English? English? ENGLISH??

Just let me calm down a moment…

I have just read this phrase by that respected theologian Louis Berkhof:

…the views of Edward Irving, the great English preacher and contemporary of Thomas Chalmers.
(The History of Christian Doctrines, Banner of Truth, p. 198)

At first I thought, "He’s made an honest mistake. English? No, you meant Scottish, surely?" Because he was Scottish. It says here, look! And I've seen the ugly statue in Annan to prove it.

But then I realized,
a) "He’s too clever to make such a stupid mistake!"
b) "He’s American!"

Countless times I have found my cousins from the US making this simple yet, since I am a Scot, stupendously irritating kind of mistake. Therefore, as part of my one-man, futile crusade to educate the whole of the United States in one blog entry, let me make some simple statements.

Pay attention.

A Scotsman is British.
An Englishman is British.
But, it is not true, necessarily, that a Briton is English.
It therefore also does not follow that a Scotsman, because he is British, is therefore English. That would be stupid.

Let’s be clear. A Scotsman is not, never has been, nor ever will be an Englishman.

Good. Glad we sorted that out. I feel so much better.

Now, where did those chips on my shoulder come from…?