A Sad Departure
why we could not stay in the Church of Scotland
| Weight | 0.30 kg |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 21.5 × 13.6 × 1.3 cm |
| ISBN | 9781848716612 |
| Binding | Paperback, eBook (ePub & Kindle), Paperback & eBook (ePub & Kindle) |
| format | Book |
| topic | Church Issues/Unity, History and Biography |
| page-count | 216 |
Endorsement
‘David Randall has written a lucid manifesto explaining why he and others are leaving the Church of Scotland now. While that may seem a narrow issue of no concern to believers in the rest of the world, it is certainly not. The arguments he proffers for departure from this historic church stand equally true and compelling for any believer or pastor in any denomination which has officially allowed a departure from the Word of God.’ , JOHN MACARTHUR
Book Description
If you care at all about the Christian church you must brace yourself for a roller coaster of emotions as you read A Sad Departure.
The title contains a double entendre. On the one hand it alludes to the departure from the Church of Scotland of about forty ministers and many members. On the other hand it refers to the catalyst of these actions – the departure of the Kirk from its moorings in the authority of Scripture by its decisions on ‘the gay question’.
A Sad Departure tells a dark story, almost novelesque in character. A church’s Theological Commission reaches a unanimous conclusion on the teaching on marriage given in its ultimate authority, the Bible. But then its General Assembly acts in a way that ignores, demeans, and rejects that teaching. Thus behind these sad departures lies the prior and much sadder departure of the Kirk from its sacred constitution.
This is a thoughtful, honest and solemnising book written out of a deep personal and pastoral concern for the cause of the gospel.
– From the Foreword by Sinclair B. Ferguson
Table of Contents Expand ↓
| Foreword by Sinclair B Ferguson | vii | |
| 1 | Introduction – What’s the Problem? | 1 |
| 2 | Recent General Assemblies | 21 |
| 3 | To Leave or Not to Leave? | 35 |
| 4 | ‘Reach Me that Bible’ | 53 |
| 5 | ‘Scripture Cannot Be Broken’ | 71 |
| 6 | A Little History | 97 |
| 7 | What Now? | 119 |
| 8 | A Selection of Stories and Testimonies | 133 |
| Appendix: Ministers and Congregations | 183 | |
| Bibliography | 187 | |
| Index of Scripture References | 191 | |
| General Index | 195 |
Full Appendices
- Read the full version of Chapter 8 here.
REVIEW
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Reviewing ‘A Sad Departure: Why We could not stay in the Church of Scotland’ (Foreword)
A Sad Departure is an evaluation of the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly to depart from the teachings of scripture and a record of the experiences of ministers, churches and Christians who have had to depart from the Church of Scotland. The title is also a play on words – ‘A Sad Departure’ is not only a reference to those who have had to leave the Church of Scotland – it is a reference to the fact that the Church of Scotland has departed from its scriptural moorings.
The author is David J. Randall, a respected Church of Scotland minister who was ‘born and bred’ in the denomination and served as a minister for almost four decades. In his foreword, Sinclair Ferguson highlights, “David Randall is not, then, a hot-headed, division-creating, young rebel. He is rather a man whose record of humble and fruitful service, matched by very few, has, as they say, ‘earned him the right to be heard”
Who should read it? All Christians. Why? This book, whilst primarily being an account of the Church of Scotland is also about the church in Scotland. If anyone cares about the church, and the cause of the gospel in Scotland – and indeed the western-world, this book is a must-read. Not least because there is a prophetic call – a call that is requiring of God’s people faithfulness, prayerfulness and obedience to the revealed truths of scripture. As Ferguson writes, ‘A Sad Departure’ is, “a heart cry that God would raise up leaders like those from Issachar, ‘men who understand the times, to know what Israel ought to do’” (1 Chron. 12:32).