Everything about George Macleod totally explained
George Fielden MacLeod, Baron MacLeod of Fuinary,
MC (
17 June 1895 –
27 June 1991) was a
Scottish soldier and clergyman; one of the best known, most influential and unconventional
Church of Scotland ministers of the 20th century. He was the founder of the
Iona Community.
Early life
He was born in
Glasgow in
1895. His grandfather was the highly respected Revd Norman MacLeod of the
Barony Church,
Glasgow, a
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and Chaplain to
Queen Victoria. His father (Sir John MacLeod) was a successful businessman before entering politics as a
Unionist MP; his mother Edith was from a wealthy
Lancastrian family (owning cotton mills). From this background and heir to a baronetcy, George MacLeod was educated at
Winchester School and
Oriel College, Oxford.
WW1 experiences
Upon the outbreak of
World War I in
1914 he joined the
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, rising to the rank of
Captain. He first saw active service in
Greece. After falling ill with
dysentery, he was sent back to Scotland to recuperate, after which he was posted to
Flanders and saw action at
Ypres and
Passchendaele, for which he was awarded the
Military Cross (MC) and the French
Croix de Guerre for bravery.
His experience of war profoundly affected him, leading him to train for the ministry. He studied divinity at the
University of Edinburgh, followed by a year at
Union Theological Seminary,
New York City (1921-1922). Upon return to Scotland he was invited to become Assistant at
St Giles Cathedral. During this period his concern over social inequality became increasingly prominent. In
1924 he was ordained as a
Church of Scotland minister, to be Padre of
Toc H (Talbot House) in Scotland. Such non-parochial appointments were extremely unusual at the time. Following a disagreement, he resigned from
Toc H in
1926, but was invited to become associate minister at
St Cuthbert's Church,
Edinburgh.
The road to Iona
His wartime experiences combined with a profound disillusionment by post-
World War I political rhetoric of
"a land fit for heroes" deeply affected him. Confronted by the realities of the
depression and unemployment faced by those less privileged than himself he gradually moved towards
socialism and
pacifism. From 1937 he become actively involved with the
Peace Pledge Union (PPU), and from 1958 with the
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).
Meanwhile, in
1930, to considerable surprise, he decided to leave St Cuthbert's to become minister at
Govan Old Parish Church—encountering the considerable social problems caused by poverty in this part of Glasgow. The pace of work took its toll and in
1932 he suffered a
breakdown. He spent some time recuperating in
Jerusalem in early
1933; worshipping in an
Eastern Orthodox Church on
Easter Day he felt a profound spiritual experience, feeling a sense of recovery of the Church as the corporate
Body of Christ. This would strongly influence the rest of his life.
He resigned (giving up the financial security of a
parish minister's
stipend) to become the full-time leader of the
Iona Community, which he founded in 1938. The idea of rebuilding
Iona Abbey using ministers, students and unemployed labourers working together influenced his thinking; the
Iona Community grew into an international
ecumenical community, with offices in
Govan and a presence on the Isle of
Iona.
Later life
During
World War II, he served as
locum minister at
Canongate Kirk in Edinburgh—a parish also then afflicted by
poverty.
In 1948 (aged 53) he married Lorna; immediately after the wedding they travelled to
Australia for a preaching tour. The 1940s and early 1950s were a difficult period professionally which became known as the "Govan Case"; when George was invited to return to
Govan Old Parish Church in 1948 the Presbytery of Glasgow refused to approve his appointment, given his wish to continue his active leadership of the Iona Community. The case was referred to the General Assembly, ultimately he was refused permission to combine the two posts.
Despite a feeling of hurt and rejection over the "Govan Case", George MacLeod remained one of the highest profile figures in the
Church of Scotland. In
1957 he was elected
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
In
1967 he was awarded a
peerage, becoming Lord MacLeod of Fuinary—the only Church of Scotland minister to have been thus honoured.
George MacLeod's influence on the
Church of Scotland was considerable. Although dismissed by some as a maverick, he helped to raise awareness of
ecumenism and
social justice issues, and inspired many to become involved with such questions. Through the creation of the
Iona Community he was a pioneer of new forms of ministry (outside more conventional parish or
chaplaincy structures.)
Further Information
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