Scottish Episcopalians Act 1711

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Scottish Episcopalians Act 1711 [a]
Act of Parliament
Coat of Arms of Great Britain (1707-1714).svg
Parliament of Great Britain
Long title An Act to prevent the disturbing those of the Episcopal Communion in Scotland in the Exercise of their Religious Worship and in the Use of the Liturgy of the Church of England and for repealing the Act passed in the Parliament of Scotland intituled Act against irregular Baptisms and Marriages
Citation 10 Ann. c. 10
(Ruffhead c. 7)
Territorial extent 
Dates
Royal assent 3 March 1712
Commencement 7 December 1711 [b]
Other legislation
Amended by
Status: Amended
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Scottish Episcopalians Act 1711 (10 Ann. c. 10), also referred to as the Toleration Act 1712, [1] is an act of the Parliament of Great Britain. Its purpose was "to prevent the disturbing those of the Episcopal Communion in Scotland in the Exercise of their Religious Worship and in the Use of the Liturgy of the Church of England and for repealing the Act passed in the Parliament of Scotland intituled Act against irregular Baptisms and Marriages". [1]

Contents

This Act was partly in force in Great Britain at the end of 2010. [2]

History

In 1690, the national Church of Scotland abolished the Bishops in the Church of Scotland due to their refusal to swear loyalty to King William II of Scotland and following the Glorious Revolution. [3] The now-deposed bishops continued to minister and it led to the creation of the Scottish Episcopal Church. In the early 1700s, Scottish episcopal worship increased, usually relying on ordained priests from the Church of England. [4] In 1709, Reverend James Greenshields was conducting a service in accordance with Church of England liturgy when he was arrested at the behest of the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Edinburgh for "being within their bounds and without their allowance and introducing a form of worship contrary to the purity and uniformity of the church established by law". [4] He was found guilty at Edinburgh Magistrates' court and lost an appeal to the Court of Session. He spent seven months in prison before being freed after a successful appeal to the House of Lords who ruled that he was acting legally. [4]

Due to the ambiguity of their status under Scots law, the act was passed by the Parliament of Great Britain. The act affirmed that the Scottish Episcopal Church and any other worship carried out under Anglican liturgy were legal in Scotland. It also granted protection from criminal or civil actions brought by the Church of Scotland and prohibited any civil or criminal action being taken against any person who partook in episcopal worship, even if they had been excommunicated from the Church of Scotland. [4] The act did however require Scottish Episcopalians to pray for the monarch during services. [5]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The citation of this act by this short title was authorised by section 1 of, and schedule 1 to, the Short Titles Act 1896. Due to the repeal of those provisions, it is now authorised by section 19(2) of the Interpretation Act 1978.
  2. ↑ Start of session.

References

  1. 1 2 Guild, Ivor (2 January 1996). "Synodical Government in the Scottish Episcopal Church". Ecclesiastical Law Journal. 4 (18): 493–496. doi:10.1017/S0956618X00002386 . Retrieved 2 April 2025– via Cambridge University Press.
  2. ↑ The Chronological Table of the Statutes, 1235 - 2010. The Stationery Office. 2011. ISBN   978-0-11-840509-6. Part I. Page 82, read with pages viii and x.
  3. ↑ "The Origins of the Scottish Episcopal Church". DCD Churches. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Wilkinson, A. B. (2019). "5 Scottish Episcopal Church: Polity, Law and Governance" . Scottish Episcopal Church: Polity, Law and Governance. Edinburgh University Press. pp. 43–56. doi:10.1515/9781474470551-006. ISBN   978-1-4744-7055-1 . Retrieved 2 April 2025– via De Gruyter.
  5. ↑ "How the Union came within four votes of ending almost as soon as it began". The National. 23 March 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
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