Yet another question regarding Kirk Sessions...

[Fogmoose]

I frequently see mention of "Tokens" being distributed. What exactly are they talking about?

[wivenhoe]

Can you please identify what parish, and the times.

I am also looking at the Kirk Sessions minutes for one county, and wondering how much consistency, uniformity there is for any one parish over a period of time eg 60 years.  Also all parishes for the same time period eg. early 19th century...mid century.

Administrative matters might be consistent.  Are social matters, rituals eg  financial support for the destitute, births of children out of wedlock likely to reflect the culture of the one parish, one minister.

Fife, 1840s, I see no mention of tokens.  How and where do you see tokens?

[Tickettyboo]

I frequently see mention of "Tokens" being distributed. What exactly are they talking about?

Possibly communion tokens?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communion_token

Boo

[Skoosh]

Some more info' on communion tokens, there were folk who never took communion, participants were expected to have lived a good life?

https://www.bokonline.org.uk/our-history-communion-tokens/

Bests,
Skoosh.

[Fogmoose]

Thanks Skoosh, that is what I was looking for. Very Interesting!

I am seeing the mention of Tokens in several Kirk records in Aberdeenshire, in the early and mid 19th century. 

[Fogmoose]

Thanks to Boo, as well!

[Skoosh]

Communion tokens for sale on eBay etc'.  Kirk elders could actually  be quite young, mebbes 21? so one Session might differ greatly in outlook from the parish next door and from one generation to another, individual ministers might be famed as preachers but the Session ran the parish and indeed the congregation chose the minister. The business of patronage where the parish heritors chose the minister was the main issue which split the Kirk in the 1840's.

Skoosh.