FURTHER GROWTH OF THE CHURCH.
James Dodson
CHAPTER III.
AS soon as the three probationers named at the close of the preceding chapter began to preach, the members of the Church in various districts of the country took steps to get themselves organized into Congregations, with a view to obtain a settled minister, and a fuller supply of ordinance.
On the 11th June, 1775, the Societies in the Shires of Ayr and Renfrew petitioned for a disjunction from the Northern Congregation, and at a meeting on the 26th August of the same year, the Presbytery by a majority granted a disjunction and declared the Congregation vacant; but the disjunction was granted on condition that till they obtained a settled minister, the members in Ayr and Renfrew should pay as heretofore “their quota of the stipend of the ministers in the Northern Con-
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gregation.” On the 23rd October 1776, the Congregation presented a petition for a moderation, and after some delay, on 15th January, 1777, the prayer of the petition was granted, and Mr Courtass appointed to preside on the occasion. This he did, and reported to the Presbytery on the 19th of March following that a call had been given to Mr William Steven. At the same meeting the call was presented to Mr Steven, and accepted by him. On the 9th of June, Mr Steven delivered his trials for ordination, which were sustained, and his ordination was appointed to take place at Bridge of Weir, upon the Thursday following “the last Sacramental occasion this season,” the Rev Mr Fairley to preach the ordination sermon.
The Presbytery accordingly met on the 4th September, 1777, to proceed with this ordination, but before doing so “the Presbytery did require a more explicit account as to what outward encouragement in respect of a comfortable subsistence they had to settle the person amongst them for their proper pastor whom they had called. The representatives of the Congregation, in answer to the demand of the Presbytery, signified that they had deliberately agreed among themselves to afford the said Mr Steven, as their settled pastor, the sum of Forty pounds
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sterling annually, at the least, that they were desirous and hoped that in the course of providence it would be more rather than less. This answer the Presbytery accept as satisfying for the present,” and Mr Steven was ordained. Mr Fairley not only preached the ordination sermon, but he also presided in the ordination, and gave charges to the minister and people.
Mr Steven had received a call during the previous year from the vacant Congregation of the county of Antrim, but that call he considered it his duty to decline.
For a long time the Societies in Merse and Teviotdale had felt it a great disadvantage to be attached to the Southern Congregation, the ministers of which Congregation resided in Dumfriesshire, where the greater number of the members were located,and they frequently applied for a better supply of ordinances and for a disjunction. On 11th June, 1775, the Presbytery resolved to grant the application for a disjunction, but delayed final action till some arrangement was made with the ministers and remaining members of the Southern Congregation. On 20th August, 1775, the petition was granted, but the people were required still to pay their quota of stipend till they got a settled minister. The new Congregation having peti-
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tioned for a moderation, this was granted on 15th January, 1777, and on the 19th March following, Mr Fairley reported that the call of the people was addressed to Mr John M‘Millan, Jun.
On the 26th August, 1776, a petition was received by the Presbytery from some people in Inverkeithing craving a disjunction and a supply of ordinances. The Presbytery could not then see their way to grant a disjunction, but promised to give such a supply of ordinances as they could. On the 23rd October of the same year the petition for disjunction and the moderation of a call was renewed, and Mr Thorburn was appointed to go to Inverkeithing and inquire into all the circumstances of the Congregation, and to report. Mr Thorburn submitted a favourable report to the Presbytery at a meeting on 15th January, 1777, and a disjunction was then granted, and the Congregation was “allowed the liberty to give in their desires for a moderation.” At the same meeting of Presbytery, petitions for disjunction by the Societies in and about Hamilton, and the Societies in and about Stirling, were presented, and after full consideration the prayer of these petitions was granted, the Congregations of Hamilton and Stirling constituted, and leave given to call a minister.
At a meeting upon the 19th of March, it was
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reported that each of the three Congregations had given a call to Mr John M‘Millan, Jun. These calls, and that from Merse and Teviotdale, were presented to Mr M‘Millan, who craved time to consider them, which was granted. At the meeting of Presbytery on the 9th June, Mr M‘Millan craved further delay; and at a meeting on 21st July, he returned the calls from Inverkeithing, and from Merse and Teviotdale, retaining the other two till 1st September, when he finally accepted the call to Stirling. On the 11th November, Mr M‘Millan’s trials were sustained, and on 11th March, 1778, he was ordained by his father. It is mentioned that the ordination took place in “the Church,” the Congregation having apparently already acquired the church in the Craig’s, still occupied by the Stirling Congregation. The stipend promised was £52 annually at the least.
