Tuesday 6 March 2018

Robert {not the} Bruce

Robert Bruce who was a descendant of his more famous namesake and also descended from James the 1st of Scotland, he was a nobleman and was born into a Roman Catholic family. He was converted at University and became thoroughly reformed. Despite being a noble man and offered a title and an estate he turned these down for the call of the gospel. His Roman Catholic mother was deeply offended by his becoming a Protestant and disinherited him. Nonetheless he forsook it all for the sake of his calling.

Perhaps due to their being slightly related, Bruce was initially a favourite of James the 6th even being involved in the coronation of the Queen.
I've wanted to read him for a while as he was 'internally exiled' to Inverness, by James the 6th of Scotland and 1st of England. As the king had embraced Anglicanism and wanted Bruce to be an Anglican. The Inverness he was sent to was a hotbed of Roman Catholicism unlike Inverness today which has many, many churches many of which are evangelical at least historically. He was by far the most popular preacher of his day, seeing many thousands of people converted. This didn't stop when he was removed from his parish in Edinburgh but even in the Highlands people would come from miles around to hear him. Turning from indifferent or hostility to loving and appreciating his ministry.

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