thomas chalmers

In a previous post I mentioned I had been doing a wee bit of research on the church but hadn't managed to find out who Thomas Chalmers was. Well, I kindly received a comment from Simon Wells who posted this link which provides a background to Thomas Chalmers.

He certainly seems to have been a focused and driven individual - and took his religious belief and applied it in very practical ways. I am not particularly in favour of organised religion and struggle often with the zeal in which it is pursued - and my own reading is that Thomas may have had some of this as a characteristic - but I do admire the way on which he saw his faith as an active one, and where those with support those without through schooling, public buildings and activities and adding concrete action alongside preaching.

I don't know enough theology etc to really grasp all that the article discusses - although I see that a territorial approach does ensure that the Free Church maintained a close grassroots link with the people a particular parish covered, and this to my mind is better than an approach that is about holding the church apart and somehow aloof from the people it is meant to house.

It has made me want to do a bit more research around the Free Church and Thomas Chalmers so thanks to Simon Wells for sending on the link.