Church of Scotland

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

See PRESBYTERIAN, which became the established religion of Scotland on the abolition of Episcopacy in 1638. The head of the Church is the Mod- erator, and it is regulated by four Courts: the General Assembly, Synod, Presbytery, and Kirk Sessions.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “Church of Scotland” mean?

See PRESBYTERIAN, which became the established religion of Scotland on the abolition of Episcopacy in 1638. The head of the Church is the Mod- erator, and it is regulated by four Courts: the General Assembly, Synod, Presbytery, and Kirk Sessions.

Is “Church of Scotland” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.