Church of Scotland
National church of Scotland
Follow Church of Scotland on Notably News to receive short updates to your email — rarely!
March 29 2024 | North Leith will host the Good Friday service as part of a rotation among the five Church of Scotland churches in Leith. |
March 25 2024 | Final Sunday worship service took place, commemorating 208 years of continuous worship on Madeira Street. |
2023 | The Church of Scotland published a comprehensive report detailing its historical connections to the Atlantic slave trade, acknowledging that ministers and elders inherited wealth from West Indian slave plantations between 1707 and the 1830s. The report recommended creating an official statement of acknowledgment and apology, and proposed developing a dedicated webpage about the church's slave trade connections. |
2023 | The Church of Scotland reported having 259,200 members, showing a continued significant decline from previous decades. |
2023 | According to the Assembly Trustees Report, only 61,580 people were attending an average Sunday worship service in person. |
2022 | Fiona Smith becomes the first woman to serve as Principal Clerk to the General Assembly full-time, succeeding George Whyte. |
2022 | Census recorded 1,108,796 adherents identifying with the Church of Scotland, representing 20.4% of the Scottish population. |
December 2022 | Church membership declined to 270,300, representing a 4.7% drop from 2021 and a 35% overall decline since 2012. |
May 23 2022 | The General Assembly voted in favour of same-sex marriage with 274 votes for and 136 against, allowing clergy to conduct marriages but not forcing them to do so. |
2021 | Developed a new survival plan reducing ministry posts by 40% to 660, with 60 expected to be vacant at any time. |
2020 | The General Assembly was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Earl of Strathearn designated as the Lord High Commissioner for that year. |
2019 | Reverend Alexander McAspurren demitted his charge to become minister of linked parishes in Craigmillar Park Church and Reid Memorial, Edinburgh. |
2019 | The National Youth Assembly (NYA) concluded its final session after 25 years of annual gatherings, ending its run of providing a platform for young church members to engage in discussion and debate. |
2019 | During the General Assembly, the Ministries Council announced potential reduction of theological training academic partners from five to one or two. |
2019 | The Church and Society Council merged with the World Mission Council to create the Faith Impact Forum, consolidating the church's social engagement and outreach efforts. |
2019 | Scottish Household Survey found that 20% of the Scottish population (over one million people) identified the Church of Scotland as their religious identity. |
2018 | The church's assembly voted in favour of drafting a new church law to allow same-sex marriages and give ministers the option of performing them. |
May 25 2017 | A Theological Forum report calling for the approval of same-sex marriage and an apology to homosexuals for past mistreatment was approved by the General Assembly. |
2016 | The church faced a £5.7 million deficit and decided to reduce ministry provision plans from 1,234 to 1,000 funded posts. |
May 2016 | The Church of Scotland ratified the Columba Agreement, calling for closer collaboration with the Church of England on matters of common interest. |
May 21 2016 | The General Assembly voted in favour of approving gay and lesbian ministers to enter into same-sex marriages. |
2015 | The General Assembly voted in favour of recommending that gay ministers be able to enter into same-sex marriages and civil partnerships. |
May 20 2013 | The General Assembly voted in favour of a proposal allowing liberal parishes to opt out of the church's policy on homosexuality. |
April 2013 | The Church of Scotland published a controversial report titled 'The Inheritance of Abraham: A Report on the 'Promised' Land', which critically examined Israeli and Jewish claims to the Land of Israel, questioning the interpretation of biblical land promises and critiquing current Israeli policies toward Palestinians. |
2011 | Reverend Alexander McAspurren began his ministry at the church, previously serving in Corby, Northamptonshire. |
2011 | In the national census, 32% of Scots identified as Church of Scotland, marking the first time this figure fell behind those without religion. |
May 2011 | The General Assembly voted to appoint a theological commission to investigate the matter of gay ministers, with a report planned for the 2013 General Assembly. |
This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles Church of Scotland, Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland & North Leith Parish Church, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.