The Gathering Storm?


Peace, Peace, when there is no Peace
Neville Chamberlain returned from appeasing Hitler at Munich waving a piece of paper and claiming "peace in our time", but the following year the Second World War began. There are many in the Free Church today who want peace at all costs. They are the bureaucratic wedge which a more liberal element is using to destroy our Church. They sit on the fence while our Church is being undermined. Many of them bury their heads in the sand and pretend that nothing is wrong.

Continuing Encourangements
The Free Church Defence Association continues to be encouraged at the response to its existence both from within and also from outside the Free Church. The number of subscribers to Foundations is growing daily. The third public meeting of the Western Isles Branch was again attended by over 200 people. The Southern Branch intend to have their first public meeting soon. Also, a national conference is being organised in Inverness.

Call for FCDA To Disband
Our continued existence, of course, does not please everyone. There are those in the Free Church who do not like free speech and prefer secrecy. The Edinburgh Presbytery alleged that we were raising matters in Foundations (October 1997, p.8) which the Assembly had closed. There, however, we were simply responding to a point raised in a newspaper article by a member of their Presbytery. We await with interest to see if they will admonish him! The Presbytery also alleged that the FCDA exists to attack brethren. Nothing could be further from the truth. We make it quite plain that we exist to defend the Free Church and its constitution and to promote peace, unity and brotherly love. Why really do folk want the FCDA to disband? Is it because they do not want to see the Free Church defended? If individuals are attacking or undermining our beloved Church we will not be intimidated but will speak out against what they are doing. We are determined that the Free Church and its testimony will continue. Furthermore, we ourselves are well used to being attacked almost weekly in our local newspaper by a member of their Presbytery. Do they intend to take any action? If the presbyteries were diligent in maintaining the principles and discipline of the Free Church there would be no need for a Defence Association.

Pleas from the Presbyteries
A majority of presbyteries wrote to the Edinburgh Presbytery protesting against the obvious breaking of ordination vows by those involved in the Aberdeen Carol Service, but their pleas were dismissed. One of our professors subsequently publicly rejected our Church's stand on "purity of worship" which he had, on at least three occasions, solemnly vowed to "assert, maintain and defend" (West Highland Free Press 6.2.98). This ought not to be ignored.

Confused Message from The Monthly Record
The February Monthly Record editorial was particularly disappointing. An attempt seems to be made to undermine the whole concept of church discipline by referring to Jesus' words: "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her" (Jn.8:7). Were the Corinthians, from whom Paul demands decisive disciplinary action, totally free from lust (1Cor.5)? The Editor also says that Jesus did not take ordination vows. Mr Campbell seems to be trying to rubbish the concept of ordination vows or to be excusing those that break them. If he does not believe in ordination vows, then why did he himself take them and why does he continue to remain in a Church which demands that all its office-bearers take such vows? It is very wrong to set evangelism and ordination vows against one another.

Subscription to the Confession
People criticise us for treating the Westminster Confession as if it were infallible and so giving to it the place that the Bible should have. That, of course, is nonsense. Scripture is the only rule to direct us. However, we also believe that the Confession is based upon Scripture. When we were ordained to the ministry we signed a statement which says: "I do sincerely own and believe the whole doctrine contained in the Confession of Faith, approven by former General Assemblies of this Church to be the truths of God; and I do own the same as the confession of my faith". This vow refers to the "whole doctrine" (teaching) not simply the "system of doctrine". In this connection we must totally reject the attempt to separate the "substance of the faith" from the rest of the Confession as was done in the unconstitutional and long- repealed 1892 Declaratory Act.

The Tyranny of the Majority
The attitude of some is that the majority must always be right. If the Assembly takes a vote on a certain matter then the finding is conclusive. They forget our own history. In 1900 the vast majority of the Free Church Assembly took a decision from which only a tiny minority dissented. However, the minority was in the right and this was confirmed by the House of Lords. We seem to be approaching another crisis. Will the majority be in the right even if they break their ordination vows? Who will have the right to call themselves the Free Church?


Any comments or questions please E-Mail me or Rev William Macleod the editor.

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