The Free Church of Scotland (

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 ...

: ''An Eaglais Shaor'', ) is an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

denomination in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. It was historically part of the original Free Church of Scotland that remained outside the union with the

United Presbyterian Church of Scotland The United Presbyterian Church (1847–1900) was a Scottish Presbyterian denomination. It was formed in 1847 by the union of the United Secession Church and the Relief Church, and in 1900 merged with the Free Church of Scotland to form the Uni ...

in 1900. Now, it remains a distinct

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 ...

denomination in

. The Free Church was and still is sometimes colloquially known by the term The Wee Frees, even though, in 21st century Scotland, it is the largest Presbyterian denomination after the national church. Since this term was originally used in comparing the Free Church with the United Free Church (which is now a much smaller denomination), the Free Church of Scotland now deprecates the use of the term.

Theology and doctrine

The church maintains its commitment to Calvinist theology (as espoused by 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 ...

). Its polity is

. A complete psalter in modern English was published in 2003. Its offices and

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

remain on

The Mound The Mound is an artificial slope in central Edinburgh, Scotland, which connects Edinburgh's New and Old Towns. It was formed by dumping around 1,501,000 cartloads of earth excavated from the foundations of the New Town into Nor Loch which wa ...

, Edinburgh, although the denomination no longer holds the original Free Church College buildings. The Free Church continues to be

in character, presenting its understanding of the Christian message, namely that

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

is sole Lord and Saviour.

History

Aftermath of the union of 1900

In 1900 the Free Church of Scotland united with the

to form 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 ...

. However, a minority of the original Free Church remained outside this new union. The protesting and dissenting minority at once claimed to be the legitimate Free Church. They met outside the Free Assembly Hall on 31 October and, failing to gain admission, withdrew to another hall, where they elected Rev

Colin Bannatyne Colin Archibald Bannatyne (1849–1920) was a Scottish minister who twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland both in 1900/1901 and 1906/1907. He is the "Bannatyne" of the Free Church court case ''Banna ...

as Moderator and held the remaining sittings of their Assembly. It was reported that between 16,000 and 17,000 names had been received of persons adhering to the anti-unionist principle. It has been estimated that the number of Free Church communicants dropped from a little under 300,000 in 1899 to just over 4,000 in 1900. At the Assembly of 1901 it was stated that the Free Church had twenty-five ministers and at least sixty-three congregations, with most being found in the Gaelic-speaking districts of

. The initial problems were obvious: the congregations soon grew in number, but were far apart; there were not nearly enough ministers; the church was treated in a hostile manner by the United Free Church; work was conducted under considerable hardship; and there was little success in appealing to the general popular sentiment of

. However, the revenue of the church gradually increased; in 1901, the sustentation fund was able to support only 75 ministers, but by 1903 it maintained 167.

The Free Church case

After the union of 1900, the United Presbyterian Church and the continuing Free Church not only contested the legacy of the Free Church of 1843–1900, but also claimed its assets. After attempts at agreement failed, the matter ended in the Scottish courts. The litigation was initially decided in favour of the Free Church by the House of Lords in 1904, on the basis that in the absence of a power to change fundamental doctrines in the trust deed, a dissenting minority retains the property. As it was not possible for the Free Church to use all the property, Parliament intervened, generally securing for the church the congregational property she could effectively use plus a significant share of central assets.

The Church in the 20th century

In 1906, a Free Church College was re-established 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 ...

and by 1925 there were 91 ministers and 170 congregations in 12 presbyteries. The general magazine of the Free Church is ''The Monthly Record'' and there are magazines for young people. Two of the professors in the Free Church College began a theological journal the ''

Evangelical Quarterly ''Evangelical Quarterly'' is an academic journal covering theology and biblical studies. It was established in 1929 by Donald Maclean and J. R. Mackay. The current editors Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, phot ...

'' in 1929, but in 1942 control passed outside the church, initially to Inter Varsity Fellowship. Today the College offers degrees in conjunction with 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 , ...

. Post-1945, the Free Church engaged with the wider evangelical cause, but after its growth in the early decades, it began a statistical decline that, except for a short period in the 1980s, continued throughout the 20th century.

