Scotch-Irish-L Archives

Archiver > Scotch-Irish > 1997-05 > 0864599167


From: Kathryn Parks <>
Subject: War Stories
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 17:26:07 -0500


TALL TALES AND TRUE STORIES by Kathryn Parks

I was not fortunate enough to meet my Grandma, Florence Kenyon Bowman,
but I did hear many of the stories that she told to my dad and
brothers. I have been told that she was a great story teller and I wish
I could have been there to hear her tell her tall tales and true
stories. I am going to try to retell some of the stories I have heard
from others to preserve them for my grandchildren and other family
members. These stories should be saved so future generations will know
something of their roots.

=93If a man cares not for his roots, how then can he care for his
branches?=94 =20
by
Doyle M. Davis
=20
The Confederate Soldiers

Then there was the time Grandpa Kenyon was drinking in a bar just
after the Civil War had ended. Suddenly three Confederate soldiers came
into the bar. One of Grandpa=92s friends, makes me wonder about his
friends, dared him to stand on the bar and shout =93Hoo-rah* for the
Union! Hoo-rah*
for General Grant.=94 Grandpa was not one to turn down a dare. So he
stood up, shouted for all to hear the words that were meant to anger the
Confederates. It angered them all right and the fight was on. Grandpa
beat up the three soldiers, took a pair of brass knuckles away from one
of them, and won another battle for the Union. I remember seeing those
same brass knuckles when I was a small child.

*note: I know that hoo-ray is spelled incorrectly here, but hoo-rah is
the way Grandpa pronounced it when he told it to Grandma Bowman and my
dad. They passed it on that way to my brothers. Brother Kenneth then
passed it on to me in the same way.

I guess by now you realize that my great-grandpa really enjoyed a
good fight. He could have, however, chosen some better types of
friend. The next story emphasizes this point again. I call it:

The Spice of Life

Grandpa Kenyon heard from a friend that several men were wanting to
pick a fight with him. I guess his reputation for fighting was well
known. Grandpa knew that he was going to be out-numbered so he figured
out a plan to even things up a little bit. He took out an old, Union
Army cap, filled it with red pepper, placed it on his head and went on a
search for the men who wanted to fight him. When he found them, the
fighting started with a vengeance. The situation began to look pretty
bad for Grandpa so he took off his cap and flung the red pepper into
their eyes. It may not have been a fair way to end the fight, but it
was the safest way for Grandpa!

The White Horse

Grandpa Kenyon fought at the Battle of Shiloh under General
Sherman. During the battle, a Southern Gentleman, as Grandpa called
him, was killed and Grandpa captured his large white horse. Grandpa
took the horse with him to the battle of Vicksburg and other battles.=20
When Sherman left Atlanta on his way to Savannah, Grandpa went along
with his horse and scouted out supplies for the troops. General Grant
had cut all supply lines from Washington to the troops and made the
Union soldiers live off the=20
land. This was one of the reasons the Union was successful in defeating
the Confederacy.
After reaching Savannah,Georgia, Grandpa took the horse to his home
to be used as a farm horse. The horse lived a long time and made a
reliable work horse. No one knows for sure which Southern General was
the Southern Gentleman who was killed. Someday we may find out. One
theory is that he was Confederate General Albert Sydney Johnston who was
killed at Shiloh.

Now a Confederate Story:

James Franklin told a story of his brother Benjamin running away at the
age of 16 to Virginia to his brother, James Franklin, to join the army.=20
Jim tried to get him to go back home but Benjamin said, "Jim, I'll not
do it. There's never been a bullet made that can kill me." He stayed
and fought like an older person would. He didn't get a scratch on him.=20
Benjamin left Georgia after the war and went to Florida and lived and
died down there.

Now a neutral story:

Grandmother in the Slave Quarters

One of Mother=92s grandmothers was a child during the Civil War.=20
Although her family didn=92t own slaves, slaves would play an important
part in her life. I believe this story took place during the fighting
called "Bloody Kansas". That is where my ggrandmother lived during the
war.

One night, Union soldiers were supposed to be coming to attack the
settlement where Great-grandmother lived. The soldiers know that the
large settlement was neutral, but they were afraid that it would one day
side with the Confederates. The rumor was that the soldiers were going
to burn and pillage the town. With the men away, the women and
children didn=92t know what they were going to do to protect themselves.

