The Church of Scotland announced Tuesday its nominations for the position of Moderator to the General Assembly, the Rev John Chalmers, and equally outspoken Rev Alan McDonald.

|TOP|Rev Chalmers, currently Associate Secretary for the Ministries’ Council, is well-known for his scathing criticisms of the Church of Scotland in the past. In 1998, he said: “The present general assembly is like a collection of cardboard cut-outs sitting around, nodding heads and doing nothing.”

He has also acted as depute secretary on the Board of Ministry, and often spoken up on the welfare of ministers. At the launch of a special hotline to give ministers support in coping with the pressures of pastoral life, he said: “Being a minister can often be a very isolated lifestyle, especially in more rural areas.”

Rev McDonald, minister of Cameron linked with St Leonard’s Church, St Andrews, and previously convener of the former church and nation committee, campaigned tirelessly against the Iraq war, even writing to the U.S. government complaining against the treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

The nominees are not allowed to engage in their own “electioneering” in the election process, but will rather have proposers and seconders speak on their behalf on 25 October, before a final vote is taken.

The chosen nominee will be presented as the Moderator Designate to the General Assembly on 20 May, 2006, an honorary title, which he will hold for 12 months.