Appendix II: Revival of the Order of Deacons Strongly and Immediately Recommended by Ministers and Elders of the Established Church in Edinburgh, 1841

It may not be unknown to the reader, that during the last winter the state of the poor, in connexion with remedial measures, has been a matter of full and anxious consideration by ministers and elders of the Established Church, both in Edinburgh and Glasgow. In the latter an Association was formed, which regularly met once a fortnight. Under its auspices a very interesting course of lectures was delivered, which has since been re-delivered in Edinburgh, and is now in the course of publication. Among many suggestions which have been thrown out for the improvement of the physical, intellectual, moral, and religious condition of the poor, especially in large towns, the subject of the revival of the deaconship was frequently noticed, and though no formal resolution was passed in Glasgow, I may safely say that the proposal was uniformly and unanimously approved as highly important, and fitted, where realised, to be useful in a variety of ways.

In Edinburgh the idea has been embodied in an interesting document, entitled “Statement by a Committee appointed at a Meeting of certain Ministers and Elders of the City Churches to Consider and Report upon the best Means of Promoting the Efficiency of our Parochial Administration.” Among various plans, that of a revival of the deaconship is represented as essential and required to be first and immediately adopted.

With reference, again, to the kind of agency which should be employed, the Committee are unanimously of opinion, that, without superseding the assistance of other visitors, who may be willing to co-operate with them, in discharging the duties which every private Christian may lawfully undertake, with a view to the comfort, improvement, and instruction of his fellow-men, the first measure that should be adopted, is the restoration in all our parishes of the order of deacons,—an order of office-bearers, the institution of which is expressly recorded in the Holy Scriptures (Acts vi.), and recognised by the constitution and standards of the Church of Scotland.¹—“The Scripture doth hold out deacons as distinct officers in the Church—whose office is perpetual; to whose office it belongs, not to preach the Word or administer the sacraments, but to take special care in distributing to the necessities of the poor.”²

Without entering into a detailed description of the duties of deacons and the relation of their office to that of elders, it may suffice to say, in general, that, while much of the benefit which we expect from their being restored in our city churches, will arise from the discharge of duties which are common to them with other office-bearers and even private members of the Church, it is their peculiar and distinctive function to provide for the necessities of the poor, and “especially of those who belong to the household of faith.” The Church is Christ’s almoner; and every congregation is bound, and should deem it a privilege, to supply the wants of its poorer members. And this obligation cannot be said to be discharged when the whole poor of a city are thrown, without distinction of character or condition, on the funds of a workhouse, and no other relief provided for the pious and exemplary, than what is equally given to the profligate. . . . . It cannot be reasonably doubted that their appointment would be attended with the most beneficial effects, inasmuch as many private Christians would most gladly contribute to carry on a system of efficient parochial superintendence, and the wholesome influence of such agency would be felt in a thousand ways, even though the deacons had comparatively little to give in the shape of alms.

The whole subject is most earnestly recommended to the serious and prayerful consideration of the ministers and elders of the Church.

Believing that the reader will be desirous to see the other remedial suggestions of the same report, and that they may be useful in different and distant quarters, I take the liberty to subjoin the remainder of the “Statement.” I have only to add, that it bears the much respected names of the Rev. Messrs Buchanan, C. J. Brown, Guthrie, Sym, and Alexander Dunlop, Esq., elder.

It is universally admitted, that, in the present condition of the city parishes, there are many lamentable evils—spiritual, moral, and economical—which demand the serious attention of every office-bearer in the Church, and loudly call for some prompt and practical remedy.

The habitual non-attendance of multitudes at any place of public worship—the indifference which prevails to a wide extent as to the privilege of communion—the neglect of family worship and instruction—the intemperance and profligacy of some—the imprudent habits of others—the abject poverty of one class—the precarious and ill-remunerated employment of another—the perpetual struggle which many an industrious family must wage with want; and the imminent hazard to which they are exposed of sinking, on any occasion of domestic affliction or stagnation of trade, which forces them to have recourse to the pawnbroker, into utter and hopeless indigence: these may be enumerated as a few of the many evils which require to be redressed.

While there are materials in every parish which may ultimately be made subservient for its internal improvement, in most cases the parishioners must be acted on, in the first instance, ab extra; as, from their practical exclusion from the parish church, they cannot be stimulated by the ordinary means of pastoral influence or public instruction.

There exists, however, in every congregation, a vast fund of moral influence, capable of being made to bear with prodigious and most beneficial effect on the parish; an influence which at present may be said, in a great measure, to be dormant, or to lie waste; and which only requires to be concentrated and directed into the right channels, to accomplish, under the blessing of God, the desired reformation. The exertion of this influence would be “twice blessed;” it would be a blessing to the parishioners, and not less to the members of the congregation itself. “If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness shall be as the noonday,” (Isa. lviii. 10.)

