Church elders in Kenya have begun to destroy some of the country's most valuable and historic colonial-era religious imagery after a commission ruled that early Scottish missionaries to East Africa were "probably devil-worshippers".
A group led by senior Presbyterian officials has already torn down symbols at St Andrew's in Nairobi, the main Scottish church in the country, prompting condemnation from British diplomats, politicians and parishioners.
A campaign has been launched to prevent the desecration of the country's oldest surviving Presbyterian church, built in 1907, which the group is threatening to "cleanse" this weekend. Opponents are threatening physical resistance to end what is being described as Kenya's "Iconoclastic Fury".
Among the images destroyed at St Andrew's are 30 stained-glass windows, tapestries, wrought-iron grilles, Royal Air Force shields and memorials to parishioners killed in the East Africa campaigns of the two world wars.
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa, the Rev David Githii, said a commission appointed to look at the symbols had concluded that they were masonic.
Many Kenyan Christians believe there is a link between Freemasons and Satanists. Fear of devil worship runs deep in Kenya; a presidential inquiry into the practice ordered six years ago, reported that Satanic rituals, practices and symbols had become institutionalised.
The group took particular objection to the St Andrew's Cross, as well as to depictions of snakes and other wild animals in the stained glass.
Mr Githii insists that since the images had been removed, the atmosphere in the church had improved dramatically.
"These masonic objects gave off some kind of evil power that was affecting worship, a Satanic power," he said. "Now that we have removed them people have been revived and they are singing much more vigorously." He urged the Church in Scotland to follow Kenya's lead to stop congregations dwindling.
"You know, there are a lot of Freemasons in Scotland," he said. "The Presbyterian Church in Scotland is dying because of these symbols."
The original Iconoclastic Fury took place in the Netherlands in 1566, when militant Calvinists smashed religious images in Catholic churches.
Most Kenyans seem to oppose today's iconoclasts and the British High Commission, which usually avoids such issues, has voiced its disapproval. "It is a cause for concern that Kenya's heritage is being destroyed in this manner," a spokesman said.
The backlash is being led by the Rev Timothy Njoya, the first African minister of St Andrew's and greatly respected as one of the leading figures in the campaign to restore multi-party democracy in the early 1990s.
He said the iconoclasts were "a few chaotic mystics," and gave warning that racism was as much a motivating factor as fear of Satanism. He compared the damage to the Taliban's destruction of Buddha statues. "This is a precious part of our heritage," he said. "What they are trying to do is cleanse Britain out of our history."
There are fears that the campaign could spread to the Anglican Church. A team is examining the possibility of dismantling British symbols in All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi, which has many memorials to colonial servants.
Mr Njoya also blamed American evangelism for the desire to root out Scottish influences. "They don't like the fact that the Scots taught us to sing with stiff upper lips," he said. "They say they want to dance in the African way but all they are doing is dancing like backward Texans. If they want to be Africans, let them go back to wearing animal skins and dancing like Masais."
With the cost of the destruction at St Andrew's estimated by Mr Njoya at nearly £4 million, concern is mounting for the fate of other churches, particularly the Church of the Torch in Kikuyu, about 20 miles outside the capital.
There are two churches on the site. The Watson Memorial Church, built in 1907 to commemorate the Rev Thomas Watson, who founded the Presbyterian Church of East Africa in 1891, is the oldest surviving Scottish church and was used as part of the set in the film Out of Africa.
It is in poor condition but contains three of the oldest and most beautiful stained-glass windows in East Africa.
They show Jesus reaching out to African women and children under the words "Suffer the children to come unto me", inscribed in Kikuyu, the local language.
A more imposing church was built in 1921 in the same compound and is filled with stained-glass depictions from Ephesians VI, which urges Christians to put on "the whole armour of God".
The congregation will hold an all-night vigil on Friday and stage a sit in on Sunday, when, it is feared, a demolition team is due.
"They want to destroy everything but I won't let them," said the Rev Stephen Kabuba, the minister. "This is Kenyan and Scottish heritage. There is nothing Satanic here."