THE PRINCIPAL ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE Free Church of Scotland 1970 – 1979 EDINBURGH FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND THE MOUND 1 CONTENTS 1970 PRINCIPAL ACTS CLASS I. - ACTS WHICH HAVE PASSED THE BARRIER ACT NONE CLASS II. - ACTS WHICH ARE OF GENERAL INTEREST TO THE CHURCH 1. Act Adjusting Bounds of Presbyteries and Synods 2. Act anent Assembly Hall and Assembly Officer 3. Act anent Sale of Manse at Glenshiel 4. Act anent Sale of Mission House at Elphin 5. Act anent Sale of Church Building at Bower 6. Act anent Loyal and Dutiful Address to the Queen 7. Act anent Salary of Professors 8. Act anent Amalgamation of Committees on Sustentation and Supply 9. Act amending Standing Orders re times of Standing Committees 10. Act anent Collections 11. Act anent Equal Dividend 12. Act anent Salary of Lay Agents 13. Act anent Differential to be Paid to Minister of London Congregation 14. Act anent Appointment of Assistant Minister to Stornoway Congregation 15. Act anent Army Chaplaincy Services Representation 16. Act anent Appointing Trustee to Widows’ and Orphans’ Fund 17. Act constituting Thurso a Development Charge 18. Act defining Development Charge 19. Act anent Statutory Meeting of Eventide Home Committee 20. Act constituting Cumbernauld a Church Extension Charge 21. Act anent Courses of Study for the Ministry 22. Act anent Grants for Post-Graduate Study 23. Act anent Regulations for College Library 24. Act Appointing Commission of Assembly 25. Act Appointing Next General Assembly I - Act of Commission of Assembly of March 1970 THE PRINCIPAL ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. MAY MCMLXX (1970) CLASS I. - ACTS WHICH HAVE PASSED THE BARRIER ACT NONE 2 CLASS II. - ACTS WHICH ARE OF GENERAL INTEREST TO THE CHURCH I. - Act Adjusting Bounds of Presbyteries and Synods. (No 1 of Class II.) Edinburgh. 19th May 1970. The General Assembly approve the recommendation of the Committee that:- The bounds of the Presbytery of Inveraray remain as at present; The Charge of Glenurquhart be transferred from the Presbytery of Abertarff to the Presbytery of Inverness; The remainder of the Presbytery of Abertarff be joined with the Presbytery of Lorn to form the Presbytery of Lochaber and Lorn, with the seat of the Presbytery at Fort William. The General Assembly appoint the first meeting of the Presbytery of Lochaber and Lorn to be held on Tuesday, 9th June 1970, at 7 p.m. in the Free Church Hall, Fort William, with the Rev. I. Fraser, Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston, as first Moderator. The General Assembly approve that Synod Boundaries be adjusted as follows: 1. That the Northern Synod continue as at present. 2.That the Synod of Moray and Ross be composed of: (1) The Presbytery of Dingwall and Chanonry, i.e.: Fortrose Killernan Knockbain Resolis Dingwall Kilmorack Strathglass Kiltearn Maryburgh Strathconon Strathpeffer Contin Garve, Achnasheen and Achanalt Urquhart Urray (2) The Presbytery of Inverness, i.e.: Ardersier Bona Burghead Cawdor and Croy 3 Duthil Moy Elgin Forres Inverness Free North Inverness Greyfriars Kiltarlity Kirkhill Kingussie Alvie Nairn Stratherrick Dores Daviot Glenurquhart (3) The Presbytery of Lochaber and Lorn, i.e.: Acharacle Ardnamurchan Tobermory Coll Craignure Kilbrandon and Kilchattan Kilninver Oban Ross and Brolas Strontian Torloisk Fort Augustus Fort William and Kilmonivaig Glenmoriston Kilmallie and Arisaig South Laggan 3. The Synod of Glenelg continue as at present. 4. The Argyll and Southern Synod be comprised of the Presbyteries of Inveraray, Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Perth. The General Assembly ordain that the first meeting of the Synod as now constituted be held in Knox Free Church, Perth, on Tuesday, 6th April 1971, at 3 p.m., with Mr J. Douglas Macmillan, Minister at Aberdeen, as Moderator. II. - Act anent Assembly Hall and Assembly Officer (No. 2 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 19th May 1970. 4 The General Assembly amend the regulations re caretaking of the Assembly Hall approved by Act VII, 1936, to read as follows: (1) That St Columba Deacons’ Court assume responsibility for the Caretaking of the building and that the Church Officer engaged and paid by them shall reside in the dwellinghouse on the premises, and shall be responsible for adjusting the heating system during the sittings of the General Assembly. (2) That the duty of cleaning the Assembly Hall and Rooms during the entire sittings of the Assembly be part of the responsibility of the Deacons’ Court of St Columba Congregation as Caretakers. (3) That the Assembly Arrangements Committee shall pay to the Deacons’ Court such a sum per annum as may be agreed upon from time to time in respect of under-taking the duties of caretaking. (4) That the whole cost of heating and lighting shall be borne by the Deacons’ Court. (5) That the Collections taken at the Assembly Meetings