George Hay (c.1530–1588) was a

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

minister immediately after the Reformation, who served as

Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states th ...

from March 1571.

Life

He was born around 1539 a younger son of William Hay 5th Laird of Talla near

Tweedsmuir Tweedsmuir ( gd, Sliabh Thuaidh) is a village and civil parish in Tweeddale, the Scottish Borders Council district, southeastern Scotland. Geography The village is set in a valley, with the rolling hills and burns on both sides, covering some ...

, and his wife Janet Spottiswood, a sister or close cousin of

John Spottiswood John Spottiswoode (Spottiswood, Spotiswood, Spotiswoode or Spotswood) (1565 – 26 November 1639) was an Archbishop of St Andrews, Primate of All Scotland, Lord Chancellor, and historian of Scotland. Life He was born in 1565 at Greenbank in ...

. In the earliest years of the Reformation (July 1558) he is mentioned as "Rector of

Rathven Rathven ( sco, Raffin) is an ecclesiastical parish, village and former civil parish in the historic county of Banff, now in Moray, Scotland. The civil parish was last used as a census subdivision in 2001 when the population was 12,378, The for ...

". He was certainly a

Roman Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

pre-Reformation, having been granted a dispensation from

Pope Paul IV Pope Paul IV, born Gian Pietro Carafa, C.R. ( la, Paulus IV; it, Paolo IV; 28 June 1476 – 18 August 1559) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 May 1555 to his death in August 1559. While serving as pap ...

allowing him a joint

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

from both Rathven and "Eddleston", showing that he was serving both these communities. If this "Eddleston" is the same the

Eddleston Eddleston ( gd, Baile Ghille Mhoire) is a small village and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies north of Peebles and south of Penicuik on the A703, which passes through the centre of the village. Nearby is the Great ...

of the

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...

this is a very considerable journey in the 16th century. In January 1560 he granted "kirk lands" at Rathven and Eddleston to his brother William Hay of Barro. In October 1561, in the study of James McGill in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Hay was one of the group of clergy who jointly agreed to deprive

Mary Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

of the Catholic mass. In June 1562 the General Assembly asked him to support Superintendent

John Willock John Willock (or Willocks or Willox) (c. 15154 December 1585) was a Scottish reformer. He appears to have been a friar of the Franciscan House at Ayr. Having joined the party of reform before 1541, he fled for his life to England. There he bec ...

in preaching at the vacant post at Carrick. Together they promoted the Protestant cause in Kyle and were present at the signing of the Covenant in

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire council area and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With a population ...

on 4 September. Later in

Maybole Maybole is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is bypass ...

he confronted the Abbot of

Crossraguel The Abbey of Saint Mary of Crossraguel is a ruin of a former abbey near the town of Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Although it is a ruin, visitors can still see the original monks’ church, their cloister and their dovecot (pigeon tower ...

regarding his continuation of the Catholic mass. In May 1563 he sold the prebendal manse at Eddleston. This was not the "true manse" and was a house on

Rotten Row Rotten Row is a broad track running along the south side of Hyde Park in London. It leads from Hyde Park Corner to Serpentine Road. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Rotten Row was a fashionable place for upper-class Londoners to be seen hors ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

which provided a rental income to the parish of Eddleston. He appears to have lived some time in Glasgow (possibly in the Rotten Row property) and signed documents as "George Hay, Canon of Glasgow" for some years. In December 1563 he is also described as Minister of the Privy Council and in 1564 is described as Minister of the Scottish Court. In 1565 he was commissioned by the General Assembly to inspect kirks, schools and colleges to "eradicate

idolatry Idolatry is the worship of a cult image or "idol" as though it were God. In Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, the Baháʼí Faith, and Islam) idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than the A ...

" between the River Dee and

River Spey The River Spey (Scottish Gaelic: Uisge Spè) is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the eighth longest river in the United Kingdom, as well as the second longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is important for salmon fishi ...

. Meanwhile the Assembly permitted him a stipend for both his parishes on condition he could supply a preacher to fill his position. However he was officially rebuked for non-compliance at Eddleston. In March 1571, he succeeded

Robert Pont Robert Pont (the abbreviated form of Kylpont or Kynpont) (1529–1606) was a Church of Scotland minister, judge and reformer. He was a church minister and commissioner and a Senator of the College of Justice. His translation of the Helveti ...

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the ministers and elders of the Church of Scotland, minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week i ...

the highest position in the Scottish church. This Assembly met in

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

rather than Edinburgh. Note - Grant says the Assembly met in

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

with Adam Fullerton as Commissioner alongside Hay. In 1574, three further parishes were placed in his charge: Forsken, Dundurcus and

Bellie Bellie is a locality in Moray, Scotland. Little survives of the old parish church at Bellie, located 2 miles north of Fochabers, although its Kirkyard, graveyard is preserved. There is a Bellie Kirk in Fochabers, which replaced the old church in ...

. In 1575 he was made Commissioner of

Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded by ...

Fasti Ecclesiastae Scoticana by Hew Scott In 1577, he undertook a major journey to

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

with clergy from all of northern Europe to participate in the

Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant Re ...

. In July 1578, the Scottish Parliament appointed him Visitor (Inspector) for the College of

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. In 1585, he became Commissioner for Banff. He died in 1588.

Family

He married Marion Henderson (d.1577) of Fordell. Their children included: *George Hay of Rannes *James Hay of Rannes (died c. 1630) *William Hay, a burgess tailor in Edinburgh *Janet

Publications

*The Confutation of the Abbot of Crossraguel's Masse (1563) *Against Tyrie the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

(1573)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hay, George 1588 deaths People from the Scottish Borders Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Year of birth uncertain