Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

"3. The General Assembly cannot contemplate without anxiety and alarm the fearful consequences to the interests of religion, social order, and good government, which must result from proceedings which are contrary to the Word of God, an exercise of the rights of property repugnant to the principles of civil and religious liberty, and inconsistent with the spirit of the British constitution.

"4. The General Assembly, while they earnestly exhort the people to a faithful and uncompromising adherence to their religious principles, would solemnly impress upon them the Christian duty of patient endurance, refraining from all acts of force or violence, which the Assembly must ever strongly condemn and deplore, and would unite with them in prayer to God to grant them a speedy and effectual delivery from their trials and afflictions, nor suffer to fall upon any the awful responsibility of depriving them of their religious rights and privileges as a Christian people. 5. The General Assembly further pledges itself to the most strenuous efforts for obtaining a removal of these obstructions to the establishment of the principles of the Free Church of Scotland in these districts; and they feel assured that the sympathies, not only of this Church, but of the Christian world, will be called forth in behalf of these devoted ministers and their flocks. Therefore the General Assembly remit these resolutions, and the whole subject, to a Committee, to devise the most efficient means of carrying these objects into effect, and to report to next Assembly."

Mr Fox MAULE continued-Moderator, in moving the adoption of these resolutions, it will be unnecessary for me to go over the ground which has been so ably touched on by Dr Candlish, or to allude to the local facts which have been laid before us by those whose more intimate knowledge enabled them to speak upon them; but I agree cordially with Dr Candlish, that it was necessary that the General Assembly should put upon record their opinion on this subject; and I trust that the Committee of Business, in drawing up these resolutions, has fully met the sense and sentiments of this venerable body. (Loud applause.) It was most painful during the progress of the contest in which the Church was recently engaged, to hear the sceptical doubts that were thrown out by those who are high in station as to the constancy and consistency of the ministers of the gospel, and of the constancy and consistency of the flocks who waited upon their ministrations. We were told, and in quarters that ought to have been better informed-nay, that were better informed, had they listened to the advice that was given to them-that it was absurd to suppose that any number of men should throw up, or throw to the winds, as it was termed, the advantages of connection with the State for what they supposed was mere matter of opinion. They also stated, that even suppose the ministers should leave the Church, from what they were pleased to call mistaken motives, was there any probability that their flocks would follow them? (Hear, hear.) How vastly mistaken have these prophecies turned out! How little did they know the power of those great principles by which the ministers of the Church were actuated! How little did they appreciate the high value which the people set on their privileges and spiritual independence! (Loud applause.) I do not believe myself, that until the disruption in the Church absolutely took place, any regular plan of operations was laid down by those who fancied that by means of property or influence they could stop this great movement. In this movement they were directed by a higher power; they were actuated by superior motives, the progress of which could not be arrested or stopped by the efforts of man. It is possible, it may have happened that, in the fiery zeal of debate, some casual and unguarded expressions may have been uttered here and there in public meetings which have taken place, which expressions our opponents have thought proper to lay hold of, and fix them down in connection with the Free Church of Scotland. Now, I must say that in doing this they have done the Free Church of Scotland a wanton and gratuitous wrong. There is no trace in any act of the Free Church-there is no vestige in any of their official documentsof any ground whatever for the charge, that they banded together for the purpose of pulling down the Church as established by law in this country. We are said to have formed, as Dr Candlish has expressed it, a conspiracy against the Church; while such a conspiracy neither has nor ever had existence. (Hear, hear.) Do you

