Both ministers were elected by their congregations, unlike the Rev James Mackinlay whose patron at the Laigh Kirk was the Earl of Glencairn and the resulting dissatisfaction led to Burns penning "The Ordination".

Alexander Moodie (1728-1799)
Moodie was the minister of Riccarton Church near Kilmarnock, having been educated at Glasgow University and starting his ministry at Culross in 1759.
He was buried in the Riccarton churchyard, but the present church wasn't built until 1823.

Alexander was a Calvinist and a dedicated adherent of the Auld Licht views.
He had a hyperactive and deafening preaching style.
Burns also references him in the Holy Fair with :
His lengthen'd chin, his turned-up snout,
His eldritch squeel an' gestures,
O how they fire the heart devout..
This was followed by a lampooning in The Kirk's Alarm where his swarthy complexion earned him the title of Singet Sawnie.

John Russell (1740-1817)
Originally from Moray, Black Jock taught at the Cromarty parish school and upon being ordained he became, in 1774, the minister of the High Church in Kilmarnock.
At his Cromarty school he was remembered by Hugh Miller in his "Scenes and Legends of the North of Scotland" as a "large, robust, dark-complexioned man, imperturbably grave, and with a sullen expression seated in the deep folds of his forehead".
He was "more ready to thunder forth the terrors of the law than to woo the wicked from the error of their ways, by setting before them the Saviour's love, so fully and freely manifested in the soothing and soul-captivating strains of the gospel".
The nickname 'Black Jock or Joke' is a punning reference to the female genitalia.

On Sabbaths between Divine service, Russell patrolled the streets of Kilmarnock and even ventured into the countryside, walking stick in hand, on the look out for children or adults actively enjoying themselves. "
Such as he discovered, he would visit on the following morning, and severely rebuke for their ungodliness."
He set the parish in such terror that doors would close and faces would take on a serious contenance should the sound of his walking stick be heard.

Like his colleague at Riccarton he was an Auld Licht Calvinist with the same hellfire and damnation bellicose preaching style.
He appears in the "Holy Fair" he figures as Black Russell and as Wordy Russell in "The Twa Herds".
In the "Kirks Alarm" Burns highlights his Auld Licht style :
Rumble John!
Rumble John!
mount the steps
with a groan,
Cry, the Book is with heresy cramm'd;
Then lug out your ladle, deal brimstone like
aidle,
And roar every note o' the Damn'd,
Rumble John!

And roar every note o' the Damn'd.

He was well versed in religious knowledge and on one occasion he met Burns in a barber's in Fore Street where they became embroiled in a heated discussion on a point of religious topic, that after a while had Burns overwhelmed and he silently accepted defeat by hurriedly leaving the premises.

Russell was an author with several religious pamphlets and books to his credit.
He moved to Stirling and was buried there in the churchyard of the Church of the Holy Rood where the memorial intimates that he was well respected by the time of his death.

The High Church in Kilmarnock was greatly altered in 1868 with stained glass, an organ provided and other improvements made.
Burns's first printer, John Wilson, was buried in the kirkyard.
The building is no longer in use as a church however the kirkyard can still be accessed.
Both ministers were elected by their congregations, unlike the Rev James Mackinlay whose patron at the Laigh Kirk was the Earl of Glencairn and the resulting dissatisfaction led to Burns penning "The Ordination".
Alexander Moodie (1728-1799)
Moodie was the minister of Riccarton Church near Kilmarnock, having been educated at Glasgow University and starting his ministry at Culross in 1759. He was buried in the Riccarton churchyard, but the present church wasn't built until 1823.
Alexander was a Calvinist and a dedicated adherent of the Auld Licht views. He had a hyperactive and deafening preaching style. Burns also references him in the Holy Fair with :
His lengthen'd chin, his turned-up snout,
His eldritch squeel an' gestures,
O how they fire the heart devout..
This was followed by a lampooning in The Kirk's Alarm where his swarthy complexion earned him the title of Singet Sawnie.
John Russell (1740-1817)
Originally from Moray, Black Jock taught at the Cromarty parish school and upon being ordained he became, in 1774, the minister of the High Church in Kilmarnock. At his Cromarty school he was remembered by Hugh Miller in his "Scenes and Legends of the North of Scotland" as a "large, robust, dark-complexioned man, imperturbably grave, and with a sullen expression seated in the deep folds of his forehead". He was "more ready to thunder forth the terrors of the law than to woo the wicked from the error of their ways, by setting before them the Saviour's love, so fully and freely manifested in the soothing and soul-captivating strains of the gospel". The nickname 'Black Jock or Joke' is a punning reference to the female genitalia.
On Sabbaths between Divine service, Russell patrolled the streets of Kilmarnock and even ventured into the countryside, walking stick in hand, on the look out for children or adults actively enjoying themselves. "Such as he discovered, he would visit on the following morning, and severely rebuke for their ungodliness." He set the parish in such terror that doors would close and faces would take on a serious contenance should the sound of his walking stick be heard. 
Like his colleague at Riccarton he was an Auld Licht Calvinist with the same hellfire and damnation bellicose preaching style. He appears in the "Holy Fair" he figures as Black Russell and as Wordy Russell in "The Twa Herds". In the "Kirks Alarm" Burns highlights his Auld Licht style :
Rumble John! Rumble John! mount the steps
with a groan,
Cry, the Book is with heresy cramm'd;
Then lug out your ladle, deal brimstone like
aidle,
And roar every note o' the Damn'd,
Rumble John!
And roar every note o' the Damn'd.
He was well versed in religious knowledge and on one occasion he met Burns in a barber's in Fore Street where they became embroiled in a heated discussion on a point of religious topic, that after a while had Burns overwhelmed and he silently accepted defeat by hurriedly leaving the premises.
Russell was an author with several religious pamphlets and books to his credit. He moved to Stirling and was buried there in the churchyard of the Church of the Holy Rood where the memorial intimates that he was well respected by the time of his death.
The High Church in Kilmarnock was greatly altered in 1868 with stained glass, an organ provided and other improvements made. Burns's first printer, John Wilson, was buried in the kirkyard. The building is no longer in use as a church however the kirkyard can still be accessed.
The Holy Tulzie