2000 events

Poolewe Free Church of Scotland - geograph

In the 1980s and 1990s there were allegations of sexual misconduct against Donald Macleod, principal of the Free Church College. No misconduct was ever proven against Macleod; he was tried and acquitted in 1996 in the civil courts. A to Macleod pursued the charges in church courts, to no avail. There was considerable dissatisfaction with the handling of the charges, and claims of a cover-up. Maurice Roberts of the Free Church Defence Association (FCDA) publicly reiterated the accusations, and denounced the General Assembly for its "wickedness and hypocrisy". He 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 ...

. His supporters demanded his reinstatement and the FCDA. In January 2000, 22 FCDA ministers were removed from their pulpits. These and other ministers formed the

Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) The Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) (Scottish Gaelic: An Eaglais Shaor Leantainneach) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination which was formed in January 2000. It claims to be the true continuation of the Free Church of Scotland, hence its ...

(FCC); they are approximately 20% of the ministerial strength of the pre-2000 Free Church of Scotland. From 2005 to 2010, the Free Church of Scotland saw an 18% drop in its membership. Following the split, the Free Church Continuing sought a declarator from the Court of Session as to ownership of the central funds and properties of the church. In a landmark decision, Lady Paton dismissed their action without granting ''absolvitor''. The Continuing Church then said they would appeal Lady Paton's decision, but ultimately chose not to proceed. In March 2007, the Free Church filed suit to reclaim the church manse at Broadford, Isle of Skye. Lord Uist ruled that the property belonged to the Free Church. The Continuing Church had to pay the expenses of the Free Church. The Continuing Church appealed to the

Inner House The Inner House is the senior part of the Court of Session, the supreme civil court in Scotland; the Outer House forms the junior part of the Court of Session. It is a court of appeal and a court of first instance. The chief justice is t ...

of the Court of Session, which upheld Lord Uist.

List of Moderators

*Very Rev Prof Colin Archibald Bannatyne (Coulter) twice Moderator: 1900/01 and 1906/07 * James Duff MacCulloch (Hope Street,

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 ...

) 1901 * Donald MacKinnon Macalister (

) 1902 * Angus Galbraith ( Lochalsh) 1903 *

Murdoch MacQueen Murdoch MacQueen (1848–1912) was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly at the end of his career in 1904/05. Life He was born on 3 May 1848 in Kilfinichen on the Isle of Mull the son of ...

(

Kiltearn Kiltearn ( Gaelic: ''Cill Tighearna'') is a parish in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland. It is in the Presbytery of Ross. The principal settlement is the village of Evanton, and the parish extends almost to Dingwall and about halfway to Alness. The ...

) 1904 *

Ewan Macleod Ewan Macleod (1847–1928) was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly in 1905/06. Life He was born in Harris in 1847, the son of Donald Macleod, a farmer, and his wife, Catherine MacDonald. H ...

( Oban) 1905 * Colin Archibald Bannatyne (Free Church College) 1906 *

Murdo Mackenzie Murdo MacKenzie (April 24, 1850 – May 30, 1939) was twice (1891–1901 and 1922–1937) manager of the Scots-owned Matador Land and Cattle Company, and founding president of the American Stock Growers Association, for whom he testified before co ...

( Inverness) 1907 and Interim Moderator J. C. Robertson (resigned) * William MacKinnon (

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

) 1908 * James Hendry (

Forres Forres (; gd, Farrais) is a town and former royal burgh in the north of Scotland on the Moray coast, approximately northeast of Inverness and west of Elgin. Forres has been a winner of the Scotland in Bloom award on several occasions. There a ...

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 ...

) 1909 * John Kennedy Cameron (Free Church College) 1910 *

William Menzies Alexander William Menzies Alexander ( Shettleston, then in Lanarkshire, 12 May 1858 – Edinburgh 30 August 1929) was a Scottish medical and theological writer. He was Moderator of the General Assembly for the Free Church of Scotland for 1911/12. Lif ...

(Free Church College) 1911 * William Fraser ( Strathpeffer) 1912 * Samuel Lyle Orr (Glasgow) 1913 *

Finlay MacRae Finlay MacRae (born 1986) is a shinty player from Kintail who plays for Kinlochshiel. He is a Scottish International as well as Player of the Year 200 Playing career MacRae, who plays alongside his brothers Keith and Johis considered one of the ...

