Wednesday, May 06, 2009

'Shotts Kirk Revival, 1630' by Jock Purves

Thanks to Jack for this one, from Jock Purves' book "Fair Sunshine":

Shotts Kirk stauns hie ayont thae knowes;
Thae scrogs o'whin, thae hidlins howes;
An' wavin' bent gress muirs;
Shotts Kirk o' availin' prayers,
Hert cries Heeven heard an' holie vows;
In the Fire o' God, the Spirit's lowes.

Shotts Kirk a' alowe wi' God Himsel!
An' a' forgat but Heaven an' Hell!
An' Evangelist Livingstone -
Whaur deidstanes staun aroon -
Alleve untae God, in the daithless Evangel,
Proclaimin' the Message, ne'er trysted wi' angel.


The Kirk O'Shotts revival was one of a sequence of three Ulster-Scots revivals of the early 1600s. The first was at Stewarton in Ayrshire (1623 - 1630), then to east Ulster for the SixMileWater Revival (1625 - 1634), and then back to Scotland again for the Kirk O' Shotts in 1630. These revivals took place among the same type of people, separated by water and migration, but with common roots, mindsets and spiritual conditions - for example Robert Blair was involved at Stewarton and Sixmilewater, and John Livingstone was involved at Sixmilewater and Kirk O'Shotts. There's also a big Hamilton & Montgomery spine than connects all three.

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