be retained by the Assembly Arrangements Committee. (6) That the Assembly Arrangements Committee appoint and pay an Assembly Officer and any Door Attendants and Assistants required by him. (7) That the ground burdens, rates, insurance and repairs (the expression “repairs” to include cleaning materials, electric lamps and window cleaning) shall be borne equally by the Assembly Arrangements Committee and the Deacons’ Court. (8) That in the event of circumstances of emergency arising in connection with the building at any time the Chairman of the Deacons’ Court and the Principal Clerk of Assembly be empowered to take the steps required to meet the emergency, their action therein to be reported to the next meeting of the Assembly Arrangements Committee and the Deacons’ Court. III. - Act anent Sale of Manse at Glenshiel. (No. 3 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 19th May 1970. The General Assembly authorise the sale of the Manse at Glenshiel, subject to the consent of the Superior to a change of use, and make available to the congregation such part of the proceeds, not exceeding £300, as will enable them to complete repairs to the Church as Glenshiel, the remainder to be lodged with the General Trustees for behoof of the Congregation. IV. - Act anent Sale of Mission House at Elphin. 5 (No. 4 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 19th May 1970. The General Assembly authorise the sale of the Mission House at Elphin, subject to the consent of the Superior to a change of use, the proceeds to be applied to the cost of repairing the Church at Elphin. V. - Act anent Sale of Church Building at Bower (No. 5 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 19th May 1970 The General Assembly authorise the sale of the Church building at Bower, subject to the consent of the Superior to a change of use, the proceeds to be utilised for congregational purposes. VI. - Act anent Loyal and Dutiful Address to the Queen (No. 6 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 20th May 1970. TO THE QUEEN’S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY. The Loyal and Dutiful Address of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland. May it please Your Majesty We, Your Majesty’s loyal subjects, the Ministers and Elders of the Free Church of Scotland, convened in General Assembly at Edinburgh respectfully offer to Your Majesty this renewed expression of our faithful allegiance to Your Majesty’s Person and Throne. We recall with undiminished pleasure and gratitude the visit of Your Majesty and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh to our last General Assembly, and the gracious words addressed to us by Your Majesty on that occasion. We rejoiced at the enthusiastic welcome accorded to His Royal Highness Prince Charles at his investiture as Prince of Wales, and share the pleasure of Your Majesty’s subjects everywhere at the increasing part which he, and Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, are taking in the public life of the nation and Commonwealth. The recent visit of Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret to the West Highlands of Scotland gave great pleasure to Your Majesty’s subjects in those parts, and has left with them a happy memory. We have followed with prayerful interest the recent visits of Your Majesty and members of Your Royal Household to New Zealand, Australia and other parts of the Commonwealth, and give thanks to Almighty God for His preserving care of You in all Your journeys. In days of widespread turbulence and unrest, we praise God for the stability of Your Majesty’s Throne, and for the many qualities by which Your Majesty commands the 6 affectionate loyalty of Your subjects. We anew commend Your Majesty and the nation to the Word of God’s grace, praying that those Christian values which have given stability to the nation and Throne in the past may continue among us with strength renewed, to the glory of God and the good of the Realm. We ask leave, through Your Majesty, to pay our respects to His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, Her Majesty the Queen Mother, and the Princes and Princess of the Royal Household. We pledge ourselves anew to remember Your Majesty and Your Household in our prayers. Your Majesty’s most obedient and humble subjects, the Ministers and Elders of the Free Church of Scotland. M.K. MURRAY, Moderator. VII. - Act anent Salary of Professors. (No. 7 of Class II.) Edinburgh, 20th May 1970. The General Assembly authorise that the salary paid to Professors be £1,700 per annum, payable as from 1st January 1970. Further, that the terms of Act XIX (No. 19 of Class II.) 1965 shall not apply to the year 1970. VIII. - Act anent Amalgamation of Committees on Sustentation and Supply. (No. 8 of Class II.) Edinburgh 20th May 1970. The General Assembly authorise that the Committee on Sustentation and the Committee on Supply be amalgamated and that Professor W.