It was long since observed, that, “if any effectual impression is to be made in the moral condition of a parish, it must be by means of a more extensive agency, by which single families may be brought under a course of moral inspection and discipline;” and “that what bids defiance to individual exertion, may be accomplished by extensive co-operation.”³

On this sound and enlightened principle, and with a view to a thorough and pervading system of Christian influence, a large number of office-bearers or agents is required; so that a district might be assigned to each, containing not more than ten or twelve contiguous families. There is reason to believe that many eminent Christians would deem it a privilege, to be engaged in this way in their Master’s service, and to minister to the temporal and spiritual welfare of those of whom He said, “Forasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it unto me.” They would feel it to be a relief to them to have their attention directed to a specified field of Christian exertion, instead of being, as they are, embarrassed and distracted by applications from all quarters, which they can neither altogether refuse, nor yet thoroughly investigate; and if once engaged in this humble but most beneficent enterprise, it is not possible that, with the ordinary feelings of human nature, they should fail to take a deep, and tender, and permanent interest in all the members of those families which have thus been committed to their care. At present, the elders have the same feeling in regard to their districts, of which every faithful minister is conscious in regard to his parish,—that they are too large to be thoroughly pervaded by any moral influence which they can exert; and hence, from the utter hopelessness of doing what is really impracticable, much that might be accomplished by a subdivision of labour is left undone. But with a more extensive agency, and more complete organisation, every difficulty may be surmounted, and the highest hopes of Christian philanthropy fulfilled.

The practical objects to which such an agency should attend, are such as these:—

1. The office-bearer or agent of a Christian Church should make himself thoroughly acquainted with every family intrusted to his care, and gain their confidence and affection, as a friend, in whose kindness they can confide, and from whom they may expect counsel and advice when required.

2. Another object is to see that every family be suitably supplied with Bibles.

3. To see that “every boy in the district be taught to read and write, and every girl to read and sew”.⁴

4. To see that the children go regularly to school, and both parents and children to some place of public worship.

5. To see that they be suitably accommodated with seats, if they wish them, in their parish church.

6. To aid, by advice and influence, in procuring or directing to employment, where it is needed, and especially in procuring situations for girls when they leave school, and are fit for service.

7. To prevent and counteract, as far as possible, the pernicious effects of dependence on public charities—by stimulating their own industry—by procuring temporary private relief when it is absolutely necessary, and especially in the case of industrious families, when they have been visited with domestic affliction, which often reduces them so low, that unless they are relieved promptly and liberally, they can never afterwards recover themselves—and above all, by encouraging habits of economy and saving, so as to provide against the evil day.

The means by which such an agency might accomplish these beneficent objects, are alike simple and efficient. It might be recommended—

1. To visit every family in the district as often as possible, and not less frequently than once a-month. In a district containing twelve families, this might be accomplished at the expense of half an hour a-week.

2. To spend an hour on Sabbath in one or other of the houses (perhaps the better way would be to go round them in rotation), where the children might be assembled for religious instruction in little domestic Sabbath schools, and thus the habit of family instruction and worship might be gradually introduced, especially if the parents were reminded of their duty in this respect, and furnished with some simple manual, expository and devotional.

3. To collect into a deposit fund such small sums as the parents or children might wish to save, and pay them over to the Savings’ Bank. This noble institution, to be extensively available for the benefit of the working-classes, must be worked on the aggressive principle,—as in Liverpool, where agents go round the districts every week, to collect the savings of the poor, and transfer them to the bank, and have in this way accumulated sums to the amount of six thousand pounds.

4. To report cases of sickness to the minister and elders; and when difficulty occurs, or any case requiring peculiar treatment, to bring it under the notice of the elder in the first instance, who may, if necessary, consult with other elders or the minister; and to report generally on the state of the whole district, at a meeting of the agents, with the elders and minister, to be held at stated periods, say once a-quarter.

5. To keep a roll or book of district statistics, containing the names, ages, and occupations of all the members of the various families, to be revised and re-written once a-year, after the term in May, and the old ones preserved for the purpose of comparison.

Many other methods of practical usefulness will readily suggest themselves to a Christian agent, whose heart is in the work; such as the promoting of cleanliness, sufficient ventilation, and many more too minute to be specified, but which, in the aggregate, would confer a general and permanent blessing on every little locality.

