John White CH (1867–1951) was a minister 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 ...

. He 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 ...

in 1925 and again at the reunion Assembly of 1929. White was one of the most influential figures in the Church of Scotland during the early decades of the 20th century, though his influence waned later in his life and he appeared increasingly isolated and anachronistic.

Background and career

South Leith Parish Church from Constitution Street

He was born in

Kilwinning Kilwinning (, sco, Kilwinnin; gd, Cill D’Fhinnein) is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is on the River Garnock, north of Irvine, about southwest of Glasgow. It is known as "The Crossroads of Ayrshire". Kilwinning was also a Civil Pa ...

, Ayrshire, the son of a flour miller. After studies 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 , ...

, he was inducted as minister at

Shettleston Shettleston ( sco, Shuttlestoun, gd, Baile Nighean Sheadna) is a district in the east end of Glasgow in Scotland. Toponymy The origin of the name 'Shettleston' is not clear and, like many place-names of possibly medieval origin, has had a mult ...

, Glasgow in 1893. In 1904 he moved to

South Leith Parish Church South Leith Parish Church, originally the Kirk of Our Lady, St Mary, is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. It is the principal church and congregation in Leith, in Edinburgh. Its kirkyard is the burial place for John Home (author of ''D ...

. In 1911 he moved back to

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 ...

, becoming minister of the

Barony Church Barony Hall, also known as Barony Church, is a red sandstone Victorian neo-Gothic-style building on Castle Street in the Townhead area of Glasgow, Scotland, near Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow Royal Infirmary and the city's oldest surviving ho ...

, where he remained until his

retirement Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

in 1934, being replaced by Rev Robert Scott. He also served as a chaplain in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The high point of his ministry was his nomination to be Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in October 1925. This special Assembly took place in the Industrial Halls (now a bus garage), Annandale Street,

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 ...

to mark the reunion of the Church of Scotland and the

United Free Church of Scotland The United Free Church of Scotland (UF Church; gd, An Eaglais Shaor Aonaichte, sco, The Unitit Free Kirk o Scotland) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (or UP) and ...

- the Industrial Halls was the only suitable venue in the city large enough to accommodate the special Assembly. His position as Moderator was succeeded in 1926 by Rev John Donaldson McCallum of

Larkhall Larkhall ( sco, Larkhauch, gd, Taigh na h-Uiseig) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, around southeast of Glasgow. It is twinned with Seclin in northern France. Larkhall sits on high ground between the River Clyde to the East and the ...

Influence

White was highly influential in three areas. The first of these was the move to unite the Church of Scotland and the

. Following protracted discussions which started in 1909, the reunion eventually took place on 2 October 1929. The second was his role as Convener of the Church and Nation Committee of the Church of Scotland during the 1920s; he was instrumental in drawing up a controversial report entitled ''The Menace of the Irish Race to our Scottish Nationality'', which was received by the General Assembly in 1923 (see below). The third was his promotion of the Church Extension Scheme – which from 1932 onwards aimed to build new church buildings in new housing estates in Scotland’s cities.

Controversy

White was a controversial figure – a staunch

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

and opponent of

socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

and

pacificism Pacificism is the general term for ethical opposition to violence or war unless force is deemed necessary. Together with pacifism, it is born from the Western tradition or attitude that calls for peace. The former involves the unconditional refu ...

. His socially conservative stance was increasingly challenged during the 1930s by more liberal ministers, such as John Baillie. Since his death, White has been extensively criticised for his anti-Catholic stance, often denounced as

sectarianism Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

. The 1923 report ''The Menace of the Irish Race to our Scottish Nationality'' (produced during White's Convenership of the Church and Nation Committee of the Church of Scotland) accused all members of the Catholic Church in Scotland of subverting

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

values and of drunkenness, crime and financial imprudence. The report further called for the ending of immigration of Irish Catholics to Scotland and the deportation of any convicted of a criminal offence or living on state benefits. White urged a "racially pure" Scotland, declaring, "Today there is a movement throughout the world towards the rejection of non-native constituents and the crystallization of national life from native elements." Such attitudes started to wane considerably (both within the Church of Scotland as well as wider society) from the 1930s/40s onwards, especially given growing awareness of what was happening in

eugenics Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or ...

-conscious

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

and of the perceived dangers of a national or folk church. Within the Church of Scotland, the repudiation of White's anti-Roman Catholic stance can be seen in the Baillie Report of 1942, the disassociation from the anti-papal sections of the

Westminster Confession The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it became and remains the " subordinate standard ...

by the General Assembly in 1986 and ultimately the express repudiation of the 1923 report in 2002.

Title

His full title (following his Moderatorial office) was the Very Reverend Dr John White CH DD LLD. He was appointed a Member of the

Order of the Companions of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. Founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire, it is sometimes ...

in the 1935 Birthday Honours.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, John 1867 births 1951 deaths Alumni of the University of Glasgow Anti-Catholic activists Anti-Catholicism in Scotland Anti-Irish sentiment 20th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour

Background and career

Influence

Controversy

Title

See also

References