PROVISIONS AGAINST INNOVATIONS.
James Dodson
In the Assembly 1695, c. 11, there is passed “An Overture and Act against Novations,” as follows:—
“The General Assembly of this National Church having heard an Overture brought in from the Committee on Overtures: That no new Acts relating to the doctrine, worship, or government of this Church be made, until they be first transmitted to the several Presbyteries of this National Church, which being considered, the General Assembly recommends it to the members of this Assembly to discourse upon the said overture with their respective Presbyteries, that the next General Assembly may be the more ripe to determine anent the conveniency thereof. And in the meantime the General Assembly hereby revives the Acts of the former Assemblies made thereanent, and particularly the 13th Act of the Assembly 1639, and the 14th Act of the Assembly 1641.”
The Act of Assembly 1639 here referred to is entitled, “Act anent advising with Synods and Presbyteries before determining in Novations,” and is as follows:—
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“The General Assembly desiring that the intended Reformation being recovered may be established, ordains that no novation which may disturb the peace of the Church and make division be suddenly proposed and enacted, but so as the motion be first communicated to the several Synods, Presbyteries, and Kirks, that the matter may be approved by all at home, and commissioners may come well prepared unanimously to conclude a solid deliberation upon these points in the General Assembly.”
The Act 1641, entitled “Act anent Novations,” is as follows:—
“Since it hath pleased God to vouchsafe us the liberty of yearly General Assemblies, it is ordained according to the Acts of the Assembly at Edinburgh 1639, and at Aberdeen 1640, that no novation in doctrine, worship, or government, be brought in or practised in this Kirk, unless it be first propounded, examined, and allowed in the General Assembly, and that transgressors in this kind be censured by Presbyteries and Synods.”
It appears from all this that “uniformity” of worship was reckoned essential, and that so far from ministers or kirk-sessions being allowed to make changes, any such attempts on their part subjected them to immediate and decided discipline. We are thus brought forward to the Union with England, and to the careful means adopted for securing purity of worship in the Presbyterian Church under that arrangement.
The General Assembly in 1707, no doubt in anticipation of or directly connected with the union, passed a most important Act, viz., c. 15, entitled, “Act against innovations in the worship of God,” to which all Established ministers are still specially bound at their ordination and induction. The obligation therefore rests upon them to resist all innovations upon the worship as it
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was actually “practised” in 1707, of course without either a liturgy or musical instruments. It is as follows:—
“The General Assembly taking to their serious consideration that the purity of religion, and particularly of divine worship and uniformity therein, is a signal blessing to the Church of God, and that it hath been the great happiness of this Church, ever since her reformation from Popery, to have enjoyed and maintained the same in a great measure, and that any attempts made for the introduction of innovations in the worship of God therein have been of fatal and dangerous consequence: Likeas, by the 5th Act of the Parliament anno 1690 and 23d Act of Parliament 1693, and the Act lately past for security of the present Church Establishment, the foresaid purity and uniformity of worship are expressly provided for, and being well informed by representatives sent from several Presbyteries of this Church that innovations, particularly in the public worship of God, are of late set up in some places in public assemblies within their respective bounds, and that endeavours are used to promote the same by persons of known disaffection to the present establishment both of Church and State; the introduction whereof was not so much as attempted during the late Prelacy. And considering also that such innovations are dangerous to this Church, and manifestly contrary to our known principle (which is, that nothing is to be admitted in the worship of God but what is prescribed in the Holy Scriptures), to the constant practice of this Church, and against the good and laudable laws made since the late happy Revolution for establishing and securing the same in her doctrine, worship, discipline and government, and that they tend to the fomenting of schism and division, to the disturbance of the peace and quiet both of Church and State. Therefore the General Assembly, moved with zeal for the glory of God, and the purity and uniformity of His worship, doth hereby discharge the practice of all such innovations in divine worship within this Church, and does require and obtest all the ministers of this Church, especially those in whose bounds any such innovations are, or may happen to be, to represent to their people the evil thereof, and seriously to exhort them to beware of them, and to deal with all such as do practise the same in order to their recovery and reformation, and do instruct and empower the commission of this Assembly to use all proper means, by applying to the Government or other-
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wise, for suppressing or removing all such innovations, and preventing the evils and dangers that may ensue thereupon to this Church.”
It is important to notice the great weight of this Act from the period at which it was passed, the frequent references to it in subsequent legislation, and the fact that every minister, at his ordination and induction, is still required, formally and specially, to acknowledge its authority and conduct himself officially thereby. It is thus summed up in Wilson’s Index to the Acts of Assembly (p. 282), a work much esteemed and praised for its completeness and accuracy. He describes Act 1707, XV., as “An Act prohibiting all innovations in public worship, as dangerous to the Church and contrary to her known principle, that nothing is to be admitted in the worship of God but what is prescribed in the Holy Scriptures.”
Following up this stringent legislation, in 1708, c. 6, another Act was passed, entitled “Act for suppressing Schism and Disorders in the Church,” as follows:—
“The General Assembly, finding that there are several disorderly practices in sundry parts of this Church, to the great dishonour of God and prejudice of the Church: Therefore they strictly enjoin and peremptorily appoint all the Presbyteries and Synods to take particular notice of all their members, preachers, and others under their inspection, and if they find any ministers or others to fall into irregularities or schismatical courses, that they duly call them to an account, and censure them according to the merit of their fault, EVEN TO DEPOSITION OF MINISTERS AND ELDERS, and to apply to the commission for their advice as they shall see cause, and report their diligence herein to the next Assembly.”
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It has no doubt been said that the schisms and disorders which then existed in worship and otherwise were different from those now complained of, but this does not seem to affect the argument. The particular innovations then existing were condemned, but they were condemned on the express ground that all innovations inconsistent with the constitution of the Church were unlawful.