The raid did take place that night. Some of the slaves, who
belonged to neighboring plantations, took the women and children and hid
them in the slave quarters so that the Union soldiers couldn=92t find
them. This probably saved their lives.

Most of the Stults families remained neutral during the Civil War.=20
They were for State=92s Rights and believed that each state should rule
itself. They did not believe in slavery and felt that if you owned
land, then you should be willing to work on it.

Kathryn

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #2
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 18:13:25 -0500
From: Edward Dougherty <>
To: "James H. O'Neall" <>, "''" <>
Cc: "'Scotch-Irish List'" <>
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Re: American Memorial Day
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

I agree with Jim, and please don't forget the Korean War, and Vietnam. We
lost a few there as well, and they definitely need to be remembered, from
the crunching snow to the monsoon rains!!! Ed Dougherty

----------
> From: James H. O'Neall <>
> To: ''
> Cc: 'Scotch-Irish List' <>
> Subject: RE: American Memorial Day
> Date: Sunday, May 25, 1997 4:10 PM
>
> Linda you wrote;
> Does anyone have a clue if visiting graves is Irish or Scots or both
> (I'm
> sucha a hopeless mix, I donno)
>
>
> In my area of the USA (Central or Mid-West to some)
> It all began as you stated earlier with the commemoration
> of the dead of the Civil War. Then it resumed in earnest
> following the wars of WWI and WWII, somewhere during that
> time the practice of Memorial Day being a day of remembrance
> of the War dead was transformed to a day to remember all those
> who have gone on before. Memorial Day Observances here still
> reflect the Military dead but go far beyond that realm. It too is a day
> of the gathering of family at gravesites and the first holiday week-end
> and the beginning of the warm weather, the first chance for picnics
> and outdoor family gatherings of the season. For those of us in
> areas of any country with four distinct seasons this has become
> a very important day of family uniting once again without the winter
> delays and uncertainties of travel. It also comes at a time of year
> that celebrates the end or nearly the end of school terms, thus another
> reason to celebrate. The somber mood of Memorial Days of the past
> have given way to somber moments highlighted with jubilant family
> gatherings recounting stories of yesteryear, meeting people, at the
> cemeteries, you haven't seen since last year or maybe longer, Hearing
> your alma-mater band play familiar melodies and connecting for ever
> so briefly with the loved ones gone before at their grave site.
> It's a wonderful day of very mixed emotions, one relives the sadness
> of remembering the loss of someone close and the joy of remembering
> the good times and remeeting persons from the past. A wonderful
> day.
> As far as to whether it is Irish or Scots - I think the national origin
> is of little consequence for I think the practice of visiting grave sites
> is a universal custom and one I endorse with whole heartedness.
>
> Thanks
> Jim
>

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #3
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 19:05:29 -0400
From: Mohr Family <>
To: "S. Deem" <>
CC: , ,
Message-ID: <>
Subject: Re: American Memorial Day
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

I love all these stories. I could read them all day. I'm the little
kid that, instead of running off to play, would always sit under the
table or near the adults so I could hear their stories.

Karen Mohr


S. Deem wrote:
>
> Ah, yes, I too remember the older family traveling to the gravesites. It
> was an all day thing. My grandmother told me of going in horse and wagon
> w/picnic lunch and traveling from graveyard to graveyard. Of course, later
> in cars, but still continued til they all died. Now, the tradition is not
> observed as "religiously" as then, but we still go to pay our respects. We
> in Indiana go to several public services remembering the fallen ones in
> battles past. My grandparents were from southern IL. Our children, most
> not having ever been touched by war, just don't understand the reverence of
> why we do this. I pray they don't have to experience war to learn to
> "reverence" the ones who paid the supreme sacrifice of their life.
> Shirley Deem

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #4
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 20:27:29 -0300
From: (Brian McConnell)
To:
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Ulster Scots Suggested Reading List and Contact List
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

For the assistance of persons doing historical, cultural or genealogical
research into Scots-Irish, the following is a suggested reading list and
address contact list prepared by the Ulster Scottish Society of Canada.
This is not intended to be a comprehensive list. Rather, it is hoped it
will be of assistance to persons interested in learning more about the
Ulster Scots (Scots-Irish).

