Non-ordained moderator
The Church of Scotland has recently allowed that a moderator of a presbytery need not be an ordained minister and one of the first non-ordained moderators is an Arran man. Ian Kerr, who was mostly brought up in Lochranza and still has a house there, has been appointed moderator of the Presbytery of Kincardine and Deeside.
An elder for 30 years Mr Kerr has now retired from a career as a teacher and educational administrator. He is presently studying for a degree in divinity. His first task as moderator will be to keep the presbytery in order, a task which, as was seen in the recent disagreements over the Lamlash Church refurbishment, can require a firm and fair hand. His presbytery clerk, retired minister Ian Brown, is also a man with Lochranza connections.