Michael Willis (1799-1879) was a Scottish minister of the Free Church of Scotland who emigrated to Canada and became Principal of

Knox College, Toronto , mottoeng = The word gives light , established = , religious_affiliation = Presbyterian Church , type = Federated theological college , principal = Ernest van Eck , city = To ...

. A prominent campaigner for the abolition of slavery he was involved in the Canadian end of the

Underground Railway The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

. He was

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 ...

for the Presbyterian Church of Canada in 1870.

Early life

Willis was born in

Greenock Greenock (; sco, Greenock; gd, Grianaig, ) is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council areas of Scotland, council area in Scotland, United Kingdom and a former burgh of barony, burgh within the Counties of Scotland, historic ...

in western central Scotland in 1798 or 1799. He was the son of Rev William Willis of

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 ...

(died 1827), a minister of the Old Light Burghers, a Secessionist church. He grew up and was educated in Stirling. He studied 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 , ...

and the Divinity Hall in Glasgow, with further training as a Secessionist minister at the Burgher Synod.

Ministry in Scotland

In 1821 he was ordained at the Secessionist Church at Albion Street in the

Merchant City The Merchant City, a new name introduced through urban renewal by the Scottish Development Agency and the city council in the 1980s is one part of the metropolitan central area of Glasgow. It commences at George Square and goes eastwards reachin ...

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 ...

. From 1835 he took on the additional role as Professor of Theology at Divinity Hall. In 1839, as part of a wider absorption of the Secessionist Church, he became 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 ...

, also being one of the leading organisers of this union. He was then moved to Renfield Street Church. This association proved to be brief and in the

Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of S ...

he left the established church and joined the

Free Church of Scotland Free Church of Scotland may refer to: * Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), seceded in 1843 from the Church of Scotland. The majority merged in 1900 into the United Free Church of Scotland; historical * Free Church of Scotland (since 1900), rema ...

Ministry in Canada

He was sent to Canada in 1845 to spread the views of the Free Church. In 1847 he was appointed Professor of Theology at

. In 1857, the college not having previously been fully organised, he was elected as its first principal. He was instrumental in creating the college constitution which aims to further the Calvinist ideals within Christianity.Willis
/ref> From 1851 he was the first (and only) President of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada. This was highly involved in the rescue and sanctuary end of the so-called "

" which helped many thousands of slaves escape America to find safety in Canada. In this process he befriended and aided Rev William King and was noteworthy for giving the very first communion to a group of fugitive negro slaves arrived at their mission church at

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Queen's University, Kingston Queen's University at Kingston, commonly known as Queen's University or simply Queen's, is a public research university in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Queen's holds more than of land throughout Ontario and owns Herstmonceux Castle in East Suss ...

awarded him an honorary doctorate (LLD) in 1863. In 1870 he stood down as both Professor and Principal of Knox College. He was in the same year elected the first

of the Presbyterian Church of Canada. In this he replaced Rev William Ormiston who had done much of the work in establishing the church formally and organising its first Synod. He retired to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

but spent much time as a guest preacher in Scotland. He died on 18 August 1879 whilst preaching for an old friend at

Aberlour Aberlour ( gd, Obar Lobhair) is a village in Moray, Scotland, south of Elgin on the road to Grantown. The Lour burn is a tributary of the River Spey, and it and the surrounding parish are both named Aberlour, but the name is more commonly used ...

near Banff in northern Scotland.Knox College Monthly September 1879

Publications

*''Discourse on National Establishments of Christianity'' (1833) *''The Late Union between the Church of Scotland and the Associate Synod'' (1840) *''Slavery Indefensible'' (1847) *''Selections from the Greek and Latin Fathers'' (1865) *''Pulpit Discourses'' (1873)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Michael 1799 births 1879 deaths Clergy from Stirling Alumni of the University of Glasgow Ministers of Secession Churches in Scotland 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland 19th-century Ministers of the Free Church of Scotland