ULSTER SCOTS GENERAL READING

Charles A. Hanna, "The Scotch-Irish, The Scot in North Britain, North
Ireland, and North America", 2 Volumes, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc.,
Baltimore, U.S.A., 1995 (Available from Hearthstone Bookshop, 5745-A
Telegraph Rd., Alexandria, Virginia 22303 U.S.A.; Phone 703-960-0086, Fax
703-960-0087)

James A. Leyburn, "The Scotch-Irish, A Social History", The University of
North Carolina Press, 1962 (Available from Hearthstone Bookshop as noted above)

ULSTER AND SCOTLAND

Michael Hall, "Ulster's Scottish Connection", Island Publications,
Newtownabey, Northern Ireland, 1993 (Available from Read Ireland Bookstore,
T/A Phibsboro Bookshop, 342 North Circular Road, Phibsboro, Dublin 7,
Ireland; Phone 353-1-8309828; Fax 353-1-8302997)

Ian S. Wood (editor), "Scotland and Ulster", The Mercat Press, Edinburgh,
Scotland, 1994 (Available from Read Ireland Bookstore as noted above)

GENEALOGY

Robert Bell, "The Book of Ulster Surnames", Blackstaff Press, Belfast,
Northern Ireland, 1990 (Available from Hearthstone Bookshop as noted above)

Edward MacLysaght, "Irish Families, Their Names, Arms and Origins", Irish
Academic Press, Dublin, 1991 (Available from Kennys Bookshops & Galleries
Ltd., High Street, Galway, Ireland, Phone 353-91-562739, Fax 353-91-568544,
Email: )

ULSTER HISTORY

Jonathon Bardon, "A History of Ulster", Blackstaff Press, Belfast, Northern
Ireland, 1996 (Available from Hearthstone Bookshop as noted above)

Ian Adamson, "The Ulster People, Ancient, Medieval, and Modern", Pretani
Press, Bangor, Northern Ireland, 1991 (Available from Pretani Press, P.O.
Box 3046, Everett, WA 98203 U.S.A.; Phone 360-653-5255; Fax 360-658-4308)

LANGUAGE

James Fenton, "The Hamely Tongue", Ulster Scots Academic Press, Newtownards,
Northern Ireland, 1995 (Available from Pretani Press as noted above)

Roger Blaney, "Presbyterians and the Irish Language", Ulster Historical
Foundation, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1996 (Available from Ulster
Historical Foundation, Balmoral Buildings, 12 College Square East, Belfast,
BT1 6DD Northern Ireland)

"Hairts o Greba, Memories of life at Mid Isle, Greyabbey", Tape by Will
McAvoy recorded for The Ulster Scots Language Society, 1996. (Available from
The Ulster-Scots Language Society, 24 Thornhill Park, Belfast BT5 7AR
Northern Ireland and from The Ulster-Scots Academic Press, 17 Main Street,
Conlig, Newtownards BT23 3PT Northern Ireland)

Padraig O Snodaigh, "Hidden Ulster, Protestants and the Irish Language",
Lagan Press, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1995 (Available from Read Ireland
Bookstore or Kennys Bookshops & Art Galleries Ltd. as both noted above)

LIST OF ULSTER SCOTS (SCOTS-IRISH) CONTACTS:

UNITED STATES

The Scotch-Irish Foundation and the Scotch-Irish Society of the United
States of America, c/o John MacPherson, P.O. Box 181, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 U.S.A.

CANADA

The Ulster Scottish Society of Canada, c/o Brian McConnell, P.O. Box 1239,
Digby, Nova Scotia BOV 1AO Canada

NORTHERN IRELAND

Ulster-Scots Heritage Council, c/o Dr. John Nelson, Drumcorran, 1902
Carrickfergus Road, Larne, County Antrim, BT40 3JX Northern Ireland

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #5
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 19:44:36 -0500
From: "Jerry Feltman" <>
To: "Scotch Irish (To post)" <>
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Macky / Mackey
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

We are researching the Macky family in Northern Ireland, area of Coleraine
and
Portstewart. Upon emigrating to the States spelling changed in some cases
to Mackey. Many members emigrated at different times to different parts
of the country, PA, GA, SC, ect. Any help on ANY Macky or Mackey would be
greatly appreciated.
Jerry


______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #6
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 20:42:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: (Audrey Smith)
To:
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Northern Ireland Families
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Greetings:

I am looking for information on the following families from various parts of
Northern Ireland.

