The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

Pope Francis RIP

17th December 1936 – 21st April 2025

May he rest in peace

Message of Bishop Keenan President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland

It was with deep sadness that we woke to the news that Pope Francis has died and we share in the sense of loss of millions of people across the world. It is a consolation to us that he went to the LORD on Easter Monday and the great Easter Day as a sort of first fruits of the salvation which the Risen Christ shares with His Church.

We thank GOD for the Pope’s service which was always human and humble in its informal style and with a message of GOD’s universal love and unconditional mercy that brought hope to so many.

A man of the poor who lived simply, Pope Francis was a voice for the voiceless and all those who find themselves on the margins in our world. A man of peace, he called the Church to listen to everyone, to move forward together as a family, to find a conciliatory approach to those of different beliefs and lifestyles, for an end to conflicts across the world and for the care of Creation as GOD’s precious gift to humanity.

He gave of himself to the end, offering up his final illness with serenity, his last acts being to visit Rome’s prison on Holy Thursday and to wish the crowds gathered in Saint Peter’s a Happy Easter.

We pray he will be enjoying the full fruits of the Resurrection, resting from his work, his good deeds going with him.

May he rest in peace.

Bishop John Keenan

Read the Pastoral Letter on Assisted Suicide - National Day of Prayer - April 2025

Pastoral Letter on Assisted Suicide - National Day of Prayer - April 2025 Click to open

The Roman Catholic Bishops in Scotland work together to undertake nationwide initiatives through their Commissions and Agencies.

The members of the Bishops' Conference are the Bishops of the eight Scottish Dioceses. Where appropriate the Bishops Emeriti (retired) provide a much welcomed contribution to the work of the conference. The Bishops' Conference of Scotland is a permanently constituted assembly which meets regularly throughout the year to address relevant business matters.

Click here to visit the Jubilee 2025 website

The Jubilee Prayer

Father in heaven,

may the faith you have given us

in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother,

and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom.

May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel.

May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth,

when, with the powers of Evil vanquished,

your glory will shine eternally.

May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth.

To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever.

Amen

News from the Commissions and Agencies

Archive by category: Justice & Peace Scotland FacebookReturn

August 2024

21Aug

FAVOR UK MEMORIAL VIGIL 💟

21 Aug, 2024 | Justice and Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

FAVOR UK MEMORIAL VIGIL 💟

Last night Justice and Peace Scotland braved the rain to stand in solidarity with Faces & Voices of Recovery UK and those impacted by the loss of family members and friends to addiction at a memorial vigil and protest at George Square.

📈 Figures released yesterday revealed that drug deaths in Scotland had risen 12% in the last year to 1172, giving Scotland the worst drugs deaths record in Europe and highlighting a desperate need for a change in drug and alcohol policy.

💔 Family members and friends shared heart-breaking testimonials to loved ones lost which served as a reminder that human dignity should never reduce any person to a mere statistic, especially in such tragic circumstances as the illness of addiction.

📄It is for this reason that Justice and Peace Scotland are advocating in support for the Right to Recovery Bill, promoted by FAVOR UK CEO Annemarie Ward, that will go before the Scottish Parliament in the autumn. The Bill would strengthen rights for those affected by addiction to access rehabilitation services, and would place rehabilitation services on the same standing as harm reduction measures, such as methadone prescription.

📝 To learn how to get involved in the letter writing campaign to MSPs, and find out more visit: https://www.facesandvoicesofrecoveryuk.org/back-the-bill-at/

(Feed generated with FetchRSS)

21Aug

Justice & Peace Scotland > Home

21 Aug, 2024 | Justice and Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

Archbishop Nolan recently joined Christian faith leaders to visit Glasgow Central Mosque in an act of unity and solidarity in the wake of the violence, hatred, and Islamophobia that disgraced the UK earlier this month. Read the full story on our website👇

Justice and Peace, Scotland

(Feed generated with FetchRSS)

08Aug

We are a proud member of Scottish Faiths Action for Refugees and we send our solidarity to people seeking asylum, refugees, frie...

08 Aug, 2024 | Justice and Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

We are a proud member of Scottish Faiths Action for Refugees and we send our solidarity to people seeking asylum, refugees, friends of the Muslim faith and all who have been traumatised by the recent racist violence across the UK.🧡

SFAR has co-authored the statement below on behalf of all its member groups and we fully endorse its content. 👇

Although it was promising to see so many anti-racist gatherings last night and communities coming together in friendship and support, the sentiments, rhetoric and political influences that have led to the entrenchment of intolerance and hatred has not gone away.

Division must be replaced with dialogue, violence with peace, and intolerance with respect and understanding. 🕊

(Feed generated with FetchRSS)

06Aug

Photos from Justice and Peace Scotland's post

06 Aug, 2024 | Justice and Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

📆On this day in 1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, by US air forces. This was the first time a nuclear weapon had ever been used: it destroyed 13 square kilometres of the city and killed up to 180,000 people.

The power contained in some modern nuclear weapons could kill around 583,000 people. This is five times the devastation and five times the death toll seen in Hiroshima 79 years ago.

On Saturday 3rd August, we gathered outside Faslane Naval Base, the home of the UK's nuclear submarines for a Christian Peace Vigil in opposition to the threat and possession of these weapons. The gathering was led by Archbishop Nolan, President of Justice and Peace Scotland and Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Glasgow, the Right Rev Shaw Paterson, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and the Scottish Episcopal Church 's Bishop Andrew Swift, Bishop of Brechin.

All three Faith Leaders highlighted the incompatibility of nuclear weapons with respect for God's Creation and with the love of Christ for all His people. We must never give up on the call to be peacemakers. ✝️🕊️

(Feed generated with FetchRSS)