This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: • This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. • A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. • This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. • The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. • When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Reconciling Performance: the drama of discipline in early modern Scotland, 1560-1610 Nikki M. Macdonald Matriculation Number 0453158 PhD Ecclesiastical History University of Edinburgh 2013 A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirement of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Thesis abstract This thesis investigates the liturgical context of ecclesiastical discipline in early modern Scotland. The core question addresses the narrative being recounted within Protestant rituals of repentance, the liturgical expression of ecclesiastical discipline. Through an analysis of these rituals it is demonstrated that the primary narrative underpinning the performance of repentance is reconciliation with God and with neighbour. An examination of ceremonies officially authorised by the General Assembly, alongside descriptions of local practice, reveals how reconciliation was firmly embedded within the liturgical life of the Kirk. A secondary question addresses continuities and breaks with Scottish penitential practices prior to 1560. Although bringing a physical shift and ‘decluttering’ of performance space, many ritual continuities remained after 1560, especially in costumes, props, gestures and speech. This thesis is divided into four sections. Section One focuses upon ritual penitential practices employed by the pre-Reformation Kirk c.1500-1560. The ‘cluttered’ stage, or stages, upon which rituals of repentance were performed is also analysed. These twin themes, focusing upon pre- Reformation practice and performance spaces, provide the base-line for the assessment of ritual continuity. Section Two moves the performance to the Protestant theatre of reconciliation, 1560- 1610. After an initial exploration of the stages of discipline, rituals employed by the Kirk to effect neighbourly reconciliation are examined. They demonstrate how the expression of reconciliation and dispute settlement presents a potent visible representation of the harmonious community as the ‘true’ church. Moving from the harmonious community at the local level, Section Three investigates the liturgical performance of corporate repentance utilising the key text The Order of the General Fast. At both national and regional levels, corporate repentance became a visible expression of communal reconciliation to God and of the Protestant self-identification as the ‘new Israel’. The focus of the final section concerns excommunication, the ultimate tool of ecclesiastical discipline, and a further authorised liturgy, The Order of Excommunication and of Public Repentance, is examined. Far from permanent exclusion, the ritual of excommunication was intended to be radical soul-saving surgery, designed to reconcile an offender with both God and neighbour. In contrast with other recent studies which have analysed ecclesiastical discipline within a judicial context, the liturgical context of discipline as performed in rituals of repentance is placed centre-stage. Key words: ecclesiastical discipline, theatre of reconciliation, rituals, penance/ repentance, early modern Scotland, General Fast, excommunication, John Knox, Reformation DECLARATION I, Nikki M. Macdonald, hereby certify that this thesis, which is approximately 99,000 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of work carried out by me, and that it has not been submitted in any previous application for a higher degree. Table of Contents Acknowledgements iv Abbreviations v List of tables vii Introduction Performing repentance: setting the stage for the 1 Protestant theatre of reconciliation Section One Reconciling the soul: the drama of discipline in pre- 19 Reformation Scotland Chapter One ‘Quhen thoug hais maid thi saule faire and clein’ 20 Defining penance 22 Spiritual jurisdiction 25 Chapter Two ‘cum to the fountane of Penance’ 32 The three stages of penance 33 ‘be contrit with thi hart for all thi sins’ 34 ‘mak ane hail confessioun with thi mouth’ 37 ‘mak satisfactioun, doand the worthi frutis of 46 penance ‘ane preist the minister of Christ...hais 67 auctoritie to assoilye the’ Section Two Reconciling neighbours: promoting piety, preserving 70 order, and pursuing peace Chapter Three Re-forming holiness: the jurisdictional and theoretical 71 frameworks of the Church from 1560 The jurisdictional framework of the Kirk 73 The theoretical framework of Kirk discipline 82 The development of Scottish discipline and its 84 performance The Dominical blueprint: the stages of discipline 89 Making one’s repentance: contrition, confession, 92 satisfaction Absolution 100 Chapter Four ‘A certain poisoned sweetness’: the use of reconciling 103 rituals within verbal disputes Chapter Five ‘fechting and tulezeing wpon Sonday’: conflict and 119 reconciliation rituals in domestic and neighbourly disputes i ‘Ane carnall band of blood: the Kirk, and mediating 124 peace in the feud Section Three Reconciling the community: calamity, covenant, and 141 corporate repentance Chapter Six Blessings and woes: covenantal responsibilities and the 143 providence of God Chapter Seven A liturgical template for corporate repentance: The 153 Order of the General Fast Background of the Order of the General Fast 153 The structure of the Fast 155 Liturgical instructions for corporate repentance: 159 the ‘trailer’ service Beginning the octave of repentance: the pattern of 160 Sunday morning worship The Sunday afternoon worship pattern 166 Worship pattern during the week of corporate 167 repentance Patterns for worship on the last Sunday during the 168 exercise Demonstrating corporate repentance when not 170 engaged in worship Section Four Reconciling the Excommunicate:making peace with the 178 Church Chapter Eight ‘fallin from the kingdome of heaven’: excommunicating an 179 offender A template for excommunication: the Order of 187 Excommunication and of Public Repentance Chapter Nine ‘returned to our societie’: the reception of excommunicates 200 Receiving excommunicates in the Order of 202 Excommunication Chapter Ten Excommunication and reconciliation in practice: case 210 studies Case 1/ John Biccarton, St Andrews, 1564-1565 210 Case 2/ Adultery in Perth: Elspeth Carvor, March 1578, 215 and Margaret Watson, April 1585 Case 3/ Disciplining the nobility: George Gordon, 1st 222 Marquess of Huntly Case 4/ Ministerial misconduct: Paul Methven, adultery 228 ii Denouement 233 Conclusion ‘Inflamme our hearts with such a zeale and feruencie 234 towardes thy glorie’ Appendices Appendix 1/ Extant ecclesiastical court records 1559 - 243 1611 Appendix 2/ Plates illustrating piety and pilgrimage in 244 Late Medieval Scotland Appendix 3/ Plates illustrating disciplinary implements and 246 costume post-1560 Appendix 4/ Liturgical tables for the Order of the General 248 Fast Appendix 5/ Liturgical tables for the Order of 253 Excommunication and Public Repentance Appendix 6/The excommunication and reception of John 256 Biccarton, St Andrews Bibliography 259 iii Acknowledgements Over the course of this project there have been many lessons learnt and relearnt. Some concern the research itself; others are less obvious but no less important. Chief among these latter is that it is good to give thanks, and I am rather humbled by the support given by many before and during this work. Financially, the work could not have been undertaken without the generous provision of a studentship from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Grants from the Salveson Fund, the Hope Trust, and the Presbytery of Edinburgh were also received with grateful thanks; I would particularly like to thank the Rev. Jane Denniston for her assistance in relation to the two former. Academically, and personally, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to both my primary and secondary supervisors, Professor Jane Dawson and Dr Sara Parvis. Their wit and wisdom, generosity of spirit and time, humour, patience, and incisive critiques have provided a stimulating and congenial environment within which to work. Grateful thanks is given for the kindness and care shown by both during an illness in the early stages of the work. The staff at the National Library of Scotland has provided consistently helpful and cheerful service, and particular thanks is given to Ms Tessa Spencer at the National Archives. Thanks also to Rev. Dr Linda Dunbar, who allowed me access to her transcriptions of North and South Leith session records; and to Rev. Sheila Kirk for her insights on Archbishop Hamilton’s Catechism. Personally, many rounds of thanks are owed to long-suffering friends, named and unnamed. First, to Linda Frost who suggested, some years back, that I go to university on the basis that I ‘might enjoy it.’ She was indeed