Four-and-a-half centuries of Scotland's social and religious history was closed yesterday, but only a couple of dozen people turned up to publicly mourn the passing of strict Sabbath observance.
Around 200 people, however, came to cheer the first-ever scheduled sailing of Caledonian MacBrayne's ferry Isle of Lewis from Stornoway to Ullapool yesterday afternoon.
Lewis was the last island not to have a seven-day ferry service because of religious tradition, and it was long overdue, according to one of the passengers, the celebrated Gaelic writer Dr Finlay Macleod.
"The ferry leaving today means a great deal to me. It is talismanic. It is how our island has always connected to the mainland. I have been looking forward to today for most of my adult life.
"I have been outspoken in my support for a Sunday sailing for years. I have been in touch with numerous secretaries of state and chairmen of CalMac, to gain for Lewis a normal civic freedom.
"A posse of Calvinists came to Lewis three or four generations ago. They were very effective. They turned Lewis effectively into a theocracy.
People of creed were in charge. If you were inside it, it was very thrilling. If you were outside it, it was very confining, frightening and controlling. So today is a great day for Lewis."
Not all islanders agreed. More than 20 appeared at the Stornoway ferry terminal with a placard exhorting us to "Remember the Sabbath Day keep it holy." Most were from the Free Church Continuing.
None would speak but handed out a pre-printed statement. It said: "We are a group of local Christians who care deeply about our island. We are here to testify that to run this ferry service on the Lord's Day is against the fourth commandment, and so is displeasing to the living and true God."
To them and many other islanders, they are just trying to obey the word of God as they understand it.
How they understand it is as all reformed Scotland understood it until about 100 years ago. It was the Westminster Confession of Faith in 1647 (born out of the Long Parliament when the forces of Puritanism were in the ascendancy) that laid down the rigour of sabbath observance Scotland clung to until the end of the 19th century.
They are not alone. Shonny Beag Macritchie, owner of the County Hotel in Stornoway, said he opposed the Sunday ferry on religious grounds and challenged the idea that it would be good for tourism.
"It will have an adverse effect of business. People who previously could not get off the island till Monday can now do so a day earlier, and local people can now leave the island. I have had five bookings cancelled since the announcement of the Sunday ferry last week."
But on board the Isle of Lewis there was a carnival atmosphere, with the remnants of the Hebridean Celtic Music Festival, determined to keep the entertainment going.
It was music that was sweet to the ears of Phil Preston, CalMac managing director, who was on board. "We have 81 cars and three commercial vehicles on board as well as 391 passengers. That shows the level of demand for a Sunday service. That's what we are responding to today. We were also advised that we could be in breach of the Equality Act if we continued with a six-day service only."
Mr Preston was speaking following two days of timetabling chaos after the Isle of Lewis broke down on Friday. It meant vessels on the Islay, North Uist/Harris services, heading to Stornoway/Ullapool after they had finished their work on Friday and Saturday. This left Islay with only one vessel, so the Barra ferry headed south from Oban to help out on Saturday.
The Isle of Arran, which took over the Stornoway run on Saturday, was considerably slower and smaller than the Isle of Lewis. Her crossing on Saturday afternoon was packed with passengers having to sit on the floor.
But the vessel sailed throughout the night to pick up the traffic building up at Ullapool. It meant that she arrived at 4am yesterday morning, making that the first Sunday service to the island.
Her arrival was applauded by two people who had just emerged from the festival club. Once the Isle of Lewis was fixed she crossed the Minch to Ullapool, arriving back in Stornoway at 4.45am.
But Mr Preston observed: "It has been a difficult couple of days but we managed to get through it thanks to a lot of people working very hard."
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