Preparing for the Creation of the Free Church of Scotland - Mobilising Popular Support and Setting up a Financial System, November 1842 - May 1843

At the Disruption of 1843, over a third of the ministers and perhaps half the lay membership left the Established Church of Scotland and formed the Free Church of Scotland in protest against what they viewed as unwarranted state interference in Church affairs. The preparation for the creation of the new Church had begun with the efforts of the Non-intrusionists in November 1842. To mobilise popular support, leaders of the Non-intrusionists promoted the formation of local associations and the appointment of financial collectors throughout Scotland. A celebrated leader, Thomas Chalmers, also designed an innovative and solid financial system, the Sustentation Fund, for the Church. This article discusses the Non-intrusionists' preparations for the separation from the Established Church, with the focus chiefly on the plans and measures adopted by the leadership. In practice, these plans and measures were proposed by the Convocation and the Provisional Committee. During the Convocation in November 1842, the Non-intrusionists agreed on leaving the Established Church together and would follow the instructions of the leading figures. Through the formation of local associations, the Convocationists endeavoured to gain popular support, and made preliminary plans to organise the sympathisers. Subdivided into three departments, the Provisional Committee developed comprehensive schemes and undertook concrete actions for the separation. The main measures of the Financial Sub-committee included setting up a central fund and collecting subscriptions. The Architectural Sub-committee proposed the designs of the churches to be built, while the Statistical Sub-committee was in charge of arranging congregations, the appointing office-bearers, and recruiting itinerant preachers in the event of the disruption. With all these arrangements made beforehand, the Non-intrusionists and their adhering people were ready to create a new church.補正完