The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) (

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

: An Eaglais Shaor Leantainneach) is a Scottish

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denomination which was formed in January 2000. It claims to be the true continuation of the Free Church of Scotland, hence its name.

Formation

In 1996, Professor Donald Macleod, later to be principal of the Free Church College in Edinburgh, was acquitted of charges of

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when a

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ruled there had been a conspiracy against him. An organisation called the Free Church Defence Association believed that "it was wrong not to put Professor Macleod on trial in the General Assembly and that the majority has therefore departed from the principle that allegations of misconduct must be investigated not by a Committee of the General Assembly but by the whole General Assembly." The FCDA's chairman, Rev Maurice Roberts, was suspended for

contumacy Contumacy is a stubborn refusal to obey authority or, particularly in law, the willful contempt of the order or summons of a court (see contempt of court). The term is derived from the Latin word ''contumacia'', meaning firmness or stubbornness. I ...

in June 1999 for refusing to withdraw his claim that General Assembly in May of that year was characterised by "gross and irremediable wickedness and hypocrisy". In August 1999, the FCDA's magazine, ''Free Church Foundations'', referred to "the evil of Mr Roberts' suspension." A deadline was set for 30 November 1999 for the FCDA to disband, which it did not. Libels were drawn up against 22 ministers who refused to comply, and in a hearing by the Commission of Assembly on 19–20 January 2000 those libels were declared to be relevant. The 22 ministers were suspended, and they responded by leaving the commission. On 20 January 2000 the 'Free Church of Scotland (Continuing)' was formed when those ministers and a number of others adopted a "Declaration of Reconstitution of the historic Free Church of Scotland." Johnston McKay suggests that although on the surface the split was about Donald Macleod, in reality it was about theology, with the FCDA "composed of people who adhere much more firmly to the

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Legal issues

Following their departure, FCC sought a declarator from the

Court of Session The Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland and constitutes part of the College of Justice; the supreme criminal court of Scotland is the High Court of Justiciary. The Court of Session sits in Parliament House in Edinburg ...

as to ownership of the central funds and properties of the Church. When the appeal was sent to the

Outer House The Outer House (abbreviated as CSOH in neutral citations) is one of the two parts of the Scottish Court of Session, which is the supreme civil court in Scotland. It is a court of first instance, although some statutory appeals are remitted ...

of the Court of Session,

Lady Paton Ann Paton, Lady Paton, (born 1952) is a Scottish advocate and judge. She is a Senator of the College of Justice, sitting in the High Court of Justiciary and the Inner House of the Court of Session. In 2019 she became the Chairman of the Scottish ...

dismissed their action without granting absolvitor.Opinion of Lady Paton
retrieved 16 June 2007 In March 2007 the Free Church of Scotland proceeded to take legal action at Broadford, on the island of

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated ...

, seeking to reclaim the church

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. The Free Church (Continuing) lost the action at first instance on the decision of

Lord Uist Roderick Francis Macdonald, Lord Uist is a Scottish retired judge. As a Senator of the College of Justice, he was a member of the Court of Session, Scotland's highest court. Early life Macdonald was educated at St Mungo's Academy, a Roman Cat ...

, and also lost their appeal to the Inner House of the

. The FCC expressed its intention to appeal both the above decisions, but in 2009, the International Conference of Reformed Churches noted that the FCC had "withdrawn its appeal of the civil matter that was pending."

Recognition

The denomination is a member of the International Conference of Reformed Churches and of Affinity.

Congregations

The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) presently has 34 functioning congregations, of which 7 are in North America. These churches belong to 6 Presbyteries: the Northern, the Skye and Lochcarron, the Inverness, the United States of America, the Outer Hebrides and the Southern Presbyteries. There are 6 congregations and preaching stations in the

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, Mebane, NC and St. Louis, MO in the United States, a congregation in Canada, Northern Ireland, and a seminary and demonstration farm in Zambia.

Seminary

The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) maintains a seminary on the outskirts of Inverness for the training of its ministers.

Music

The Free Church Continuing continues to hold to the exclusive use of metrical Psalms sung without instrumental accompaniment in worship, a position which the Free Church of Scotland has ceased to hold.

References

External links

The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing)The Free Church Continuing SeminaryWhen Justice Failed in Church and State (An Explanation of the Division in the Free Church of Scotland)
from the FCC's view {{DEFAULTSORT:Free Church Of Scotland (Continuing) Reformed denominations in the United Kingdom Presbyterianism in Scotland Religious organisations based in Scotland Christian organizations established in 2000 Presbyterian denominations established in the 20th century 2000 establishments in Scotland Presbyterian denominations in Canada Presbyterian denominations in the United States Presbyterian denominations in Scotland Evangelical denominations in North America Church of Scotland