John Marshall Lang (18342 May 1909) 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 Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

minister and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. He 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 t ...

in 1893 and later became Principal of the University of Aberdeen in 1900.

Life

He was born in the manse at

Glassford Glassford (; locally known as ''The Glesart'' ) is a small village located south of Hamilton, and north-east of Strathaven, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It has a population of roughly 500–600 people. Features include the 19th-century P ...

into an eminent ecclesiastical family on 14 May 1834. His father was the minister Gavin Lang. His mother was Agnes Roberton Marshall. He was the second of eleven children, including Robert Hamilton Lang. He studied Sciences at

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

but did not graduate. He then trained as a minister at Divinity Hall In Glasgow, He was ordained by the

at the

Kirk of St Nicholas The Kirk of St Nicholas is a historic church located in the city centre of Aberdeen, Scotland. Up until the dissolution of the congregation on 31 December 2020, it was known as the ''"Kirk of St Nicholas Uniting"''. It is also known as ''"The Mit ...

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 1858 he moved to the more rural parish of

Fyvie Fyvie is a village in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Geography Fyvie lies alongside the River Ythan and is on the A947 road. Architecture What in 1990, at least, was a Clydesdale Bank was built in 1866 by James Matthews. The ...

. He later served in

Anderston Anderston ( sco, Anderstoun, gd, Baile Aindrea) is an area of Glasgow, Scotland. It is on the north bank of the River Clyde and forms the south western edge of the city centre. Established as a village of handloom weavers in the early 18th cent ...

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 ...

and Morningside Church in

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

. In 1893 he succeeded Archibald Charteris as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and was succeeded in turn in 1894 by Rev

Robert Herbert Story Robert Herbert Story (28 January 1835 – 13 January 1907) was a Scottish divine and Principal of the University of Glasgow. He attained the highest position in the Scottish church as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland ...

. His third son Cosmo Gordon Lang was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1928 to 1942; his fifth son Marshall Buchanan Lang was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1935 to 1936; and another son, Norman MacLeod Lang was Bishop suffragan of Leicester (in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

). In early 1900 he moved to

, having been elected as Principal of

Aberdeen University , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

on 31 March of that year in place of Rev Prof William Robinson Pirie. He lived at Chanonry Lodge at 13 Chanonry, midway between

King's College, Aberdeen King's College in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, the full title of which is The University and King's College of Aberdeen (''Collegium Regium Abredonense''), is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the Universi ...

and St Machar's Cathedral. In his role as Principal he was created a Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(CVO) by King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

during a visit to the university in 1906. He died on 2 May 1909 at the Chanonry Lodge and is buried in the eastern enclosure attaching the east end of St Machar's Cathedral.

Publications

*''Heaven and Home'' (1880) *''The Last Supper of Our Lord'' (1881) *''Ancient Religions of Central America'' (1882) *''Life: Is it Worth Living''(1883) *''The Anglican Church'' (1884) *''Gideon and the Judges: A Study Practical and Historical'' (1890) *''Glasgow and the Barony Thereof'' (1895) *''The Expansion of the Christian Life'' (1897) *''The Church and its Social Mission'' (1901)

Family

In 1859 he was married to Hannah Agnes Keith (1840-1921), daughter of Rev Dr Peter Hay Keith of Hamilton.Lang grave, St Machar's Cathedral They had seven sons and one daughter: his eldest son Marshall Buchanan Lang also served as Moderator, his third son Cosmo Gordon Lang later becoming

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...

. His youngest son David Marshall Lang (1878-1925) is buried in

Warriston Cemetery Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and occupies around of land on a slightly sloping si ...

in north Edinburgh.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, John Marshall 1834 births Alumni of the University of Glasgow 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Principals of the University of Aberdeen Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order 1909 deaths