(

Plockton Plockton ( gd, Am Ploc/Ploc Loch Aillse) is a village in the Lochalsh, Wester Ross area of the Scottish Highlands with a 2020 population of 468. Plockton settlement is on the shores of Loch Carron. It faces east away from the prevailing winds, a ...

) 1914 * John MacDonald (

Rosskeen Rosskeen is a parish in Ross and Cromarty on the Cromarty Firth in northern Scotland, containing the settlements of Invergordon, Bridgend and Saltburn. It lies on the A9 between Inverness and Thurso. Notable Buildings *Newmore Farmhouse (18 ...

) 1915 * Angus Mackie (

Kingussie Kingussie ( ; gd, Ceann a' Ghiùthsaich ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, ...

) 1916 * John Macleod (

Urray Urray ( gd, Urrath) is a scattered village and coastal parish, consisting of Easter, Old and Wester Urray and is located in the county of Ross in the Scottish council area of the Highland. Urray is also a parish in the district of Wester Ros ...

) 1917 * Donald Munro (

Ferintosh, Black Isle Ferintosh is the name of an estate in the Black Isle, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland. Urquhart is the name of the parish. The parish of Urquhart is virtually the original Ferintosh barony and was an exclave of Nairnshire until transferred to Ross and ...

) 1918 * Donald Maclean (Free Church College) 1919 * John Macleod ( Inverness) 1920 * Roderick Macleod ( Knock, Isle of Lewis) 1921 * Norman Campbell (

Dingwall Dingwall ( sco, Dingwal, gd, Inbhir Pheofharain ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest cas ...

) 1922 * George Mackay ( Fearn) 1923 * Kenneth Cameron ( Stornoway) 1924 * Robert Moore (Free Church College) 1925 * Alexander Stewart (Edinburgh) 1926 *

Alexander Dewar Alexander Tattenhall Dewar (19 June 1912 – 7 January 1995) was a leather manufacturer and member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Early life Dewar was born in Brisbane, Queensland, to parents Alexander Sawers Dewar and his wife Eliza ...

(

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

) 1927 *

Archibald Donald Cameron Archibald Donald Cameron (1866–1946) was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly in 1928/29. Life He was born in Urray, Ross and Cromarty in 1866. His religious education is unclear but ...

(

Creich Creich ( gd, Craoich, ) is a substantial parish on the north side of the Dornoch Firth the largest settlement being Bonar Bridge. It lies in Sutherland, Scotland. There is a church (now in ruins) and graveyard for the Parish of Creich. Creich M ...

) 1928 * John R. Mackay (Free Church College) 1929 * Robert M. Knox (Edinburgh) 1930 * Alexander Macdonald Renwick (Free Church College) 1931 *

Peter Clarkson Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

1932 * A. M. Ross 1933 * Duncan MacDonald 1934 * Alexander Ross 1935 * Peter W. Miller 1936 * Donald MacLean 1937 * John MacKay MacLennan (

Lairg Lairg ( gd, An Luirg, meaning "the shank/shin") is a village and parish in Sutherland, Scotland. It has a population of 891 and is at the south-eastern end of Loch Shin. Lairg is unusual in the northern Highlands in being a large settlement th ...

) 1938 *

Farquhar Matheson Farquhar Matheson was a Scottish minister, who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in 1939.''Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1930 to 1939'' Life In 1920 he became minister of the Free Church in Assynt ...

(

Stoer Stoer ( gd, An Stòr) is a crofting township in the parish of Assynt, Sutherland, in the Highlands of Scotland and in the council area of Highland. It is located about five miles north of the village of Lochinver. Norman McLeod, a presbyt ...

) 1939 *

William MacLeod William Macleod (27 October 1850 – 24 June 1929), was an Australian artist and a partner in '' The Bulletin''. He was described as generous, hospitable, a 'big man with a ponderous overhang of waistfront, a trim, grey beard, the curling moust ...

1940 * John Shaw 1941 * John Calvin MacKay 1942 *D MacKenzie 1943 * Ewen MacRury 1944 * Roderick Alick Finlayson 1945 *William Fraser 1946 *William Campbell 1947 *Alexander MacDonald 1948 *

G. N. M. Collins George Norman MacLeod Collins (1901-1989) was a Scottish minister styled an "elder statesman of the Free Church of Scotland. He twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland (1949 and 1971). He was also Principal ...