McCrillis - Aghadowey
McCutcheon - Omagh
McBeigh, McBey - Omagh
Rainey - Belfast
McClure - County Down

I would be interested in suggestions for places to get information or in
information itself regarding these families. Thank you in advance for your
help.

Micki

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #7
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 20:50:10 -0500
From: Edward Dougherty <>
To: <>,
"Audrey Smith" <>
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Re: Northern Ireland Families
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Micki, Let me reccomend a man in Donegal who is an authority on NI names.
His name is Patrick Dougherty, and he can be reached at
<. Good Luck in your search. Ed

----------
> From: Audrey Smith <>
> To:
> Subject: Northern Ireland Families
> Date: Sunday, May 25, 1997 7:42 PM
>
> Greetings:
>
> I am looking for information on the following families from various parts
of
> Northern Ireland.
>
> McCrillis - Aghadowey
> McCutcheon - Omagh
> McBeigh, McBey - Omagh
> Rainey - Belfast
> McClure - County Down
>
> I would be interested in suggestions for places to get information or in
> information itself regarding these families. Thank you in advance for
your
> help.
>
> Micki

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #8
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 20:30:53 -0700
From: linda <>
To:
Message-ID: <>
Subject: Re: War Stories --
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Dear Kathryn,

Thanks for your stories, I know they are not told with the intent
of re-igniting the War between the States! In case the Canadians,
Australians, Scots, English, and Ulstermen haven't noticed -- this
is STILL a touchy subject in the USA which has not yet ceased to divide
us.

Perhaps it is time to reflect on our common heritage, which is that
no matter what side of what conflict we were on, we are a fighting breed
of people. And whether we in Ulster or wherever, we like to remind
ourselves of it. And in most of the wars which have been fought,
ourselves have done well and generally provided the leadership.

This tradition began at places like Enniskillen and the Boyne, and
in Great Britain, continued on through Waterloo and the Somme. Not
only did some of us wrest the 13 colonies from the Crown, but others
saved Canada for the Crown.

Did you know that the Alamo was a Scotch-Irish event? Thirteen men
from the State of Tennessee, all Ulster Scots, died there.

When Robert E Lee was asked who made the best soldiers he replied
"The Scotch who came to this country by way of Ireland".

Union leaders of Ulster Scots background included Grant, McClelland,
mcPherson, and McDowell. On the Confederate: Johnston, Polk, Stuart,
and Stonewall Jackson (also Baron Fain's ancestor).

I'm curious about whether customs in Ulster resemble those practiced
in the USA -- not fighting amongst yerselves!!! I mean visiting graves
and all? And is there a difference in custom with the Irish?

Linda Merle

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #9
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 20:52:54 -0700
From: linda <>
To: "Geoffrey T. McGrath" <>
CC: "''" <>
Message-ID: <>
Subject: Re: Help
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Hi Geoff,

> Hi Folks..I'm kinda new to the list ..anyway, I am researching the following names and would be grateful for any info anyone would have..

We've had a number of requests for what sounds like how to I start
information. I'll post a summary of internet resources later when
I get a little time, but for starters, you should write down everything
you know about yourself and your ancestors.(birth, deaths, locations).
Any oral history you have too. You can place this information into
genealogical charts.

Anyone know where there are any downloadable Pedigree sheets, family
group sheets, etc on line? You have small children who will appreciate
knowing. My mother put together our family years ago and gave us each a
copy of her book. It has a lot of reproductions of documents like the
document my great grandfather Peter Mason signed giving up allegiance
to Queen Victoria when he became an American citizen, the war records
for our ancester in the Civil War, family recipes for farls and
Christmas
pudding. She included a lot of detail about our grandparents and past
generations. She has family charts and individual ones.
She identifies grave sites, when known. My ancestors were early
settlers
in Western PA, so there are a number of locations named after various
family branches. She reproduced photos of as many ancesters as she could
find. When my daughter was little she LOVED looking at it. A lot of
friends
do too. It's the stories and the photos.

