William John Cameron (1907–1990) was a Scottish minister. He twice 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 ...
of the Free Church of Scotland: in 1962 and 1977.
[Annals of the Free Church of Scotland 1956]
Life
![Buccleuch and Greyfriars Free Church of Scotland - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Buccleuch_and_Greyfriars_Free_Church_of_Scotland_-_panoramio.jpg)
He was born in
Brora, Sutherland in November 1907 the son of Rev
Kenneth Cameron. The family moved first to
Skye then to
Stornoway with his father's role as minister. He was educated at the
Nicolson Institute in Stornoway, where he was school
dux
''Dux'' (; plural: ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, '' ...
.
[Herald (Scottish newspaper) 29 January 1990]
He studied Classics and Divinity at the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
and graduated with an MA with Honours. During this period (in 1924/25) his father 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 ...
.
He was ordained at
Burghead
Burghead ( sco, Burgheid or ''The Broch'', gd, Am Broch) is a small town in Moray, Scotland, about north-west of Elgin. The town is mainly built on a peninsula that projects north-westward into the Moray Firth, surrounding it by water on t ...
on the Moray coast in 1932 and in 1950 moved to the famous Buccleuch Greyfriars 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 ...
's South Side.
In 1953 he was given the Chair of both Greek and the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...
at the Free Church College in Edinburgh. From 1973 to 1977 he was Principal of the College.
In 1962 he served his first year as Moderator. From 1963 to 1976 he was Principal Clerk to the General assembly. and in 1977 he served his second year as Moderator. During this second term he met
Queen Elizabeth II during her jubilee visit to Scotland.
He died in hospital 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 ...
on 27 January 1990, aged 82.
Family
His first wife, Lilias Brown, daughter of Col. W. rounsfell Brown, died in 1968. They had one son and two daughters. In 1980 he married Murdina Smith, matron of Cameron Hospital in
Fife.
His son Kenneth W. R. Cameron served as Moderator in 1989, creating three consecutive generations of the Cameron family as Moderator.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cameron, William John
1907 births
1990 deaths
People from Sutherland
20th-century Ministers of the Free Church of Scotland
People from Aden Governorate
People from Brora
Free Church of Scotland people
Free Church of Scotland