1949 *A. MacLeod 1950 *

Murdoch MacRae Murdoch MacRae (1900–1961) was a Scottish minister. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in 1951. Life He was born on 14 January 1900. He trained as a minister of the Free Church of Scotland. He was ...

1951 * Duncan Leitch (

) 1952 * Murdoch Campbell 1956 *

William John Cameron William John Cameron (1907–1990) was a Scottish minister. He twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland: in 1962 and 1977.Annals of the Free Church of Scotland 1956 Life He was born in Brora, Sutherlan ...

(Free Church College) (1962 and 1977) son of Rev Kenneth Cameron *M. K. Murray 1970 *J. Douglas Macmillan 1971 *D. MacDonald 1972 *committee 1973 *committee 1974 *committee 1975 *committee 1976 *committee 1977 *committee 1978 * Hector Cameron 1980 * John MacLeod 1983 *Kenneth W R Cameron, (Thurso and Reay), 1989 (son of

) * Donald MacDonald 1992 *

Alex Murdo Macleod Alex Murdo Macleod (Gaelic name Ailig Murchadh Macleoid) (1932– 16 October 1995) was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly in 1994/95. In 1992 he helped to establish a non-denominational nu ...

1994

21st Century

*Donald Smith (2008) * David Meredith 2010 *Rev James Maciver (Knock) 2011 * Iain D. Campbell (Point) 2012 *Angus J Howat 2013 * David Miller 2014 * David Robertson (Dundee) 2015 * John Nicholls 2016 * Derek Lamont 2017 * Angus MacRae (Dingwall and Strathpeffer) 2018 * Donnie G. MacDonald 2019/20 *Neil MacMillan 2021 *Iver Martin 2022

Recent history

At the 2011 census, 10,896 people identified as being "Free Church of Scotland". The Free Church has about 100 congregations in Scotland and circa 80 ministers and 8,000 attenders. About 50 dissenting or former

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 ...

congregations had been talking about joining the Free Kirk because the Church of Scotland's ordination of openly gay ministers.

Growth

As of 2021, the Free Church had an average attendance at Sunday services of 8,000 including 5,400 communicants. As of May 2013 the Free Church worship attendance was 12,639, up from 12,431 in 2007. The number of people under 30 increased by 30% since 2007. The church is growing outwith the Western Islands, especially in the bigger cities. Sunday school attendance has grown by 25% in recent years, from 575 to 709 in 2013. In 2013, Murdo Murchison, an elder from Dunblane Free Church gathered a core group to plant a church in Stirling. With some growth it was recognised as a church plant in 2014 by the Glasgow Presbytery, and in 2016 appointed Iain MacAskill as its minister. There had previously been no Free Church in Stirling since 1948. In 2014 two congregations, the North Harris Free Church, and the Stornoway group of the High Free Church Stornoway and two former Kirk ministers have recently joined the Free Church, makes it total about ten former Kirk pastors who have joined the Free Church. North Harris held its first service with around 100 people in attendance. Kirkmuirhill congregation and New Restalrig have also joined. The High Free Church has regularly attracted around 300 people in Stornoway Primary School since leaving the Church of Scotland earlier this year. Stornoway High was previously the Church of Scotland's biggest congregation on the Western Isles. In early 2015 an Inverness Church of Scotland pastor quit, and took some of his flock with him to set up a new Free Church congregation in the west of Inverness. Rev McMillan was unhappy about the Presbytery of Inverness, which voted against controversial plans to give congregations the freedom to appoint a person in a gay relationship if they wished. Other new churches welcomed into the Free Church included a new church in Leith planted originally in association with the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church in the USA. and Christ Church, Craigintinney, a new church plant led by David Court. David led most of the congregation of New Restalrig out of the Church of Scotland. In 2015 the Covenant Church in

Newmilns Newmilns is a village in the burgh of Newmilns and Greenholm, in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It has a population of 3,057 people (2001 census) and lies on the A71, around seven miles east of Kilmarnock and twenty-five miles southwest of Glasgow. I ...

