27 APRIL 1934, Page 11

NEW TRENDS IN THE SCOTTISH CHURCH

By DAVID CLEGHORN THOMSON

THROUGHOUT the many heated discussions which have been going on around the subjects of Scottish Renascence, and cultural revival, it is remarkable that the topic of the position and future of the national church occurs so seldom and is apparently accorded so little importance. This may be, of course, because, as oppo- nents of the self-government movement are prone to point out, a certain number of its more prominent leaders are members of the Roman Catholic Church or of the Episcopal Church in Scotland. Nevertheless, the Church of Scotland has established such a deep-seated hold on the mind of the community for so long and for reasons historical and economic as well as spiritual (even in those quarters where its life does not seem to be virile and significant), that no great cultural or political movement can afford to ignore its reactions.

Conscious though it is of this strength of loyalty, the Church of Scotland is not markedly alive to new develop- ments of outlook among the younger generation and is apt to be negative rather than constructive in its attitude. There has been a considerable broadening of outlook in the matter of the drama ; ministers and church organiza- tions have been active in the support of the amateur- dramatic revival which has swept Scotland. But practi- cally nothing whatsoever has been done to make drama a handmaid to the work of the Church. The old tradition dies hard, and one supposes that in many outlying rural districts there will be some sore hearts already over the condoning of external theatricals even to the present extent. 'The same is the case with choral music. There have been many good church choirs taking part in the healthy activities of the competitive festivals, but little sign of any active association with the best musical minds for the progressive improvement of praise in the churches. In the sphere of stained glass and architecture alone can there be seen evidence of the Church's backing being given to vital Scots creative art.

It will be said at once, of course, that the Scot is essentially practical-mihded ; that the Church is busy- ing herself with the more urgent needs of the hour. She is dealing with the problem of experimenting with " staff churches " in congested industrial areas, pressing ahead with the " Church Extension " campaign so as to deal adequately with the scattering and expanding of popu- lation in the new housing schemes. Time enough, it is argued, for the Church to revitalize its contacts with national art when there arc enough churches to serve the new districts, when home and foreign missions are more adequately supplied with funds. But is this the true and fundamental reason for the delay ? Is there not, in the background, lurking and never declaring itself openly, a _ mistrust of any new developments in co-operation with the arts, a fear that such an alliance will lead the Church away from its characteristic simplicity and austerity ? Do not the same people who plead for better music urge the introduction of sung responses, canticles and so forth ? Does it all point to the Anglicizing or even Romanizing of the Auld Kirk and its worship ?

If one were to judge from the record of the Press alone one might think that the only real religious activities north of the Tweed in recent years have been anti-Catholic demon- strations within the Scottish Church. The last year alone has seen a considerable spread in the activities of such bodies as the Scottish Protestant League. Pages have been devoted in the correspondence columns of the National Press to controversy regarding the Catholic marriage laws and their alleged challenge to the law of the land. The Scottish Reformation Society still flourishes, and a new body has recently been set up to maintain undying vigilance in case the new proposals for Reunion with Anglicanism develop into a menace to the Scottish religious heritage.

All this negative propaganda may have spread the impression that the most alive as well as the most numer- ous section of the national Church is resolutely opposed to any further approximation to Catholicization of the Churches' practice or principle. He would be a bold man who would attempt to suggest that the majority of Scottish Presbyterians are anything but negative in their attitude in this matter. The reasons behind much of the - working-class support for the S.P.L. are economic and racial, rather than religious ; but the great mass of Church members or adherents are still dominated by a sense of suspicion, based on a fear which has its uncon- scious basis in historical incidents of long ago. This fear makes them either apathetic or opposed to the new move- ment for beautifying the Churches and their worship, which is steadily growing, more particularly among the Youth of Scotland today.

At the Union of the Churches, the hopes of the com- paratively small band of supporters of " the Catholic approach" must have been disappointed, if they had anticipated any wide extension of their numbers. The United Free Church element went almoSt entirely to reinforce their enemies. Nevertheless the work of men such as John Macleod of Govan, Dr. Cooper, and Dr. Wotheispoon is bearing fruit rapidly today, and there are at any rate some who would predict that this cause will become more and more dear to the hearts' of the Youth of the Church. The movement has active adherents among the younger ministers—notably the Rev. G. F. Macleod of Govan, and, what is perhaps even more significant, among the students at the divinity halls. On its behalf it is claimed that this is no modern innovation, but a return to the practices of John Knox's time. There are comparatively few Presbyterian churches at the - moment who have sung responses, prayers at a reading desk, and observation of the Christian Year and its festivals ; but all over the country there are signs of a gradual change—here a congregation singing the Lord's prayer, and there another having the offertory carried in procession to the minister at the communion table. Most of the new churches -being built make the changes easier. In all- of them kneeling is being made physically possible !

All these points may seem terribly trivial to an outsider used to the practice of an Episcopal Church. But in Scotland they are ' intensely significant. Here is the coming battleground. The next generation of the Presbyterian ministry will be less concerned _with- the cry of No Popery and more concerned' with restoring to the worship of their churches much of the. beauty which was over-hastily jettisoned in a period of political. panic'. If the elder fathers and brethren of the Assembly set their faces against this growing demand, they will• alienate a great potential congregation ; and they will have to devise some alternative vitalizing force,; in order to hold the youth of post-War Scotland. No one who has attended the services, for instance, a Govan Old Parish Church during Easter week (where they have worshipped in the spirit of " the Catholic Approach " for forty years) can deny the vitality and sincerity of the religious life there ; and many are visiting the church to gain inspiration. It may be that Govan will prove the centre for a new movement to provide a spiritual - basis for the Scottish Movement, and to revitalize the Church with a spirit recaptured from its youth.