set down; and the clerks of the several judicatories are enjoined to transmit to the clerk of the Assembly, within the time foresaid, all references made by the respective judicatories to the General Assembly.-Act 7.

1789. Ordered, That before the roll begin to be called, the doors of the Assembly-house shall be shut, and shall not be opened until the judgment of the Assembly be declared. Act 6.

1801. Enacted, 1. That the upper galleries of the Assembly-house be set apart for strangers. 2. That the under galleries be reserved for preachers and students in divinity, who shall be required to produce tickets, authorizing their admission, from the professors of divinity. 3. That one bench, contiguous to each of the under galleries, be separated from the middle part of the house by a proper rail, for the accommodation of those ministers who are not members of the Assembly. 4. That no person be admitted into the remaining part of the house except members of the Assembly, the magistrates of the city of Edinburgh for the time being, the Lord Commissioner's attendants, and parties with their counsel and agents. 5. That the members shall, when they deliver their commissions to the clerks of the Assembly, receive tickets, containing their respective names, from the clerks ; and that the beadles be strictly enjoined to refuse them admittance into the house unless they produce their tickets, or, upon a motion for that purpose, be admitted by the authority of the Assembly. 6. That a beadle be appointed to superintend the other beadles, and be made responsible for their conduct.-Act 3.

1819. Enacted, That the papers, with all private causes, be placed upon the Assembly's table at their meeting on the first Saturday of the Assembly; that the first meeting of the committee of bills be held on the evening of the Thursday preceding; a second meeting of the same committee on the evening of Friday; and a third on the morning of Saturday before the meeting of the Assembly; and that all appeals, complaints, or references, not presented to the committee of bills at or before their meeting on the morning of the first Saturday of the Assembly,

be held as fallen from: This enactment is appointed to be read on the first day of the meeting of every Assembly, together with Act 7, Ass. 1718, and printed copies of it are directed to be sent to all the presbyteries of the church.-Act 5.

ORDINATION OF MINISTERS.

1638. The book of consecration and admission is rejected and condemned, as establishing offices in God's house which are not warranted by the word of God, and are repugnant to the constitutions of our kirk, as an impediment to the entry of fit and worthy men to the ministry, and to the discharge of their duty after their entry, conform to the discipline of our kirk; and the use and practice of the same is prohibited, and presbyteries are ordained to proceed with the censures of the kirk against all such as shall transgress.-Act Sess. 14, Dec. 6.

1645. The propositions concerning the officers, Assemblies, and government of the kirk, and concerning the ordination of ministers, being the results of the long and learned debates of the Assembly of divines at Westminster, and of the treaty of uniformity with the commissioners of this kirk residing at London, are agreed to and approven; and the commissioners of the Assembly are authorized to agree to, and conclude in the name of the Assembly, an uniformity betwixt the kirks in both kingdoms, in the aforementioned particulars, so soon as the same shall be ratified, without any substantial alteration, by an ordinance of the parliament of England; which ratification is to be timeously intimated and made known by the commissioners of this kirk residing at London: But it is provided, that that act be nowise prejudicial to the further discussion and examination of that article which holds forth, that the doctor or teacher hath power of the administration of the sacraments, as well as the pastor; as also of the distinct rights and interests of presbyteries and people in the calling of ministers; but that it shall be free to debate and discuss these points, as God

shall be pleased to give further light.-Act Sess. 16, Feb. 10.

1698. The Assembly unanimously declare, that as they allow no power in the people, but only in the pastors of the church, to appoint or ordain church officers; so they disclaim the error of the press in Acts vi, verse 3, if any such be found in bibles printed in this nation, bearing "whom ye may appoint over this business," instead of "whom we may appoint," and do declare they do not own any other reading of that text to be according to the original, but “whom we may appoint," &c., nor do they know, nor can learn, that ever any in this nation did publicly use or apply that text to prove the people's power in ordaining their ministers; which error the presbyterians (particularly those of Scotland) are wrongously charged with by Thomas Gibbs, rector of Bury, in a sermon preached by him, and printed and published.—Act 5.