believe that any man in his senses can make this report the reason for refusing sites to the destitute congregations of the Free Church? Do you believe that he thinks the population are to come with the hands of violence to pull down the fabric of the Establishment to strip the minister of his gown, or to commit any other act of open violence? No man in his senses can believe in any such intention. But if it be called pulling down the Establishment that we are spreading the gospel throughout the length and breadth of the land-that by out-preaching, by out-practising, and by out-praying it, we are drawing from within its walls the scanty congregations that may still remain in it-if that be called pulling down the Establishment, then I plead guilty to it. (Hear and cheers.) It may be an offence which I would not be able to justify in the eyes of those who would make the Church established by law omnipotent, but it is an offence that I would be thankful had I none greater to answer for at the great reckoning. This charge against us, then, of making an effort to pull down the Establishment, is not only futile and false, but it is known to themselves to be so. (Hear, hear.) Yet I have no hesitation in declaring before the Free Church of Scotland, that I would not feel myself justified-as a legislator I would not feel myself justified-in giving my sanction to, or in passing any law which would have for its object the overthrow of the churches established by law either in England or in Scotland. I have my opinions as to the Church of Scotland, and boldly state these opinions-I boldly avow that the Church established by law is not that establishment which was created by the law of Scotland in the days of our fathers. (Loud applause.) But still it is the legal Church-it is the Church to which the stipend must be paid-its minister is the legal minister, by whom the manse shall be inhabited. It is in connection with the State, and forms part of the institutions of the country, that I must respect so far as not to lay the hand of violence upon it. (Hear, hear.) In reference to the two northern counties that have been more immediately under discussion this evening, I must say, as regards the county of Sutherland, that I am deeply grieved to learn from those respected and pious ministers who have just addressed the house, the fearful state in which the inhabitants of that district are placed. I have a personal knowledge of the noble lord who owns the greater part of that territory, and I agree with Dr M'Kay, in believing that he has seen the condition of the people through other eyes, and heard of their state through ears not his own-and that he is ignorant to the full extent of the miseries to which they have been exposed. (Hear, hear.) I trust that the noble duke will read the report of the debates of this Assembly. They will open his eyes to the position of that county, which is almost too large to have its condition brought under the ken of any one man; and he will then have no excuse for not making an immediate inquiry into the condition of the people, who, as they have been intrusted to him, as the independent owner of the soil, I hold that he is responsible to a higher power for their comfort and welfare. (Loud applause.) There is a saying, which never should be forgotten, and which was expressed by a countryman of our own. It was a reply addressed to the Irish landlords, who urged the rights of property. "The rights of property," said Mr Drummond, "no one will deny; but you must remember that property has its duties as well as its rights." (Loud applause.) I do not know any man who will subscribe to this doctrine more readily than the Duke of Sutherland will do; and it must be our earnest wish that his Lordship will lay all the circumstances seriously to heart; and after the statement which has been made this evening by Dr M'Kay of Dunoon, and which can be fully confirmed by papers which I have in my pocket at this moment-I trust after this, that his lordship will lose no time in considering the religious destitution -for such in reality it is-by which that great county is affected, and take means to repair the difficulties into which it has fallen, through, I trust I am correct in saying, misrepresentations that have been made to him, or the want of requisite knowledge on his part. (Renewed applause.) I think that Dr M'Kay stated an extraordinary fact, and one which cannot be too often stated, that since the disruption of the Church of Scotland in May last, the sacrament of the Lord's Supper has not been administered in any of the churches of the Establishment in that county. (Hear, hear.) Do we want any other proof than this of the extent of the secession ? Had

