THE Church of Scotland is to review its “virulent anti-Catholic” doctrinal statement amid concerns it still includes wording that the "Pope is the anti-christ", despite the Kirk distancing itself from the language more than 30 years ago.

The annual gathering in Edinburgh of senior Church figures agreed to review its use of the Westminster Confession, the Kirk's "subordinate statement" that has stood as its position of faith since the seventeenth century.

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The move came after a call by the Melrose and Peebles Presbytery, who said although dissociated the wording remains in print in the confession, which is named after the abbey of its origin, and also suggested considering a book of confessions.

Isobel Hunter, picture below, an elder who jointly addressed the assembly alongside former Moderator the Very Rev Finlay Macdonald, said: “The Westminster Confession in print to which we all must swear still speaks of the elect who only shall be saved, and of the Popes, the anti-christ and worse.

The Herald:

“Despite almost 400 years of disquiet and unease over the subordinate standard of faith it has not changed since it was written in the seventeenth century.

“To give that context, the confession was adopted at a time when Scotland boasted of being the foremost burner of witches in Europe.

“We have moved on from that.”

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The Kirk earlier moved to distance itself from the wording, stating: “This Church no longer affirms the following contents of the Westminster Confession of Faith that: He (the Pope of Rome) is anti-christ, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ, and all that is called God.”

The Herald:

Above: Very Rev Finlay Macdonald

But the confession also says marriage should be between a man and woman, and, in another section disclaimed by the Kirk, it reads "such as profess the true reformed religion should not marry with Infidels, Papists or other idolators".

Mrs Hunter said that ahead of becoming an elder: “My minister had obtained copies for the two of us who were to be ordained, and included a note with them which said among other things: this edition has made none of the recent changes to the more virulent anti-Catholic sentiments.

“I suspect that is a common misunderstanding, that current printed editions just skip the unacceptable bits. But, no, they are all there in the print.”

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The presbytery called on the Kirk's Theological Forum to "look afresh at the wording and terms of reference of the formula of subscription used in services of ordination".

The Herald:

Rev Gordon Palmer, of Claremont Church in East Kilbride, said: "The overture is not being prescriptive yet nevertheless there is one place where it is making a particular suggestion to explore the possibility of a book of confessions.

"Is it a bit like the patient who goes to a succession of doctors until he or she gets the diagnosis that she wanted or he wanted?"

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Mr Macdonald said it "gives a broader background of faith within the early Church tradition and the Reformed tradition".

He said: "It is not something we are particularly pushing for, what we are pushing for is for this question to be looked at again of a subordinate standard that is taken less than seriously across the church."

Rev Dr John McPake, who is the Church's Ecumenical Officer, said: "In 1986, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland formally dissociated itself from those sections of the  Westminster Confession of Faith (1647) that contained condemnations of the Roman Catholic Church.

"The Church of Scotland enjoys a strong relationship with the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland and we continue to walk together in shared fellowship and witness."