So especially focus on your parents and grandparents if they are alive,
and get
all the stories you can out of them. Your children, grandchildren, and
great
grandchildren will love them, and you'll be giving them an absolutely
priceless
legacy. Once those old stories are lost -- they are gone forever.

Also you can start moving back in time. From birth certificates or
family
Bibles, locate data on the previous generation. If you or anyone else
have
specific questions to ask the group, let us know.

Seems to me we had a discussion on "Lamont" -- isn't it originally a
highlander
name? It was one of the clans which didn't fair well at Glencoe, isn't
it?
We had a discussion about how so many highland surnames ended up in
Ulster
since James attempted to exclude them from the Plantation. You have any
idea
if your ancestors came by way of the lowlands or did some
English-dodging?

Wasn't "MacRae" originally "Campbell"?

We've learned that a lot of the records in PRONI are on LDS film. Is
there
a Mormon Family History Center in the Panama?? If there is you can
probably
go there and do a lot of research.

Sometimes people seem to think genealogy is all about surnames, but the
most
enjoyable and insightful parts are the stories -- the oral history, and
the
sharing with your family.

Check out the list web page for ideas on the records which do exist:

http://members.aol.com/Manus/ulsterref.html

Regards,

Linda Merle

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #10
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 22:57:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Aprille C. McKay" <>
To: Scotch-Irish mailing list <>
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Presbyterian History Website
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

Hi,
I'm a new member of this mailing list, but have a real interest in the
history of the Presbyterian Church. Look at my website at
http://sdsspc1.physics.lsa.umich.edu/amckay/presintr.htm for hundreds of
biographies of Presbyterians born before 1800 and some histories of early
congregations.

If anybody has data and/or links you'd like to suggest for the site, I'd
love to receive them. I'm not particularly an expert (yet) but I'm
becoming one.

Aprille Cooke McKay

1409 Granger Ave.
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #11
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 23:40:27 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Aprille C. McKay" <>
To: Scotch-Irish mailing list <>
Message-Id: <>
Subject: Re: Presbyterian History Website
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

Its me again. For some reason the server where my website lives is not
working tonight. I think that there is some construction being done in
the building where it sits and the power is off. SOOOO --- Don't try to
access my site because it won't work. Sorry. Do try it on Tuesday
though.

Aprille Cooke McKay

1409 Granger Ave.
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104

On Sun, 25 May 1997, Aprille C. McKay wrote:

> Hi,
> I'm a new member of this mailing list, but have a real interest in the
> history of the Presbyterian Church. Look at my website at
> http://sdsspc1.physics.lsa.umich.edu/amckay/presintr.htm for hundreds of
> biographies of Presbyterians born before 1800 and some histories of early
> congregations.
>
> If anybody has data and/or links you'd like to suggest for the site, I'd
> love to receive them. I'm not particularly an expert (yet) but I'm
> becoming one.
>
> Aprille Cooke McKay
>
> 1409 Granger Ave.
> Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104
>
>
>

______________________________
------------------------------

X-Message: #12
Date: Mon, 26 May 1997 02:02:58 -0700
From: linda <>
To:
Message-ID: <>
Subject: On Covenanters
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Hi, some time ago we had a discussion on religion which involved
attempting to differentiate Presbyterianism and dissenters. (Some
of my ancestors were Covenanters -- so they interest me and a few
others here). I had wanted to post an explanation which I had received
some time ago on this topic from a Covenantor living in NI. In
the USA my ancestors merged with the Reformed Presbyterian, but in
NI the Covenentor church continues to exist independently of the
Reformed Presbyterian. I have received permission from Trevor to
post his response, so here it is.

I offer it as an academic interest. I prefer not to refight 17th century
Scottish religious wars on this list. However many Covenanters fled
Scotland and moved to NI and then later came to the colonies. Their
records are not in the same locations as non dissenting Presbyterians --
so it's important to understand the history so you can find them. I
gather there are few records in Ulster -- but you can pick them up
in Scotland before they got to NI. Anyone had any experience doing this
research??