East Ayrshire East Ayrshire ( sco, Aest Ayrshire; gd, Siorrachd Àir an Ear) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland. It shares borders with Dumfries and Galloway, East Renfrewshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The headquar ...

joined the Free Church. Covenant Church had split from the Church of Scotland in 2013. The number of congregations have grown to 139 in the end of 2015. New churches continue to be planted, such as in Dunfermline and St Andrews and most recently Montrose in November 2015 and

Charleston, Dundee Charleston is an area on the northwest edge of Dundee, Scotland. Menzieshill is to the immediate southwest, Camperdown borders it to the north, and Lochee is to the east. The area is home to two primary schools - Camperdown Primary (multi-re ...

in September 2017 by the existing Dundee church. There has been an increase in the numbers applying to the Free Church ministry, and studying in its Saturday course (provided by the

Edinburgh Theological Seminary Edinburgh Theological Seminary, formerly known as the Free Church College, is a theological seminary in Edinburgh connected to the Free Church of Scotland. It traces its origins back to the foundation of New College, Edinburgh at the time of t ...

Worship

Church services

Typically, Free Church services are at 11 am and 6:30 pm on Sunday Sabbath, or the

Lord's Day The Lord's Day in Christianity is generally Sunday, the principal day of communal worship. It is observed by most Christians as the weekly memorial of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is said in the canonical Gospels to have been witnessed ...

. A typical order of service is: * A singing of praise * A prayer * A second singing of praise * A reading from the Bible * A third singing of praise * The sermon * A second prayer * A fourth singing of praise * The benediction Intimations may be read out before the first singing (in effect, before the actual service begins) or immediately after the reading, or before the benediction. A 'first' reading may appear between the first singing and the first prayer. This reading will be of relevance to the 'main' reading. A message to the children may appear after the first prayer, and children may depart for Sunday school or Bible class after the second singing. Lay preachers will replace the benediction with a short prayer.

Church music

Since just after the union of 1900 until the events of 2010, only the

psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

of the Old Testament (and in a very few instances, paraphrases of other parts of the Bible) were sung during the services. Musical instruments were never used. However, in November 2010, a special plenary assembly took place to debate and vote on allowing the singing of

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

s and

use of musical instruments in Free Church services The use of musical instruments in church services has often been seen as an innovation in church worship. This was the case in both Catholic liturgy and in the Puritan tradition. In the Catholic liturgy the Gregorian chant was for a thousand years ...

. The motion was passed by a narrow margin. A number of ministers insisted on recording their dissent over the decision. One congregation and four ministers resigned over the decision. The November 2010 motion allowed that instruments can be used as an accompaniment and hymns may be sung, though at least one of the items of sung praise must be a psalm; some congregations continue to sing unaccompanied psalms only. In 2003 the church's Psalmody and Praise Committee produced a new Psalter called ''Sing Psalms''. Although of a similar format to the Scottish Psalter it contains metrical versions of the

with 21st century vocabulary and grammar.

Congregations and affiliations

There are over 100 congregations throughout Scotland, one in London and three pastoral charges in North America. The Church has maintained an extensive missionary commitment for its size, with missions in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and South Africa, which now have self-governing status. Along with the

Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales The Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales (EPCEW) ( cy, Eglwys Bresbyteraidd Efengylaidd yng Nghymru a Lloegr) is a Reformed Church, reformed and Conservative Evangelicalism in Britain, conservative evangelical Presbyterianism, Pres ...

and the

, the denomination is one of the three members of the

International Conference of Reformed Churches The International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC) is a federation of Reformed or Calvinist churches around the world. The ICRC was founded in 1981. The ICRC convenes international meetings every four years. Its theology is more conservative ...

from Great Britain, and one of seven European Christian denominations who founded the European Conference of Reformed Churches. There is a close relationship with the

Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia The Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia (PCEA) is a small Presbyterian denomination which was formed in Sydney on 10 October 1846 by three ministers and a ruling elder. As of December 2012 it consists of 13 pastoral charges with a total of ...

References

Bibliography

* Cameron, N., et al. (eds.) (1993). ''Dictionary of Scottish Church History and Theology''. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark. . .

External links

*
Free Church of Scotland CollegeCongregational Websites
{{Authority control Presbyterianism in Scotland Religious organisations based in Scotland Free Church of Scotland Christian organizations established in 1900 1900 establishments in Scotland Reformed denominations in the United Kingdom Presbyterian denominations in Canada