New-York tribune., 1902-04-28
pRESBTTERTANISM IN SCOTLAND.


The General Assemblies of the Established
Church of Scotland and of the thi'ea free
Church of Scotland. which will meet next
month will find themselves face to face WIFI
the question of Sunday observance. Streetcars
are now run on Sunday in Edinburgh Glasgow
fIreenock and AYR. and the Edinburgh Museum
of Science and Art is open on that day so lar
as the United Free Church is concerned 1t Is
practically committed to approval of TINS
frae- observance of Sunday. as its yeneraple
leader. Principal Rainy. admits the uselessness
of resisting this tendency of the time. Nhat
the Established Church will do is not so GER
tain It's General Assembly of last year III
structed the presbyteries over which 1t eNer-
cises supervision TO collect statistics as 10 'he
amount of Sunday labor within their Douiius'
and on the basis Of these reports the coming
General Assembly will attempt to frame gen.
eral deliverance on the broad question Oh sun
day observance 1t will not, however, be easy
to do this. for there is a wide divergence OF
opinion on the subject, besides which the ques-
tion will be raised whether the Church can
relax the law as TO Sunday observance without
appealing TO Parliament for permission TO alter
the Confession Of Faith.
The question of raising a large fund for
church extension will also come up in the AS
sembly In recent years, especially IN the large
cities there has been an alarming falling Oh
ia church membership, and the necessity OF
building and endowng new churches in the
cities is generally admitted. But it is declared
hy many that this movement for church ex-
tension will fail unless the Church frankly re-
cedes from its old conservative attitude in re-
gard TO Sunday observance. and TO other
questions relating TO modern life takes more
sc
some of the doctrinal questions at issue be-
tween the conservatives and liberals may come
UP for discussion. 1t is well known fact that
in both of the great Presbyterian bodies OF Scot
land the so-caled new theology has made long
strides and some of the most radical conclu-
sions of modern Biblical scholarship are openly
accepted by the clergy and laity. This is espe-
cfaIly the case in the United Free Church
During the last few months 4 bitter con-
troyersy has arisen over the views Of Professor
George Adam Smith, of the United Free Church
College, of Glasgow whose lectures on the
Bible, delivered at Yale University last year,
are said 10 be denial Of its inspiration and
infallibility His following in the Church, how
ever is large and influential. and any attempt
to expel him would probably lead to disruption.
On the other hand, the United Free Church
is confronted with an alarming deficit in its
revenues and as its weather members adhere
to the old fashioned orthodoxy of 1Sf3 they re-
fuse to put their hands in their pockets until
the Church expels the higher critics As TO the
wise course under these circumstances there is
no general agreement, and in fact attention is
largely diverted from il b! more pressing
trouble. The union between the Free and the
United Presbyterian churches, which eliminated
in the formation OF the United Free Church In
1900 has caused intense bitterness in the High
of the original Free churches have refused TO
give up the churches and manses TO the new
body. In some cases they have even assaulted
the officers of the law who have tried to take
possession Of the property. The parish of Ness,
in the island of Lewis, succeeded in holding the
church building for many months, until at last
the sheriff forced the transfer by placing a gun
boat in the harbor and maintaining in the vii
lage large force Of policemen Such scenes Of
disorder and violence are doing injury to the
United Free Church. many of whose members
are going over to the Established Church.
This storm and stress of Presbyterianism
its native heath in Scotland is fact that must
deeply interest the student of religion. Pres
byterianism has dominated Scotland for centu-
ries. 1t has had no problems forced upon it by
an alien or hostile religion. Theoretically, il
has had nothing to do but TO hold fast to its
fundamental principles. Yet to-day it finds
itself profoundly affected by the great world
threaten to revelutionze. not merely its attitude
toward secular life, but its doctrinal theology.