[Trevor's accounting, below, seems to fit fairly well with the Reformed
Presbyterian church history I was taught; so I suspect it is a fair
representation of Covenantor theology. I also beleive Puritans taught
Covenating at the national level. Anyone know for sure??]

Linda Merle

> > > What's the relationship to Presbyterianism? The kind which began
> > > as Covenanter?
>
> When the Reformation got off the ground in Europe, it was applied in
> slightly different ways in different locations. Geneva became the
> centre of John Calvin's ministry and was the catalyst for other
> similar works around Europe. His own work was hampered to some
> degree by the city fathers, but his disciples took away the
> principles and worked on them. Each succeeding generation stood upon
> the shoulders of the previous one, so that the doctrinal positions
> and their practical outworking were gradually refined and made ever
> more consistently Biblical (or not).
>
> This progression of thought came to its highest development in
> Scotland, where George Wishart, John Knox, Patrick Hamilton,
> Alexander Henderson took the political and national aspects further
> than had been possible in Geneva. This continued with Samuel
> Rutherford, George Gillespie, James Renwick and Richard Cameron. There
> was an effort to obtain a common standard throughout the three
> kingdoms (England, Scotland & Ireland) which resulted in the Solemn
> League & Covenant (A.D. 1643) and also the Westminster Confession and
> associated standards.
>
> I'll discuss the theology below, but for now, the Reformed Churches
> divided into Lutheran (mainly in German-speaking areas & Scandinavia);
> Anglican or Episcopal (in England and parts of Ireland); Continental
> Reformed (in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Hungary) and Presbyterian
> (in Scotland, Ulster & "Scots-Irish-settled areas of the Colonies).
>
> Within Presbyterianism, there was originally a great deal of emphasis
> on God's Covenant mercy & promises. Alongside this went an emphasis
> on covenant response on several levels, but especially at the levels
> of personal, ecclesiastical and civil (or national) covenanting. In
> other words, God in the Scriptures had said to those who believed, "I
> will be your God and you will be My people". This was expanded into
> the formal covenants which you read in the Scriptures where God
> pronounces blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience to the
> terms of the covenant (Deuteronomy ch. 28-29). The covenant was
> unilaterally imposed by God in the same loving way that parents
> impose baptism on their infant children. It is applied to them and
> there is nothing they can do to escape it. They may repudiate it
> later, but that only brings the curses upon them; or they may embrace
> the covenant and make it a part of their life, in which case they
> inherit the blessings promised by God. Part of the obligation of the
> covenant is to perpetuate it and teach its requirements to your
> children. It was at this point that the Covenanters differed from
> the established religion and 18,000 of them died in Scotland & Ulster
> because they refused to deny their faith.
>
> >From the time of the Scottish Reformation under John Knox, the
> ratification and renewing of covenants was repeated at intervals by
> all ranks in church and state. In 1638, the National Covenant was
> signed and in 1643, the Solemn League & Covenant was signed by the
> three kingdoms to promote unity within English-speaking Christendom.
> Unfortunately, this was not kept faithfully in England and there
> followed warfare between the English Commonwealth and the Scottish
> Covenanters in which the latter were militarily defeated and the
> General Assembly of the Church of Scotland was supressed. Following
> the Restoration of the Monarchy, all Acts passed by Church or state
> during the Interregnum (1649 - 1660) were declared invalid. The
> Covenanters refused to accept this and the Killing Times ensued from
> 1662 onwards. They were slaughtered in their homes, and on the
> battlefield. Divine worship was forbidden, except in the established
> church and open-air conventicles with armed guards posted were held
> on remote moors.
>
> Following the Revolution of 1688, civil & religious liberty were
> enshrined in the Bill of Rights and the persecution of the faithful
> ceased. However, the Covenants were not re-instated and the Church
> divided. The Resolutioners returned to the established church and the
> Protesters continued to preach in the Covenanting tradition. Both
> groups believe in the national establishment of the Christian
> religion. The North American notion of a pluralist - polytheistic
> separation of religion from the issues of state is completely foreign
> to Covenanting thought. The current Reformed Presbyterian
> denominations are a part of this school. So were the now extinct
> Original Secession churches, but they applied the doctrine of
> covenant response only to the individual and the church, but not to
> the state.

This thread: