Ministers and elders of the Church of Scotland
A Church of Scotland congregation is led by its minister and elders. Both of these terms are also used in other Christian denominations: see Minister (Christianity) and Elder (Christianity). This article discusses the specific understanding of their roles and functions in the Scottish Church.
The Ordination of Elders in a Scottish Kirk, painting by John Henry Lorimer, 1891
Alexander Webster, minister of the Tolbooth Kirk in St. Giles, Edinburgh and moderator of the Church of Scotland in 1753, was responsible for providing the first reliable estimate of Scotland's population in modern times. Based on returns from parish ministers, mostly for the year 1755, he calculated Scotland's population at 1,265,380. His census did not, however, include most of the country's small Roman Catholic minority, figures for which relied on ministers reporting the number of "papists" in their parishes. Internal evidence suggests that this was done inconsistently.
Memorial windows commemorating past elders of the Tron Kirk in Edinburgh
The Church of Scotland is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 259,200 members in 2023. While active membership in the church has declined significantly in recent decades, the government Scottish Household Survey found that 20% of the Scottish population, or over one million people, identified the Church of Scotland as their religious identity in 2019. The Church of Scotland's governing system is presbyterian in its approach, therefore, no one individual or group within the church has more or less influence over church matters. There is no one person who acts as the head of faith, as the church believes that role is the "Lord God's". As a proper noun, the Kirk is an informal name for the Church of Scotland used in the media and by the church itself.
John Knox, who in 1559 returned from ministering in Geneva to lead the Reformation in Scotland.
Stained glass showing the burning bush and the motto "nec tamen consumebatur", St. Mungo's Cathedral, Glasgow.
Iona Abbey in Scotland was founded by Saint Columba.
Church of Scotland Offices, George Street, Edinburgh 2013
