Former moderator Very Rev Dr James Leslie Weatherhead dies
- Published
The former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Very Rev Dr James Leslie Weatherhead, has died.
Dr Weatherhead died early on Saturday morning a few hours before the 2017 General Assembly was due to meet. He was 86.
He was born in Dundee in 1931 and appointed as moderator in 1993.
The Church of Scotland said he was a "wise and faithful servant of Christ and his church".
Dr Weatherhead was educated at Dundee High School before going to the University of Edinburgh where he graduated in arts and law.
His ministry began in 1960 when he became assistant minister at the Auld Kirk of Ayr.
In 1985 he succeeded Donald Macdonald in the office of Principal Clerk to the General Assembly, a role the Church of Scotland said he held with "great distinction" until his retirement in 1996.
Dr Weatherhead was also appointed a Chaplain to the Queen in 1991 and awarded the CBE for ecumenical work and public service in 1997.
He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Dr Anne Weatherhead, their sons David and Andrew, his three grandchildren, his brother John and his sister Janette.