James Chrystal or Crystal (1807–c.1890) was a Scottish minister who served as

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 ...

from 1879 to 1880.

Life

He was born in 1807 on Cochrane Street in Glasgow, the second son of William Chrystal, the rector of Glasgow Grammar School. He was educated at the Grammar School then studied at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

graduating MA in 1825. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Glasgow in 1829 and presented to the congregation of

Auchinleck Auchinleck ( ; sco, Affleck ;
gd, Achadh nan Leac

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

by Sir James Boswell of

Auchinleck Auchinleck ( ; sco, Affleck ;
gd, Achadh nan Leac

on 25 April 1833, being ordained there on 19 September 1833. He was sometimes Clerk of Presbytery. He was awarded an honorary

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

(D.D.) by Glasgow University in 1861); and an honorary

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

by St Andrews University in 1893). He is mentioned in 1835 as donating £3 3s 6d from Auchinleck to general church funds of the

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 ...

under the remit of

Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...

. In 1838 he is listed as a formal dinner guest in

Cumnock Cumnock (Scottish Gaelic: ''Cumnag'') is a town and former civil parish located in East Ayrshire, Scotland. The town sits at the confluence of the Glaisnock Water and the Lugar Water. There are three neighbouring housing projects which lie just o ...

. In 1879 he succeeded The Very Reverend

John Tulloch __NOTOC__ John Tulloch (1 June 1823 – 13 February 1886) was a Scottish theologian. Life Tulloch was born at Dron, south of Bridge of Earn, Perthshire, and educated at Perth Grammar School.https://archive.org/stream/fastiecclesiaesc00scot/f ...

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 ...

the highest position within the

. He was minister of Auchinleck from 1833 to 1893, 60 years service, being replaced by Rev James Hill. He died on 6 February 1901 as Father of the Church.

Family

In October 1834 he married Sophia Playfair (d.1890) daughter of Patrick Playfair of

Dalmarnock Dalmarnock (, gd, Dail Mheàrnaig) is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated east of the city centre, directly north of the River Clyde opposite the town of Rutherglen. It is also bounded by the Glasgow neighbourhoods of Pa ...

a Glasgow merchant trading with the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

. Their children included William (1835-1845); Jane Playfair (1837-1884); Patrick Chrystal (1838-1885); James Robert Chrystal (b.1839) minister of

Coltness Coltness is the largest suburb of the town of Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The 2001 census indicated a population of almost 4,500. Lying to the north east of Wishaw town centre, Coltness is an area of mainly local authority built h ...

; Andrew (1841-1885) merchant in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

; David (1843-1857); John Smith Chrystal (b.1845); Sophia Ann (b.1847) married Rev

Pearson McAdam Muir Pearson McAdam Muir (1846–1924) was the minister of Glasgow Cathedral and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1910. He served as Grand Chaplain of the Grand Lodge of Freemasons of Scotland. He was Chaplain in Ordinar ...

(moderator in 1910).Fasti Ecclesiastae Scoticana vol.3 by Hew Scott

References

1807 births 1901 deaths People from East Ayrshire Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Year of birth uncertain Alumni of the University of Glasgow 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland 20th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland {{Scotland-reli-bio-stub