That the establishment of some such agency is highly desirable, and loudly called for, in the present circumstances of society, cannot be doubted by any one who is at all conversant with the actual state of our city parishes; and whether it be regarded with reference to the diffusion of saving spiritual instruction, or to the secondary, but still important object of increasing the means of temporal comfort among our parishioners, its value cannot be too highly estimated. It would seem to be the likeliest means, under the Divine blessing, of renewing that friendly intercourse betwixt the different classes of society, which once existed, but which has been too much interrupted by the habits of modern life, and of reviving those reciprocal feelings of kindliness which cannot be allowed to decay without being supplanted by jealousies, which threaten the destruction of all that is bland, and peaceful, and happy in a well-conditioned community. It might exert a prodigious power, in the way of checking intemperance, preventing or curing poverty, and arrest the degeneracy of those who, yielding to the pressure of circumstances, are ready to sink into the most abject debasement. It might save many from the prison and penitentiary, many more from the charity work-house, and more still from the ruinous habit of resorting on every emergency to the pawnbroker’s shop.

If the establishment of such an agency he a desirable object, the only questions which require to be considered are, Is it practicable? and, if it be, What kind of agency should be employed? and, What means can be placed at their disposal?

That the establishment of such an agency is practicable, appears not only from the experience of St John’s parish in Glasgow, and St John’s parish in Edinburgh, as well as others which might be mentioned; but from the declared willingness of many Christian men to lend their aid in promoting these great objects of Christian philanthropy.⁵

While there can be no question that much may be done in this way to ameliorate the whole character and condition, especially of the humbler classes in society,—while partial success can be appealed to in a case known to the writer of several years’ duration; it is right, at the same time, to bear in mind, in order to prevent disappointment and the waste of resources on impracticable or doubtful expedients, that it is only an approximation which after all is attainable,—that it must be extremely difficult to work machinery of such immense magnitude,—that there is great fluctuation among the agents, and no small danger of their getting wearied and falling away in the course of time. Not at all in the spirit of discouragement, but rather to prevent exaggerated hopes, which are always injurious, I beg to subjoin the following facts, which go far to shew that the visitations and superintendence of private Christians, however important in their own place, cannot be depended on as a substitute for the regular and appropriate parochial machinery of the Christian Church. It must only be employed as a help and a supplement; so contemplated, it is highly useful and may experimentally convince not a few who now hang back from bearing office in the Christian Church (though solicited in the providence of God to do so,) that there is nothing so very formidable in the moral and religious charge of a limited number of families, as should discourage them from undertaking it. Still the only security for a permanent and trustworthy provision is the extensive subdivision of parishes, and the appointment of truly evangelical pastors, elders, and deacons, to a manageable population.

The Rev. Mr Gibson of Glasgow, whose services to the Established Church in various ways, and in connexion with the inquiries of the Religious Instruction Commissioners among others, are well known and appreciated, proved before the Board, from unquestionable authority, that a single successful territorial church in Glasgow exceeded, in point of moral and religious result, the attainments of extensive associations numbering many visitors: such are the fluctuations and uncertainties which belong to the operations of a visiting society of private Christians, however estimable. The facts are undeniable, resting chiefly on the acknowledgment of intelligent visitors themselves. One minister had in his congregation 30 agents at the time he gave his evidence; at the time of the report of the association, two months subsequently, they had fallen to 14; by the time of the printing of the report again, they had risen to 22. Another minister in a single year lost 10 agents and 6 meetings; and with regard to the success of the scheme in drawing out the people to receive religious instruction, a society with 50 agents and 11 stations had an attendance of from 15 to 75 persons each. Taking 30 as a fair average, we have here 330, while a single new church has been the means of drawing to the worship of God between 200 and 300 who had not been in the habit of attending any place of worship before, independently of a large general congregation: this was stated in evidence. It may be added, that the labour of the different instruction societies and city missions have not been instrumental in raising a single place of worship. These facts are stated, not for the purpose of disparaging the labours of private Christians, or of the modes of instruction which in some of the large towns is pursued—far from it; it is believed that much good is, with the Divine blessing, wrought out by such channels,—good, for which it becomes every Christian to be thankful, even had it been much less than it really is. But in comparing different means of good, it is well to know which is the more successful, and to be guarded against exaggerated expectations from what at first sight seems fair. It is always matter of regret where superior instrumentality is neglected or not applied, in consequence of a preference for what is supposed to be as good, while experience has proved its inferiority. In this way, both time and resources are relatively lost, and faithful men are discouraged. At the same time, in the absence of the best, every intelligent Christian must of course choose the next best,—any thing is better than utter sloth and indifference to the spiritual welfare of our fellow-men.