there been any communicants, the table would have been spread, and the ele. ments would have been brought forward. But though the table might be spread, there are no elders to convey round the elements, and even if there were, there are scarcely any communicants to receive them. But this is not the whole condition of the county of Sutherland. We see its spiritual destitution-we see the condition in which its people are placed. There are none now left to secede from the Church, and I would only ask, how are the ordinances of religion to be provided? The ministers have been warned off the soil; they have been prohibited from residing in the district, and they have been of necessity placed at such a distance that their flocks can rarely enjoy their ministrations, their consolations, or their advice. Nay, more, I believe that in some instances the people have assembled to worship their God in that place which is most consecrated to their meeting-in the church-yard, where repose in everlasting rest the ashes of their fathers. They conceived that over the graves of their relatives they might raise their orisons to the Lord; but no, they w re deprived of that also, and, excepting the barrier of the maximum and minimum of the salt sea, every spot of ground was denied them. (Hear, hear.) Under these circumstances, can any one say—can even their bitterest enemy say, that there has been a single act of violence, or a single expression emanating from the people of Sutherland, which could be construed by the sharpest lawyer into a breach of the peace. (Applause.) Their oppressions and endurance have been unexampled; and I feel that in their trials a monument will be raised up which will earn for them, however lowly in estate, the love and respect of every friend of Christian truth and Christian principle. (Loud applause.) I am anxious about these Sutherland men. I know their value, and the estimation in which they are deservedly held as the defenders of their country, and as ready to serve their sovereign on every occasion. I have myself served in a Highland regiment; I have had the men of Sutherland in my company and under my command; and I can bear this willing testimony, that they were in an especial manner orderly, active, intelligent, and serious-(hear, hear, and cheers) and above all men in the regiment, the men of Sutherland most readily merited and earned the confidence of their officers. I therefore look with the deepest anxiety to the result of this great question in Sutherland. (Hear, hear.) From all I know of the neighbouring country, I give them the same high character. I believe them to be orderly, peaceable, not easily irritated; but as we have heard from the deputation, the temptations to which they were exposed-though it cannot for one moment justify the breach of the law-does not make that which has taken place surprising. No doubt it was very wrong; and the fathers of the Church, as well as the Commission, have pronounced it sinful that men should be provoked into open violence, even though they are tempted to the uttermost. We should remember that the stronger the temptation, the more does the tempter get possession of us, and the more watchful should we be to guard against him. (Hear, hear.) It is impossible to justify the proceedings which took place at Resolis; but, at the same time, it does not prevent us as a Christian community, and as free British subjects, from proclaiming to the world that we consider the exercise of the rights of property there have been unduly severe, and express our anxiety, lest by such extreme severity as this, the love and attachment of the people of this country should he alienated from those in which it has been and ought to be concentrated, and men may find that, instead of living amongst an orderly and a contented community, such as the Free Church would make, they are living amongst a discontented and disorderly people, amongst whom there is neither confidence nor comfort. (Hear.) If these things happen, it is not our fault. It cannot be said that we have made a violent inroad into these counties, and carried forth some new-fangled doctrines, to lead the people from the Establishment. There is no ground for such a charge. The people have rallied round them and have resolved not to swerve from the cause they have taken, whatever their landlords may resolve to the contrary. And I will say, that so long as the rights of property are exercised with due consideration-so long as man does not assume to be the dictator to the conscience of his fellow man-so long as he simply exercises those rights over his property that will give him the due returns he has reason to expect so long will the rights of property remain sacred and inviolate. (Ap.

plause.) But I warn all men in this country, that if we are to claim a right on the land which we possess hereditarily, and at the same time claim a right over the consciences of those who remain on the land, then may our titles come to be questioned; and when this comes, there will be raised a storm which will not soon be allayed. And then will come the time when the nobles, and aristocracy, and landowners will find, that those to whom they could trust best as the protectors of their rights—that those in whom they could rely as the guardians of peace and good order-that those to whom they could look with the greatest confidence and security for the preservation of the bonds that unite society-are those very men whose hearts are fixed on true and enlightened Christian principle. (Hear, hear.) They are the men whose minds have been trained from their youth upwards, by teacher and pastor in whom they have reposed, and can repose, their confidence—to whom they apply for advice—who is consulted in their varied walks through life-and whose consolations they seek at the end of their days, when they lay down their head for the last time on their pillow, blessing God with their latest breath that they have been taught to honour their earthly sovereign, to love those around and above them, and to look with a certain hope to the reward which descends from above. (The hon. gentleman then moved the resolutions, and sat down amidst the most enthusiastic plaudits.)

The Marquis of BREADALBANE-Moderator, it has been suggested to me that I might with propriety second the resolutions which have been proposed by my excellent brother elder sitting on my left; but I must confess that I do so quite unprepared. And I am loath to enter on the subject, more especially after the able addresses which have been delivered, and particularly that of my excellent brother elder who has just spoken. The question, too, is one of great delicacy and great importance, and calculated to excite a depth of feeling which I can hardly trust myself without preparation to express. But this I must say that I concur most cordially in all the sentiments which have been expressed to you in the last address; and that if this persecution is to exist-this slavery-(hear, hear.)—this worst of slavery-the slav ery of the mind-(cheers,) the slavery of the consciences of men-(loud cheers)-on a question of the deepest and most vital importance, namely that of religion, we may hear of Egyptian bondage, we may hear of slavery in the West Indies in the worst of forms, but I will say that the slavery which exists in this country, as it has been detailed to us this evening by the spectators of it, is worse than any thing that was ever contemplated in the worst-(the conclusion of the sentence was lost in tumultuous cheering.) The noble Marquis added that he most cordially seconded the resolutions, and resumed his seat amidst enthusiastic plaudits.