1701. Enacted and declared, That any person who shall hereafter receive either license or ordination from any of the late prelates, or any others not allowed by the authority of the church, shall be incapable of ministerial communion for the space of three years simpliciter, and ever after that time, aye and while the presbytery to which he shall apply, be satisfied concerning his repentance.— Act 14.

1711. All young men educated in this church, or students of divinity, are discharged to go to foreign places, and there offer themselves to trials, for license to preach the gospel and ordination to the holy ministry, unless they carry along with them sufficient testimonials from the professors of divinity under whom they studied, if they have attended the profession of divinity, and from the minister of the parish, and presbytery of the bounds where they resided: And presbyteries are discharged to grant such testimonials, except upon due inquiry into the person's life and conversation, soundness in the faith, proficiency in his studies, abilities, and fitness for the ministerial function: And the commission is appointed to acquaint ministers in foreign places, where young men or students, not certified as above, may be, with this act,

and advertise them what testimonials they ought to receive.-Act 12.

1754. Declared, That when one is ordained or admitted as minister of a parish, he shall, by virtue of such ordination or admission, be ipso facto a member of the presbytery and synod in whose bounds the parish lies: And all clerks of synods and presbyteries, are enjoined to enrol as members, such as have at any time preceding this act, been ordained or admitted as ministers of parishes within their respective bounds.—Act 5.

1779. Enacted, and all persons educated or residing within the bounds of this church, are prohibited from going out of its bounds to obtain licenses to preach; and all preachers licensed by this church, are prohibited from going without its bounds to obtain ordination, unless they are called to a particular congregation in another country: And it is enacted, That licenses obtained in that manner shall not be received, or have any effect in this church; and such preachers as contravene this act, shall forfeit the license formerly given them, and be no longer entitled to the privileges which belong to a preacher of the gospel of this church.-Act 9.

1784. Declared, that both the minister of the parish and his ordained assistant and successor, ought to be constituent members of the kirk-session; that in the presbytery and synod, either of them who is present may deliberate and vote; that if both are present, these privileges belong to the minister of the parish only; and that either of them is capable of being elected a member of Assembly, but not both of them in one year.-Int. Act and Overt.

1786. Recommended to presbyteries to be cautious in granting ordination to such persons as have neither a fixed charge nor a reasonable prospect of such provision as may enable them to support the ministerial character; and that no presbytery grant ordination to any person who has a near prospect of removing from the bounds of that presbytery into another, from whom he may, in due time, receive ordination, if it shall by them be found necessary and proper.-Int. Act and Overt.

1799. Enacted and declared, That it is agreeable to the constitution, the laws, and the decisions of this church, that no probationer, who has obtained a license without the bounds of this church, or who has not obtained a license from some presbytery of this church, and no ordained person, who did not obtain his license from a presbytery of this church, or who, either by going without the bounds of the church to obtain ordination, although he was not called to a particular congregation in another country, or by any other part of his conduct, has forfeited the license which he had obtained, shall be held qualified to accept of a presentation or a call to any parish in this church, or to any chapel of ease connected therewith: And it is enjoined on all the presbyteries of this church, that if a presentation or a call to any such probationer, or ordained person as described in this act, shall, at any time, be given in to them, instantly to pronounce a sentence, refusing to sustain such presentation or call, and declaring it null and void. And all the ministers of this church, and chapels of ease connected therewith, are prohibited and discharged, under pain of such censures as the judicatories of this church may see cause to inflict, from employing to preach upon any occasion, or to dispense any of the ordinances of the gospel, within any congregation under the jurisdiction of this church, persons who are not qualified, according to the laws of this church, to accept of a presentation, and from holding ministerial communion in any other manner with such persons. presbyteries are enjoined to attend to any transgression of this prohibition which may occur within their bounds, and to summon the minister who is reported guilty of such transgression to answer for his conduct. This act to be transmitted to every presbytery to be engrossed in their respective records.-Act 5.

OVERTURES.

And

1697. Enacted, That before a General Assembly of this church pass any acts which are to be binding rules