One Small Step, One Huge Leap
In 1840 the Synod of Ulster and the Secession Synod united to form the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. One of the first acts of that Assembly was to commission the Rev Alexander Kerr and the Rev James Glasgow for missionary service in India. Prior to this date it was the practice for missionaries to go overseas as members of missionary societies (such as the Scottish Missionary Society and the London Missionary Society) rather than under the direct control of a particular denomination. What happened in 1840 was a pioneering decision because for the first time the whole Church had made a corporate decision to engage in mission overseas.
The leaflet reproduced below was issued in 1943, a hundred years after the first missionaries were sent to India, to publicise the Centenary Thanksgiving Fund to raise money for the building and equipping of hospitals and for other essential work.
Rev James Glasgow
The Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland produced a booklet on the Rev James Glasgow which can be ordered on-line from the Society.
Diary of the Rev Robert Montgomery
Also available in the Society's Archive is a copy of the diary of the Rev Robert Montgomery, Missionary to Porbandar in 1843.
Centenary Thanksgiving Fund Leaflet 1943
