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 PrintableVersion Glory in the GlenThe Holy Spirit in ScotlandGLORY IN THE GLEN The title alone of this book with its evocative cover scene is enough to engage the interest of any reader. But to discover that it is an account of evangelical revivals in Scotland between 1880 and 1940 adds an element of surprise to any initial interest. Many will know of the great periods of spiritual ingathering into the Scottish churches: of Cambuslang in 1742, of the work of the Haldane brothers 50 years later, of revival under W.C. Burns and R.M. McCheyne in 1839 and the widespread quickening of 1859, but to discover a substantial 500-page volume describing relatively recent Scottish revivals is a rare delight. The Christian church is much indebted to Tom Lennie for the years of patient research that must have gone into compiling such a record. Packed with first-hand accounts from eye witnesses, testimonies from those deeply affected, and newspaper reports, Lennie’s material is well-documented and authentic. He describes hundreds of localised works of God, many in out-of-the-way places from Galloway in the south to the Orkneys in the north, from Lewis in the west to the east coast. Helpful maps are provided throughout to pinpoint the main locations. The work is divided into four main sections, each starting in the 1880s and working through to the 1930s. Section one deals with numerous periods of blessing throughout the land; in his second, Lennie details ‘the fishermen’s revival’ — that movement which spread among the fishing communities ranged along the north-east coast; thirdly, he turns to the Hebridean revivals, and, lastly, to unusual works of the Spirit of God among children and students and also the Pentecostal movements of the early 20th century. A final section of the book is given over to a careful appraisal of revival in general. In many of the incidents described we discover a close connection between organised evangelistic missions and revival. Often a mission develops into a powerful work of God’s Spirit with all the features so characteristic of revival: an increased spirit of prayer, a heightened sense of God’s majesty, brokenness for sin, a crying out for mercy and the overwhelming joy of forgiveness. The writer admits (p.25) that this repeated pattern, while undoubtedly occurring, can blur the distinctions between genuine revival and short-term evangelistic endeavour. The sea-change that took place in evangelical thought following the publication of Charles Finney’s Lectures on Revivals of Religion in 1835, with its serious doctrinal aberrations regarding the nature of revival, together with his ‘new measures’ like the ‘anxious seat’, is probably insufficiently explored, while Jonathan Edwards’s mammoth work of revival is confined to a few footnotes. However, the major thrust of this thrilling account can only leave us all with longing hearts and a desire to see such works of God again in our day. Faith Cook,
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