The principal acts of the general assembly, holden and
begun at Edinburgh, May 10, 1750.
I. Sess. 1, May 10, 1750.—The King's Commission to Alexander Earl of Leven produced, and ordered to be recorded.
The General Assembly, &c.
II. Sess. 1, May 10, 1750.—The King's most gracious Letter to the General Assembly,
presented to them by his Majesty's Commissioner.
George, R., &c.
III. Sess. 3, May 12, 1750.—The General Assembly's Answer to the King's most gracious
Letter.
May it please your Majesty, &c.
IV. Sess. 7, May 17, 1750.—Act and Resolution concerning an Application to Parliament
for an Augmentation to Ministers' Stipends.
The General Assembly, considering the distressed circumstances of many ministers
of this Church, arising from the smallness of their stipends, the expense of processes
for augmentations, and the dilatory payment of stipends, do resolve on an humble
application to be made to the King and Parliament for the following purposes:—That
in raising of summonses for modification, locality, or augmentation of stipends, instead of the usual method of summoning by a messenger, it shall be sufficient that a
general citation be made by every parish clerk from his desk, upon a Lord's Day, immediately after divine service in the forenoon, and that letters be written, by the
Moderator of the Presbytery, to the absent heritors, except such as are forth of the
kingdom, who are to be summoned by a messenger, at the market cross of Edinburgh,
pier and shore of Leith: That it shall be in the power of the Moderator, with consent of the Presbytery, to pursue for modification, locality, or augmentation, whether
there be a minister settled in the parish, or the parish be vacant: That ministers'
stipends, if not paid within the year, shall bear interest from the first half year after
they become due: That power be given to the Commission of Teinds to suppress
parishes which they find not proper to be continued separate parishes, and to annex
them to one or more of the adjacent parishes: That the said Commission have likewise a power to alter the divisions of parishes, on a view to divide them as they see
cause. The General Assembly instructs those to be commissioned by them most
humbly to pray for relief in the premises, and for such further relief as to his Majesty
and the two Houses of Parliament shall, in their great wisdom, seem meet. And it
was declared by the Moderator from the chair to be the mind of the Assembly, that,
by this last clause, it was understood, that the commissioners to Parliament might
apply for an increase of the minimum.
V. Sess. 10, May 21, 1750, ante meridiem.—Commission to some Ministers and Ruling
Elders for Reformation of the Highlands and Islands, and for Managing his Majesty's
Royal Bounty for that end.
The General Assembly, &c.
VI. Sess. 10, May 21, 1750, ante meridiem.—Commission to some Ministers and Ruling
Elders for discussing Affairs referred to them.
The General Assembly, &c.
VII. Sess. ult., May 21, 1750, post meridiem.—Congratulatory Address to his Majesty, on the
late increase of the Royal Family, by the birth of a Prince.
TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY,
The humble Address of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
May it please your Majesty,
We, your Majesty's most loyal and dutiful subjects, the ministers and elders of the
Church of Scotland, met in the General Assembly, humbly beg leave to approach
your sacred person, with our sincere and hearty congratulations on the birth of a
young Prince in your illustrious and royal house.
We cheerfully embrace this opportunity to assure your Majesty, that the increase
of the family of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales gives us
the highest and most sensible pleasure, as it is, under God, a pledge of all the happiness of a good government, of all the blessings of religion and liberty to us and to
our latest posterity, as it is the firmest security of the Protestant interest, and of the
peace and freedom of Europe; and as it tends to prevent our fears, and to extinguish
the hopes of the enemies of our country, and of our present happy constitution.
In this, as in many other happy events, we contemplate and adore the wisdom and
goodness of the Divine Providence, and cease not, with most thankful acknowledgments, daily to present our earnest and ardent prayers to the Sovereign of the universe, and our merciful Father in Christ Jesus, to make us, with all the subjects of your
Majesty's happy government, worthy of those instances and proofs of Divine favour.
That your Majesty may be long preserved to reign in the hearts of a free and
flourishing people, and at last receive a crown of unfading glory;—that their Royal
Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, blest in a numerous progeny, his
Royal Highness the Duke, and all the branches of your august family, may live long
the objects of the love and affection of all your faithful subjects; and, having finished
a course of honour and virtue here, may receive the reward of immortal glory, are
the constant and servant prayers of,
May it please your Majesty, your Majesty's most faithful, most dutiful, and
most loyal subjects, the Ministers and Elders met in the National Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
Signed in our name, in our presence, and at our appointment, by
Robert Patoun, Moderator.
VIII. Sess. ult., May 21, 1750, post meridiem.—Act appointing the Diet of the next General
Assembly.
The next General Assembly of this National Church is appointed to be held in
this place, upon the second Thursday of May next, being the 9th day of that
month, in the year 1751.
Collected and extracted from the Records of the General Assembly, by
George Wishart, Cls. Eccl. Scot.
Sess. ult., May 21, 1750.—Overture about the more frequent Celebration of the Lord's
Supper.
(See Act 7th, Assembly, 1751.)
Sess. ult., May 21, 1750.—Overture about the Psalmody.
The General Assembly finding, that, with respect to the overture about the Psalmody, as the Translations and Paraphrases of Sacred Scripture were not transmitted
to Presbyteries since last Assembly, no reports were sent up to this Assembly; but it
being informed that it is now reprinted, with amendments, at sight of the committee of
last Assembly, the General Assembly do transmit the same, as amended, to the several Presbyteries, that they may report their opinion thereupon to the next General
Assembly.
Sess. ult., May 21, 1750.—Overture about Licensing Probationers.
(See 1742 and 1749. This overture is again transmitted, with another slight alteration.)
Sess. ult., May 21, 1750.—Overture anent Presbyteries neglecting to send up their
Opinions on the Overtures transmitted to them by the Assembly.
(See Act 7th, Assembly, 1752.)
Sess. ult., May 21, 1750.—Overture anent Processes against Probationers.
(See 1746 and 1748. Overture re-transmitted.)