Gazetteer of Scotland

introduction:
XT
Pre/by terles, and Kirk Sejfions. ift, The General AJfembly is the higheft ec^
Gleiiaftical court in Scotland, and may with propriety be termed the Ecclejiaf-
thai Parliament. It confifts of commiffioners, fome of which are laymen,
under the name of ruling elders, from prefbyteries, royal boroughs, and uni-
verfities. The King prelides by his Commiffioner [who is generally a no-
bleman of high rank], in the afiembly, which meets once a year. A moderator
is chofen from their own number, who prefides and regulates the proceed-
ings. To this court appeals lie from the other ecclefiaftical courts, and its
decifion is final, and, Provincial Synods are nest in authority. : they are com=
pofed of a number of the adjacent prefbyteries, over which they have a power*
3d, Prejbyteries are compofed of a number of contiguous parifhes : they in-
fpect into the behaviour of the minifters and elders of their refpective bounds,
ordain paftors, examine and licenfe fchoolmafters, Sec. 4th, The Kirk Sejion^
compofed of the minifter, elders, and deacons of every parifh, form the lowefi:
ecclefiaftical court of Scotland : they have the fuperintendence of the poor*
vifit the lick, and affift the clergyman in his clerical function. Several of the
parifh churches of Scotland are collegiate, that is, have more than one clergy =•
man ; but the number of thefe is only 31 in 877, the total number of parochial
diftridts. The following is a view of the ecclefiaftical eftablifhment of Scot-
land, as divided into fynods and prefbyteries, with the number of minifters irt
each fynod,
15
Synod of Lothian and Tweeddale,
Merfe and Teviotda'le, .
Dumfries,
Galloway,
Glafgow and Ayr, . .
Perth and Stirling, . .
. Fife,
Angus and Mearns, . .
Aberdeen, .....
Moray, .......
Rofs,
Sutherland and Caithnefs,
Argyll,
, Glenelg,
. Orkney,
Total, .
78
Minifters.
116
6G
54
31
130
7*
81
101
5*
23
23
41
29
3°
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