Twenty-one years ago, First Presbyterian Church member Travis Clark approached the pastor, Dr. Rusty Douglas, with an idea.
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“He came to me interested in a Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans celebration of our Scottish-Presbyterian heritage,” said Douglas.
The Presbyterian pastor had some experience with Kirkin’ celebrations
“I had been at two other churches, Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta and First Presbyterian Church in Nashville, that had Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans celebrations,” he said.
So Douglas headed up the effort; the church Elders liked the idea; and the church formed a Kirkin’ Committee.
“We started out small,” said Douglas. “We started out with one single bagpiper for the first Kirkin’.”
Over the past two decades, the event has continued to grow and is not only a beloved celebration for church members, but also the community.
“The most we’ve had is probably 75 visitors. It varies from year to year,” said Douglas. “There are lots of community people who show up. They like bagpipes, and some probably are Scotch-Irish in their ancestry.”
The 21st annual Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans will be held Sunday, March 1 at First Presbyterian Church. The event includes a Kirkin’ lecture, an outdoor concert by the Lyon College Pipes and Drums and a Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans service.
Douglas said First Presbyterian Church’s Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans event is by far the best he’s attended.
“This is a wonderful Kirkin’,” he said. “I might be a little less than objective,” he acknowledged. But he’s attended larger Presbyterian churches’ Kirkin’ services, including the First Scots Presbyterian Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where he’s preached.
“They were founded by 12 Scottish families back in the 1700s, but I think our Kirkin’ is better than theirs,” said Douglas.
“Kirk” is the Scottish word for church, and tartans are distinctive plaids that represent specific Scottish clans, regions or regiments. The Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans is the presentation of a Scottish family’s tartan at church for a blessing.
This celebration of Scottish-Presbyterian heritage dates back to after Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Scottish forces were defeated by the English in 1746 in the Battle of Culloden. For many years, wearing tartans and playing bagpipes were forbidden in Scotland. Wearing or displaying of tartans was even punishable by death. So some Scots wore concealed pieces of their tartans when attending church. At a particular point in the worship service, they would secretly touch their hidden tartan cloth, and the minister would offer a blessing.
The first formal Kirkin’ event in the United States was held at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., in 1941.
Douglas said the event celebrates the church’s history as well as the impact made by Scots in American history.
“I’m appreciative for the Kirkin’ here. It’s been educational. It’s been fun,” he said. “It celebrates our history, and I’m glad that we have brought (information to) other Presbyterians who weren’t quite as aware of the contributions of the Scots to this country.”
One notable Scot in U.S. history Douglas mentioned was the Rev. John Witherspoon, who trained many leaders in colonial America while at Princeton College and was the only clergyman to sign the Declaration of Independence.
“This man trained anybody who was anybody in colonial America,” said Douglas.
He said John Witherspoon, a Presbyterian minister, convinced James Madison, an Episcopalian, about “the radical power of human sin.”
Dr. Rusty Douglas, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, holds up two books, “How the Scots Made America” by Michael Fry and “How the Scots Invented the Modern World” by Arthur Herman. The Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans event is not only a celebration but is also educational, teaching the impact Scots have made in American history.
“So when Madison writes the Constitution, he builds in all these checks and balances between the executive, judicial and legislative branches. That is the Presbyterian contribution to the founding of this nation,” said Douglas. “That’s why we have checks and balances, because John Witherspoon convinced James Madison that if you don’t put checks and balances on the office of the president, you’re going to end up with a king. ... And the Presbyterian form of government is a representative democracy. That’s what we have in this country — a representative democracy.”
Other notable Scottish contributions to America will be highlighted in the Sunday Kirkin’ lecture “Thanks Be to the Scots” by the Rev. Don Barber, pastor of Rabun Gap Presbyterian Church in Rabun Gap, Georgia. The lecture will be held at 9:30 a.m. in the church parlor.
“For a very small country, they have had a huge impact in this nation,” said Douglas.
The Kirkin’ festivities will begin Saturday, Feb. 29 with a Kirkin’ golf tournament at Greenwood Country Club.
The celebration continues the next day with a variety of activities. After the morning lecture, from 10:15 to 10:40 a.m., the Lyon College Pipes and Drums from Batesville, Arkansas, will perform on Main Street in front of the church.
An 11 a.m. worship service will follow. The service will include the procession of flags, swords, bagpipes and tartan bearers. Barber will preach, and the Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans blessing will be held.
In addition to the bagpipes playing traditional Scottish tunes, Dr. Jessica Haislip, adjunct oboe professor at Mississippi State University, and Paul Brown of Greenwood will be playing a setting of the traditional Scottish tune “Loch Lomond” for prelude. Haislip will also accompany the Chancel Choir’s anthem, “A Scottish Blessing” by David Blackwell, former head of music publishing at Oxford University Press.
This year, the Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans’ honorary family will be the Douglas Clan, in honor of the church’s longtime pastor who will be retiring in June.
“I’m touched by that,” said Douglas. “It’s nice that they would do that for my family.”
Lunch will be held in Shuler Hall with Celtic musicians. During lunch, the Kirkin’ Cup will be presented and the kilt election will be held.
Last year, the kilt winners were Mark Vemer and Robert Cole.
“The committee nominates two people every year, and we have a kilt election,” said Douglas.
The election is $1 a vote to select who will win a kilt featuring a tartan representing the nominee’s Scottish heritage.
“The last several years enough money has been given to buy two kilts,” said Douglas. “We’ve got a lot of people wearing kilts now in part because of this kilt election that has been going on for two decades.”
Douglas is proud of First Presbyterian Church’s Kirkin’ O’ the Tartans and how it’s become an important celebration for the church members.
“I feel good about bringing them along and educating them in the tradition, and I hope it will continue on down the road,” he said. “If you do not know where you came from, it’s going to be difficult to figure out where you’re going.”
• Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7235 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
What: The 21st annual Kirkin' O' the Tartans will be held.
When: Sunday, March 1
Where: First Presbyterian Church, 300 Main St.
Details: The event will begin with the Kirkin' lecture at 9:30 a.m. in the church Parlor. At 10:15 a.m., the Lyon College Pipes and Drums will give an outdoor concert on Main Street in front of the sanctuary, which will be followed by the Kirkin' O' the Tartans service at 11 a.m.
