John White CH (1867–1951) was a minister of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

. He served as

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every year. After chairing the Ass ...

in 1925 and again at the reunion Assembly of 1929. White was one of the most influential figures in the Church of Scotland during the early decades of the 20th century, though his influence waned later in his life and he appeared increasingly isolated and anachronistic.

Background and career

South Leith Parish Church from Constitution Street

He was born in

Kilwinning Kilwinning (, ; ) is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located on the banks of the River Garnock in Ayrshire, west/central Scotland, about southwest of Glasgow. Kilwinning's neighbours are the coastal towns of Stevenston to the west an ...

, Ayrshire, the son of a flour miller. After studies at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

, he was inducted as minister at

Shettleston Shettleston (, ) is an area in the Glasgow#East End, east end of Glasgow in Scotland. Toponymy The origin of the name "Shettleston" is not clear and, like many place-names of possibly medieval origin, has had a multitude of spellings. A papal bu ...

, Glasgow in 1893. In 1904 he moved to

South Leith Parish Church North and South Leith Parish Church, originally the Kirk of Our Lady, St Mary, is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. Prior to the union with the former North Leith Parish Church in 2024, the building was known as South Leith Parish Churc ...

. In 1911 he moved back to

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, becoming minister of the

Barony Church The Barony Hall, (formerly the Barony Church), is a deconsecrated church building located on Castle Street in the Townhead area of Glasgow, Scotland, near Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow Royal Infirmary and the city's oldest surviving house, Provand ...

, where he remained until his

retirement Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

in 1934, being replaced by Rev Robert Scott. He also served as a chaplain in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The high point of his ministry was his nomination to be Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in October 1925. This special Assembly took place in the Industrial Halls (now a bus garage), Annandale Street,

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

to mark the reunion of the Church of Scotland and the

United Free Church of Scotland The United Free Church of Scotland (UF Church; , ) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (or UP) and the Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), majority of the 19th-cen ...

- the Industrial Halls was the only suitable venue in the city large enough to accommodate the special Assembly. His position as Moderator was succeeded in 1926 by Rev John Donaldson McCallum of

Larkhall Larkhall (, ) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, around southeast of Glasgow. It is twinned with Seclin in northern France. Larkhall sits on high ground between the River Clyde to the East and the Avon Water to the West. Larkhall ...

Influence

White was highly influential in three areas. The first of these was the move to unite the Church of Scotland and the

. Following protracted discussions which started in 1909, the reunion eventually took place on 2 October 1929. The second was his role as Convener of the Church and Nation Committee of the Church of Scotland during the 1920s; he was instrumental in drawing up a controversial report entitled ''The Menace of the Irish Race to our Scottish Nationality'', which was received by the General Assembly in 1923 (see below). The third was his promotion of the Church Extension Scheme – which from 1932 onwards aimed to build new church buildings in new housing estates in Scotland’s cities. White was the original recipient of a

pipe tobacco A tobacco pipe, often called simply a pipe, is a device specifically made to smoke tobacco. It comprises a chamber (the bowl) for the tobacco from which a thin hollow stem (shank) emerges, ending in a mouthpiece. Pipes can range from very simpl ...

blend that would later become known as Presbyterian Mixture. The blend was created especially for him before the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He later introduced it to

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley (3 August 186714 December 1947), was a British statesman and Conservative politician who was prominent in the political leadership of the United Kingdom between the world wars. He was prime ministe ...

, who reportedly enjoyed the mixture so much that he arranged for regular shipments and suggested the name Presbyterian Mixture himself.

Controversy

White was a controversial figure – a staunch

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

and opponent of

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

and

pacificism Pacificism is the general term for ethical opposition to violence or war unless force is deemed necessary. Together with pacifism, it is born from the Western tradition or attitude that calls for peace. The latter involves the unconditional refus ...

. His socially conservative stance was increasingly challenged during the 1930s by more liberal ministers, such as John Baillie. Since his death, White has been extensively criticised for his anti-Catholic stance, often denounced as

sectarianism Sectarianism is a debated concept. Some scholars and journalists define it as pre-existing fixed communal categories in society, and use it to explain political, cultural, or Religious violence, religious conflicts between groups. Others conceiv ...

. The 1923 report ''The Menace of the Irish Race to our Scottish Nationality'' (produced during White's Convenership of the Church and Nation Committee of the Church of Scotland) accused all members of the

Catholic Church in Scotland The Catholic Church in Scotland, overseen by the Scottish Bishops' Conference, is part of the worldwide Catholic Church headed by the Pope. Christianity first arrived in Roman Britain and was strengthened by the conversion of the Picts thr ...

of subverting

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

values and of drunkenness, crime and financial imprudence. The report further called for the ending of immigration of Irish Catholics to Scotland and the deportation of any convicted of a criminal offence or living on state benefits. White urged a "racially pure" Scotland, declaring, "Today there is a movement throughout the world towards the rejection of non-native constituents and the crystallization of national life from native elements." Such attitudes started to wane considerably (both within the Church of Scotland as well as wider society) from the 1930s/40s onwards, especially given growing awareness of what was happening in

eugenics Eugenics is a set of largely discredited beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter the frequency of various human phenotypes by inhibiting the fer ...

-conscious

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and of the perceived dangers of a national or folk church. Within the Church of Scotland, the repudiation of White's anti-Roman Catholic stance can be seen in the Baillie Report of 1942, the disassociation from the anti-papal sections of the

Westminster Confession The Westminster Confession of Faith, or simply the Westminster Confession, 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 beca ...

by the General Assembly in 1986 and ultimately the express repudiation of the 1923 report in 2002.

Title

His full title (following his Moderatorial office) was the Very Reverend Dr John White CH DD LLD. He was appointed a Member of the

Order of the Companions of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an Order (distinction), order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It was founded on the same date as the Order of the Brit ...

in the

1935 Birthday Honours The 1935 Birthday Honours for the British Empire were announced on 3 June 1935 to celebrate the Birthday and Silver Jubilee of King George V. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, John 1867 births 1951 deaths Alumni of the University of Glasgow Anti-Catholic activists Anti-Catholicism in Scotland Anti-Irish sentiment 20th-century ministers of the Church of Scotland 20th-century Scottish Presbyterian ministers Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour

Background and career

Influence

Controversy

Title

See also

References