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Until Brexit, the world’s $5 trillion-a-day foreign exchange markets rarely bothered to take much notice of what happens in Britain’s 800-year-old Westminster assembly.

The “Solemn League and Covenant,” which pledged both countries to the extirpation of prelacy, leaving further decision as to church government to be decided by the “example of the best reformed churches,” after undergoing some slight alterations, passed the two Houses of Parliament and the Westminster Assembly, and thus became law for the two kingdoms.

As Scottish commissioner to the Westminster Assembly, he was in England from August 1643 till August 1646; his principal work was the drafting of the directory for public worship.

That guardians of morals and85 social cohesion, from Cato to the Westminster Assembly, and from Samuel Johnson to Cardinal Newman, should have distrusted scepticism even as reserve of judgment, or indeed repelled it with fierceness; that priest, presbyter, magistrate and moralist have tolerated irony, or even license, rather than vigilant and radical criticism of doctrine, is intelligible; and within limits springs from a justifiable apprehension.

Already, in 1640, he had accompanied the commissioners of the peace to England as one of their chaplains; and in 1643 he was appointed by the Scottish Church one of the four commissioners to the Westminster Assembly.