TheOldCourse
Puritan Board Sophomore
It's certainly possible that this was the case. The Cathedral church of Dunkeld was "restored" in the early 20th century away from a Reformed focus around the Word and sacraments closer to its original form, which makes it a horrible place for preaching. Yet the quote I cited from Robert Halley shows that in 1869 there were non-conformists in England who would never tolerate a cross but would have a dove on the pulpit, and it doesn't seem like an innovation to him. There is nothing else about the pulpit or the arrangement of the church that suggests anything other than a thoroughly reformed arrangement, which makes me wonder if the dove isn't original (1798). This wouldn't justify the practice of course, but it would suggest that it might be the tip of the camel's nose. The Church of Scotland had plenty of problems in the 18th century (hence the existence of my own church, the ARP), and so it wouldn't be surprising to find a softening of standards even in the more evangelical/Reformed wing (which the remainder of the design suggests that Little Dunkeld belonged to).
Has there ever been any discussion to this effect regarding the ARP's own seal?