the king’s head and now he hastens me to a better crown than his own.” Among those who were martyred in Edinburgh’s Grass Market were James Guthrie (a pastor in Stirling), Samuel Rutherford (author of Lex Rex and other treasonable papers), and Archibald Johnston (assisted in the drawing up of the National Covenant). One of the men Charles particularly wanted to kill was Alexander Henderson. Henderson had died of natural causes, however, before Charles returned to the throne. The king had to settle for sending soldiers to deface Henderson’s grave.
In 1662 it was decreed that all ministers had to come under control of Bishops by law. As a result, over 400 ministers left the church and preached in fields, houses and barns. The king had not anticipated such a loss of clergy and in order to fill the vacant churches, ministers from the Highlands were brought in. these men were horribly inept and people did not want to go to the churches but preferred to go to fields to hear ministers. These field meetings became known as Conventicles. Anyone caught attending a conventicle was punished with heavy fines and had to quarter troops in their house. Anyone caught preaching at a conventicle was tried and executed.

Tension came to a head in 1666.  An old man named Greir had been fined for not attending church. Soldiers were sent to his house to exact punishment. They were going to roast him alive when word reached a group of Covenanters who had come into town for food. The Covenanters went to Greir’s aid and defeated the troops. Knowing that they would be accused of rebellion, they decided to go to the Privy Council to plead their case. On their way to Edinburgh, many people joined them in their journey until their numbers swelled to almost 1000. When they reached the city they found the city gates locked to them. They decided to disband quietly when a party of soldiers attacked them at Rullion Green. The Covenanters were defeated. About 50 were killed, and 100 captured but many were able to hide in the darkness. The majority of the captured were executed; their heads and hands were cut off and sent to towns as a warning.

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The apex of the Covenanter movement came in 1679. In May of that year, a group of five Covenanters captured Archbishop Sharp on his way from St Andrews to London. When they searched him they found death warrants for other Covenanters on his person. They believed that God had given him into their hands so they drug him from his carriage and executed him in front of his 18 year old daughter. The Covenanters as a whole did not condone this. Their official stance was to promote self-defense but not murder. As a result, the Covenanters began to show up to field meetings unarmed. In June a field meeting of 300 people in Drumclog was discovered by a band of dragoons. Their minister was preaching that day on suffering for Christ's sake and as the dragoons drew near he turned to the congregation and said that they had the theory and now it was time to put it into practice. The dreaded Captain James Claims of Claverhouse led 150 soldiers into the peaceful hillside and demanded the minister be handed over. The men lined up and respond by singing Psalm 76. As some of the soldiers advanced, their horses got stuck in the bog and the Covenanters seized the chance to overtake the soldiers.

Covenanter fame spread as a result and an uprising was planned. About 3000 Covenanters banded together but they had no leadership. While taking their time to devise a game plan, they set up camp for a fortnight. In the meantime, the king sent 15000 professional troops to deal with these opportunistic Scotts. The two forces met in the Battle of Bothwell Bridge. The Covenanters needed to hold the bridge in order to have a fighting chance. Eventually the men on the bridge ran out of ammunition. Once the troops came over the bridge, the Covenanters’ ranks broke and they fled. About 400 were killed and 1200 were captured and imprisoned in Greyfriairs Kirk in Edinburgh. After months of being neglected in the open prison, the Covenanters who were left alive were deported. Now the king’s soldiers filled Southern Scotland and violence increased.

Some of the sites we visited were testimonies to the violence that occurred between 1679 and 1688. These years are known as the Killing Times; during which a bible was considered “treasonable papers” and illegal. Similarly, being out after dark was punishable by death. In the most tranquil woods in Muirkirk lies the grave of William Adams. William was a young man who had been working at one of the nearby farms. Every day he met his fiancé near the stream for lunch. On one particular day he had been sitting by the stream, waiting for his girl, with his bible open. Some soldiers were passing by and saw that he was reading the bible. They shot him on sight, no questions asked. His fiancé heard the shot and rushed to see what had happened. The soldiers were crossing the narrow bridge over the steam when she crossed their path. One of the soldiers had tried to push her off the bridge and so enraged her that she pulled him off his horse. He was inclined to kill her for embarrassing him but decided to let her go. She found William dead beside the steam and buried him there herself.

The last site that we visited was the Martyrs’ Steak in Wigtown. It was here in 1685 that that two Margarets were drowned in the rising tide of the Bladnoch River. Margaret McLachlan was a 63 year old woman who had been convicted of attending conventicles. She was arrested while praying in her house. Margaret Wilson was an 18 year old woman who, along with her sister Agnes and brother Thomas had been kicked out of their house by their parents for attending conventicles. They wandered through the hills for some time before being attested. Gilbert Wilson, their father, was given the opportunity to buy his younger daughter’s freedom for 100 pounds, which he did. His older daughter however was sentenced to death. Both Margarets were tied to steaks in the river during the low tide. The older Margaret was tied much further out while the younger was forced to watch her drowned. They told Margaret Wilson that if she would pray for the king and relent, she would not suffer the same fate. Instead, she sang from Psalm 25 “To Thee I lift my soul, O Lord; I trust in Thee, my God; let me not be ashamed, nor foes triumph over me.” She also drowned when the tide came in. in the same town that year three men, William Johnstone, John Milroy and George Walker, were hanged. All five of the martyrs are commemorated by headstones in the Kirk nearby.