Position in Scottish Society
The 2001 Census
| Religion | Percentage of population |
|---|---|
| Church of Scotland | 42.4% |
| No religion | 27.5% |
| Roman Catholic | 15.9% |
| Other Christian | 6.8% |
| No answer | 5% |
| Islam | 0.8% |
| Buddhism | 0.1% |
| Sikhism | 0.1% |
| Judaism | 0.1% |
| Hinduism | 0.1% |
| Other religions | 0.5% |
| Religion in Scotland |
|---|
|
The Church of Scotland has around 995 active ministers, 1,118 congregations, and its official membership at approximately 446,000 comprises about 9% of the population of Scotland. Official membership is down some 65% from its peak in 1957 of 1.32 million.; note though that in the 2001 national census, 42% of Scots identified their religion as "Church of Scotland". The Church of Scotland Guild, the Kirk's historical women's movement, is still the largest voluntary organisation in Scotland.
Although it is the national church, the Kirk is not a "state church"; this and other regards makes it dissimilar to the Church of England (the established church in England). Under its constitution (recognised by acts of Parliament), the Kirk enjoys complete independence from the state in spiritual matters. When in Scotland, the British monarch simply attends church, as opposed to her role in the English Church as Supreme Governor. The monarch’s accession oath includes a promise to "defend the security" of the Kirk. She is formally represented at the annual General Assembly by a Lord High Commissioner unless she chooses to attend in person; the role is purely formal.
The Kirk is committed to its ‘distinctive call and duty to bring the ordinances of religion to the people in every parish of Scotland through a territorial ministry’ (Article 3 of its Articles Declaratory). This means the Kirk In practise maintains a presence in every community in Scotland, and exists to serve not only its members but all Scots (most funerals in Scotland are presided by its ministers). The Kirk also pools its resources to ensure continuation of this presence.
The Kirk played a leading role in providing universal education in Scotland (the first such provision in the modern world), largely due to its desire that all should be able to read the Bible. Today it does not operate schools, as these have been effectively transferred to the state in the latter half of the 19th century.
Read more about this topic: Church Of Scotland
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