The resolutions were then agreed to.

Dr M'FARLAN expressed a hope that before the Assembly broke up for the night, they would agree to appoint a collection to be made for the people of Sutherlandshire. Mr GUTHRIE said he was unwilling to detain the meeting by making a motion, but he could not refrain from expressing the delight he had experienced in listening to the noble speeches of the noble elders whose presence graced the Assembly, and who were so nobly prepared to stand up for the rights of the people. He would move, and he hoped the Assembly would agree with him, that the collection for the suffering people of Sutherland take place throughout the Church on the last Sabbath of November; and he trusted it would be a collection, the sound of which would reach the ears of the Duke of Sutherland, and make him to understand that the cause of the people of Sutherland was the cause of the people of all Scotland. (Immense cheering.)

The Assembly then adjourned till Friday at eleven o'clock.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20.

The Assembly met this morning at eleven o'clock, and was constituted by praise and prayer.

The MODERATOR intimated that a letter had been received from Dr Muirhead of

Cramond, regretting that, through infirmity and old age, he was unable to attend the Assembly, but assuring them that, though absent in body, he was present in spirit, and that his prayers would not fail to be directed to the throne of grace for their guidance and direction. The Moderator added, that he doubted not that the sympathies of the Assembly were with this aged servant of God, and that their prayers would be that the evening of his days might be cheered by the Divine mercies.

Dr CANDLISH moved, that it be remitted to the Committee appointed last night, to prepare a suitable address in reference to the collection for the people of Sutherland, which was to take place on the last Sabbath of November.-Agreed.

EMPLOYMENT OF COUNSEL.

Dr CANDLISH said, that before the Assembly proceeded to take up the cases which were about to come before them, he begged to move, without a single word, that it be a standing order of the House, that counsel be not heard at the bar.-The motion was received with applause, and agreed to without remark.

CASE OF ABBEY CONGREGATION, DUNFERMLINE.

This case was brought up on appeal by the Abbey Free Church congregation of Dunfermline and the Presbytery of Dunfermline, against the refusal of the Presbytery of Haddington to loose from his charge the Rev. Mr Fairbairn of Salton, to whom the Abbey congregation had given a call.

Mr THORNTON of Milnathort, on the part both of the commissioners from the Presbytery, and from the congregation, laid on the table a short statement, which had been unanimously concurred in at a meeting of the congregation, to the effect that though they believed that the translation of Mr Fairbairn would be a blessing not only to the congregation, but to the town of Dunfermline and the surrounding district, and though the trying circumstances of the congregation, and the unanimity of the call, would all justify them in pressing the appeal, yet, in respect that Mr Fairbairn's services were specially required at the present time for consolidating the congregation of Salton, which was formed from two different parishes, they had agreed to depart from the appeal.

Dr CANDLISH moved that this document be recorded in the minutes; and he could not but express his opinion, that the Church was greatly indebted to this congregation for the admirable example they had given of the principle that congregations should consult not only their own peculiar interests, but those of the Church. (Loud cheers.)

The motion was cordially adopted.

ADHERENCE OF THE MADRAS MISSIONARIES.

The MODERATOR then rose and said-He had the pleasure of announcing the gratifying intelligence which had been received that morning, of the adherence of the missionaries at the Madras station to the Free Presbyterian Church. announcement was received with immense cheering, several times renewed.)

THE MODERATOR OF THE IRISH ASSEMBLY.

(The

Dr SMYTH intimated that he had received a letter from Dr Stewart, the Moderator of the Irish Presbyterian Church, stating that he had fully determined to be present at the Assembly, but that he had delayed setting off in order to preach for a friend; and having afterwards, when he reached Port Rush, found that the steamer was unable to call there on account of the state of the weather, he had been obliged to return homewards.

CASE OF MR MACNAUGHTAN.

This case came up on an appeal from a finding of the Presbytery of Paisley, refusing to translate Mr Macnaughtan from the High Church Congregation, Paisley, to the Congregation of North Leith, whose call he had received and accepted.

Drs Clason and Candlish appeared for the Presbytery of Edinburgh; Mr Gall and Mr Charles Philip for the Congregation of North Leith; Mr M Farlau for the

« AnteriorContinuar »