Catholic/Presbyterian History in Scotland

[ChrisB12345]

Can anyone out there help me find resources, Books, Articles, Web sites, etc. to research History of Religion in Scotland. In particular, Catholic History & Presbyterian History.

I'm Catholic and My wife's family is Presbyterian and their last name is "McDonald."
They act as if everything Scottish is exclusively Presbyterian.
My In-laws are Anti-Catholic, and my wife has converted to the Catholic Church last year,....think of the problems!

I've been studing the differences in doctrines between the two Churches but I'm ignorant of Scottish history in the area of these two Churches.

Can anyone Help?

Thanks! Chris

Fear_nam_Beanntan are you out there?

[Fear_nam_Beanntan]

A quick google search yielded the following:

http://www.scottishchristian.com/churches/index.shtml

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12392b.htm

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13627a.htm

[ChrisB12345]

Thanks for the Direction!!

Chris

[JKennedy]

Thanks for the links.

Chris,
My wife's family is Irish Catholic, and I'm Scottish Presbyterian. In their opinon Presbyterian is not a religion. Fortunately I live in a place where it doesn't matter. It caused me some grief, but I am over it now.

I find the religious history of Scotland very interesting also, but I am no expert in study or in practice. You might also try St. Francis Xavier University of Antigonish Nova Scotia, as it was founded by Scottish Catholics. I hesitate to say Scottish Catholic because the term Catholic is used even within the Presbyterian Church. Scottish Roman Catholic doesn't seem right either. It would be interesting to study how Catholicism was practiced in Scotland over the years, compared with Ireland and Europe.

My understanding is that gaelic speaking areas of the Highlands and Islands were predominantly Roman Catholic, but probably not so today. I would imagine that the highland clearances affected people of all faiths, but likely affected Scottish Catholics to a greater extent. I understand that most Roman Catholics that emmigrated to Nova Scotia did so to the Cape Breton Highlands and Antigonish, perhaps because there were Acadian French Catholics there ahead of them. Pictou county is more protestant I believe. My town of Saint John is predominantly Irish Roman Catholic, but the current bishop is a Scot, Faber MacDonald from Prince Edward Island. So there are Scottish Catholics in Prince Edward Island also. I understand MacDonalds to be predominantly Roman Catholic but I know there are variances within clans. I know the Frasers were both, and settled in different parts of Nova Scotia accordingly.

Interestly, much of the division over religion in Scotland has been within presbyterianism rather than between Catholics and Protestants. A lot of it has to do with the church swinging between various forms of pro-independance (old coventanters) and pro-union with England (in various forms and to varying degrees). Be sure and read about the old covenanters and the current Wee Free. The history on the Protestant side is far more complicated, being caught up in the changing politics of Scottish history over the years, and still today. I think you would need several sources from several time periods to understand this fully. Also, much of the history has been buried with martyrs of various causes and persuassions, or exported overseas. I believe many protestants supported the Jacobite cause, not because they were pro-catholic, but because that movement was consistent with the spirit of the original covenanter movement. That is, Scotland has been more concerned with independance from England than from Rome. The truth is, she probably wanted both, and peace and independance amongst one another also.

Interestingly, both Presbyterianism and Roman Catholicism (as opposed to early Celtic Catholicism) came to Scotland from England. It is a cruel irony of history that much of the grief suffered by Highlanders was suffered by Lowlanders before them, and in Wales before them, and in England before them, and in Normandy before them, and in Norway before them. I think its all the King of Norways fault. He seems like such a pleasant chap today.

Today we think of the Celtic Clan structure as being rather pastoral and even socialist. I would imagine that the people before them had an entirely different perspective. I like the Picts Song by Rudyard Kipling.

p.s. There is a myth about McDonalds being Roman Catholic and MacDonalds being Protestant. Nonsense.

p.p.s Don't underestimate direct communion with God. I haven't been all that successful myself, but I imagine it could come in handy.

p.p.p.s Interesting snippet on Scottish Gaelic, Scottish Nationalist Party, and the Wee Free:
http://www.ecmi.de/jemie/download/JE...od28-11-01.pdf

[Edited by JKennedy on 16th May 2004 at 14:47]

[exp]

Hello, while was doing research of my own, a librarian suggested that I read " Boswell Journal". It is an account of a spiritual journy in the 1850's to measure the spiritual health of Scotland. Found it to be great reading. Several religions have been established by Scot's. Good hunting exp.. p. s. because of a fire onthe Isle of Skye's records building around 1850, it is hard to find family info for there. also the clearence's were a time they didnt want to remember...