PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
500th ANNIVERSARY OF THE REFORMATION (10 October 2017)

That this House congratulates the University of St Andrews' Reformation Studies Institute on launching a series of special services, lectures, an exhibition and a concert to mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation; notes 31 October 2017 marks five centuries since Martin Luther initiated the Reformation by posting his 95 theses attacking the practices and doctrines of the late medieval Catholic church; further notes St Andrews, the only place in the UK to be officially designated as a City of the Reformation by the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe, is considered the birthplace of the Scottish Reformation with four early Reformers having been put to death for their beliefs, including the first, 24 year old Patrick Hamilton in 1527, and last, 88-year-old Walter Milne in 1558, who are commemorated on the Martyrs' Monument on The Scores; understands too that St Andrews was home to Scottish Protestant preacher John Knox, whose sermon in Holy Trinity Parish Church on 4 June 1559 is said to have provoked his congregation to storm and strip the town's now ruined cathedral; encourages members of all faiths to listen to BBC Radio 4's Sunday Service at 8:10am on 22 October 2017 coming from the university chapel and attend the ecumenical service in the town's Holy Trinity Parish Church on 31 October 2017 at 5.30pm featuring a sermon by former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams; and pays tribute to Christian unity and the positive role that all churches and faiths have to play in our society.

Sponsored by:
Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party)