On 4th November, 1778, the Inverkeithing Congregation petitioned for another moderation, which was granted, and on the 21st April, 1779, Mr M‘Millan, Jun., reported that they had given a call to Mr Walter Grieve. After some delay, Mr Grieve, under the advice of the Presbytery, accepted the call, and was ordained at Inverkeithing on 3rd November. The stipend promised in this case was only £35.
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Under date 31st August, 1778, there is a minute of Presbytery, which gives some information regarding the course of studies pursued by candidates for the ministry. “Mr M‘Millan, Sen., reported that he had conversed with the young men according to the Presbytery’s appointment, and that he had desired them to attend this meeting of Presbytery, and accordingly, they, viz., Messrs James and John Reid, were called in. After asking some questions with respect to their academical learning, and the time they had attended the several classes, the Presbytery agreed to recommend them to peruse some systems of divinity, such as Turretine, together with some other books, and also that a committee should converse with them against next meeting of Presbytery, in order to inquire into their learning and studies more particularly than they had now time to do.” At a meeting on the 21st April, 1779, the Messrs Reid were taken on trials for license, and it is mentioned that they were required “to read the xxi. Psalm in Hebrew, a verse alternately, and the Greek New Testament ad aperturam Libri.” Having delivered at the three following meetings of Presbytery the trials prescribed to them, they were licensed to preach the Gospel on 26th April, 1780.
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On 9th May, 1781, the Presbytery agreed to grant a moderation to the Congregation of Merse and Teviotdale, provided the Commissioners can satisfy the Presbytery with respect to their ability to support a pastor. This was done, and on the 28th February, 1782, the Congregation gave a call to Mr John Reid, probationer. Mr Reid did not see his way clear at first to accept this call, and on 4th September, after long conversation, he left himself entirely in the hands of the Presbytery, when a large majority resolved that he should accept the call, which he thereupon did. From this deed of the Presbytery, James Reid, R.E., dissented, “because he judged that it was a forced deed upon the candidate.” Mr John Reid’s trials were sustained, and on the 12th March, 1783, he was ordained at Chirnside. “After the ordination, the people were called upon to satisfy the Presbytery as to what temporal support they could afford to give annually to their minister, to which they replied that they had agreed to give him Forty Pounds Sterling for the first year, and that they expected to have it in their power to augment that sum afterwards, which they would do as soon as the Lord in His providence gave them ability; and that over and above the specified sum of stipend, the east side of the Congregation would furnish
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him with a dwelling house and other necessary offices, if he should take up his residence among them; and that the west side would support him and his horse, free of all expenses to himself, when labouring amongst them in the duties of the ministry.”
Early in 1781, the people of the Southern Congregation proposed that it should be divided into three distinct Congregations; but difficulties arose as to which of these Congregations should enjoy the service of the present ministers; and in October of that year, it was resolved to disjoin the Galloway division, and that in the meantime the other two should remain united with their two ministers. The Galloway people having satisfied the Presbytery of their ability to support a minister, a moderation was granted, Mr Courtass to preside. The minute proceeds as follows: “And the Presbytery agree that Mr Courtass inform the people in Galloway, that they find themselves at present in that situation, that they have no free object but one that they can offer them, on account that the other candidate has a call sustained by the Presbytery under his consideration, to which he has given no determinate answer.” In November, Mr Courtass reported that a call had been given to Mr James Reid; the call was sustained
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and presented to Mr Reid, who, on the 5th February, 1783, accepted it. He was ordained at Leadmines, on the 10th July. The people stated that they had agreed to give him £37 of stipend, and furnish him with a dwelling house.
On 20th November, 1782, trials for license were assigned to Mr Archibald Mason and Mr Peter Robinson, and on 11th August following Mr Mason was licensed. One of the lectures delivered by Mr Robinson did not give satisfaction to the Presbytery, and was not sustained. This gave great offence to the candidate, and on the 5th November, when he should have delivered his final trials, it was stated to the Presbytery that he had joined the Relief Church in disgust and chagrin at the Presbytery for postponing his trials as they had done. The reasons for so doing are very plainly stated by the Presbytery. The members had found certain failings in him, which might “be summed up in a great defect of natural and Christian prudence, together with an assuming boldness and arrogance, pride, self-conceitedness, and an affectation of singularity.”