James Morison, the Scottish Finney. XIV
James Morison had been forced out of the Secession Church for his unorthodox beliefs. His church had, in sympathy for him, left the Secession (they were, in fact, seceders from the Seceders). Morison's theology had changed from a three-point Calvinism to a four-point Arminianism, holding to human ability, election conditional on faith, universal but resistible grace, universal atonement and the final perseverence of the saints.
Clerk's Lane Church, Kilmarnock was now an independent Church. It seemed for a while that Clerk's Lane would abide alone, an oddity in Calvinistic Scotland. True, many people listened when Morison preached, but he was one man. That changed in May 1842.
Morison's father, Rev. Robert Morison, had supported his son all the way through his trial, and as a result he had been made the subject of a trial of his own. Convening on 2nd May 1842, the Edinburgh Presbytery of the Secession suspended the elder Morison from the ministry. Robert Morison and his Church promptly left the Secession themselves. Morison senior had already embraced his son's theology, and so Bathgate Secession Church joined Clerk's Lane Church as an independent and basically Arminian church. One Church could stand alone; two looked like the beginning of a denomination.
Now several Congregationalists began to play a role in the beginnings of this 'New School' denomination (as Thornwell characterised it). The Congregational Union of Scotland was, at the time (see our previous series on W.L. Alexander) Calvinistic. But there were also men among them who had been influenced by the writings of the Americans Charles G. Finney and Albert Barnes.
Rev. John Kirk of Hamilton was the chief of these. Like Morison he had begun to preach universal atonement, and like Morison he had ended in Arminianism. He exchanged pulpits with Morison, and Morison's views on Church government shifted to Congregational views.
A denomination seemed about to come to the birth. Next time, God willing, we shall be seeing how the new denomination was formed.
Clerk's Lane Church, Kilmarnock was now an independent Church. It seemed for a while that Clerk's Lane would abide alone, an oddity in Calvinistic Scotland. True, many people listened when Morison preached, but he was one man. That changed in May 1842.
Morison's father, Rev. Robert Morison, had supported his son all the way through his trial, and as a result he had been made the subject of a trial of his own. Convening on 2nd May 1842, the Edinburgh Presbytery of the Secession suspended the elder Morison from the ministry. Robert Morison and his Church promptly left the Secession themselves. Morison senior had already embraced his son's theology, and so Bathgate Secession Church joined Clerk's Lane Church as an independent and basically Arminian church. One Church could stand alone; two looked like the beginning of a denomination.
Now several Congregationalists began to play a role in the beginnings of this 'New School' denomination (as Thornwell characterised it). The Congregational Union of Scotland was, at the time (see our previous series on W.L. Alexander) Calvinistic. But there were also men among them who had been influenced by the writings of the Americans Charles G. Finney and Albert Barnes.
Rev. John Kirk of Hamilton was the chief of these. Like Morison he had begun to preach universal atonement, and like Morison he had ended in Arminianism. He exchanged pulpits with Morison, and Morison's views on Church government shifted to Congregational views.
A denomination seemed about to come to the birth. Next time, God willing, we shall be seeing how the new denomination was formed.
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