The Year of Grace

Rev. William Gibson

At the last meeting of the General Assembly of the Irish Presbyterian Church, it was agreed, on the suggestion of the Moderator (Rev. Dr M‘Ilveen), that as the Jubilee of the remarkable religious movement of 1859 will occur next year, steps should be taken to secure in 1909 its suitable commemoration. When the Committee in charge of the arrangements began to consider the matter, it seemed to its members that it would contribute materially to the usefulness of the observance if a short but comprehensive account of the movement should be placed in the hands of the present generation, to whom after the lapse of fifty years its events are those of almost forgotten history, and who scarcely realize that of the men—at least those of twenty-five years old and upwards—who shared in its labours the greater part are fallen on sleep.

The Committee accordingly felt it to be most opportune, firstly, that there already exists an extended and authentic account of the 1859 movement in the history of it entitled “The Year of Grace,” prepared by the late Professor Gibson of the Assembly’s College, Belfast, and published in 1860; and secondly, that Professor Gibson’s son, the Rev. James Gibson, D.D., minister emeritus of U.F. West Church, Perth, who was ordained in 1859 to the ministry of the Presbyterian Church in Strabane, and was therefore an eye-witness of the events of the time, was ready to undertake the revision of his father’s volume, and, by the exclusion of matters which seemed to be of rather temporary interest, to reduce it to dimensions suitable for a wide circulation among present-day readers. It will be admitted on all hands that his work has been admirably done.

We learn from the author’s original preface that his information was all obtained at first hand, and that it had the merit of having been derived from every county of Ulster. In the revision, care has been taken to preserve the widespread local interest, which this feature of the book is so well fitted to elicit.

The question will no doubt be often asked what has been the permanent advantage to the Christian life of Ulster of the movement of 1859? All the Protestant Churches of the province were greatly stimulated by it, and the immediate result was a spirit of unity and co-operation, which unfortunately under the stress of later controversies did not fulfil its earlier promise, though happily the signs of the times are to-day pointing towards its renewal. But, speaking with regard to the Presbyterian Church, I venture to record as among the benefits which she has reaped the following: An immediate accession to her professed membership reckoned by many thousands; a great increase of the sense of responsibility on the part of Church members in respect of active Christian work; an overflowing stream of candidates for the ministry, the high level of which lasted for many years; a very considerable development of most necessary Church extension; the creation of a new spirit of Christian liberality; a forward movement in philanthropic and missionary enterprise, of which the Sabbath School Auxiliary to Missions, the Orphan Society, the China and Zenana Missions are lasting fruits ; and, finally, a sense of generous loyalty to the Church which enabled her to surmount successfully the financial perplexities caused by the withdrawal of the Regium Donum under the provisions of the Irish Church Act of 1869.

No one will say that in any of these spheres of Church life we are to-day at the high-water mark which some of us still living can remember. But it is the earnest desire and confident hope of those responsible for the re-issue of this volume that the perusal of its pages may inspire the members of all the Churches to seek for an early and abundant outpouring of the Divine influences, which proved in 1859 so fruitful of blessing to our country.

THOMAS SINCLAIR.

HOPEFIELD, BELFAST,

October 1908.