• paisley1
  • oban1
  • edinburgh2
  • ayr2
  • fortrose1
  • Slider1
  • ayr1
  • Slider1
  • glasgow1
  • edinburgh1

The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

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.

Members of The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

30th July 2026


30 July 2026

Bishop Welcomes Prime Minister’s Call to Prioritise Care Reforms Before Westminster Assisted Suicide Vote

Bishop John Keenan, the Bishop with responsibility for Marriage, Family and Life for the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, has welcomed Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s call for the serious gaps in palliative and social care to be addressed before the Westminster Parliament considers assisted suicide legislation.

Bishop Keenan said:

“The Prime Minister’s intervention is both timely and welcome. We have a duty to ensure that every person approaching the end of life has access to the compassionate palliative and social care they deserve. No one should ever feel driven towards assisted suicide because they lack the care, support or dignity they need.

“We were grateful that the Scottish Parliament resolutely rejected assisted suicide only recently. We hope this latest intervention will encourage Members of the Westminster Parliament to reflect carefully before taking a step that would fundamentally change the way our society cares for the sick and vulnerable.

“As our Catholic Parliamentary Officer, Anthony Horan, has rightly said: ‘The last thing the country needs is another divisive debate about assisted suicide. We need to make progress in improving palliative and social care, not offering vulnerable people state support to end their lives.’ I share that conviction wholeheartedly.

“This is an opportunity to rethink the whole approach to assisted suicide. The compassionate response to suffering is never to help people end their lives, but to ensure they receive the high-quality care, love and accompaniment they need. Let us pray for all who are seriously ill, for their families and carers, and for those in public office, that they may always uphold the dignity of every human life and work to build a society that truly cares for its most vulnerable members.”

Bishop John Keenan

President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Scotland

Contact:

Media Office

Bishops’ Conference of Scotland
64 Aitken Street, ML6 6LT
Tel: 01236 764061
Email: [email protected]

News from the Commissions and Agencies

June 2025
https://catholicinsight.com/2025/06/09/an-irish-monk-in-scotland-saint-columbkille/


If you will forgive a little parochialism, today is the feast of Saint Columbkille (521-597), also called Columba, who is not celebrated in the universal calendar, but happens to be the patron my own diocese. He also hails originally from where my father's family is from in Ireland, Donegal on the w...
Read More
People from across Scotland gathered in Dunfermline yesterday for the national St Margaret Pilgrimage.

Read More
https://catholicunion.org.uk/2025/06/pentecost-message-by-bishop-brian-mcgee/?mc_cid=8369ab3d77&mc_eid=d3c37a14a3


A Gift from Pope Francis In my office hangs a painting depicting Pentecost by the 16th century Italian painter Girolamo Muziano. A mighty fire, akin to the blazing sun. descends… Read More »Pentecost Message by Bishop Brian McGee
Read More
https://youtu.be/dSF1AvXxNUI?si=iH5kdGhPqcJw3g2r From the Cathedral of the Holy Family in London
Pray for Ukraine 🇺🇦🙏


Caver на пісню "Hallelujah" Leonard Cohen/аранжування О.Токар та О.Світлик.
Read More
Beautifully sung Panis Angelicus from the Caritas Ceremony today
Well done to SCES all the volunteers all who played music and those pupils who celebrated and received their awards🙏


1 Video
Read More
Statement from Archbishop John Sherrington on the upcoming Third Reading of the Assisted Suicide Bill
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which seeks to legalise assisted suicide, is fast approaching its decisive vote in the House of Commons which will likely take place on either the 13th or 20th of June.
The Catholic bishops of England and Wales oppose this flawed bill both in principle and in practice. Among the many concerns, we are particularly alarmed by the following:
• This legislation would require many hospices and care homes to facilitate assisted suicide. This will put in jeopardy their ability to provide care. Parliament has rejected an amendment that would have allowed institutions to opt out of participating in the provision of assisted suicide.
• The provisions for conscientious objection for health and social care workers are both unclear and inadequate. This problem will not be addressed by proposed amendments.
• Safeguards against coercion for the most vulnerable are wholly inadequate, particularly in cases involving coercive control or social pressure.
During Committee Stage, the bill’s main proponent was unable to confirm whether individuals seeking assisted suicide due to financial concerns or feelings of being a burden would be prevented from accessing it. Since then, no progress has been made, and many MPs consider the existing safeguards insufficient, with the potential to result in a “terrible tragedy.”
We note the opposition for the bill from key professional bodies including the Royal College of Psychiatrists whose members will be expected to be involved in the process of assessing those who elect for assisted suicide.
We have already seen the bill weakened during Committee Stage. In addition, MPs are expected to debate nearly 60 pages of amendments in under 15 hours. The whole process by which this bill has been brought forward and debated is insufficient for such a radical change.
We urge Catholics, and all people of goodwill, to contact their MP and ask them to vote against this bill. We also ask you to pray that our representatives choose to protect the most vulnerable citizens of this country when they vote later this month.
You can contact your MP using this this tool.

Archbishop John Sherrington
Archbishop of Liverpool
Lead Bishop for Life Issues
Read More
We wish to recall the clear words of Pope Francis, when he explained that euthanasia, and we quote, is “a failure of love, a reflection of a ‘throwaway culture’” in which “persons
are no longer seen as a paramount value to be cared for and respected” (encyclical Fratelli Tutti, 18). Indeed, euthanasia is often, misleadingly, presented as a form of compassion. However, 'compassion', a word that means ‘to suffer with’, does not involve
ending a life intentionally, but rather the willingness to share in the suffering of those who are facing the final stages of their journey on this earth. (Message to Participants in the International Symposium on Palliative Care, Toronto, 21–23 May 2024).
Excerpt From the Pastoral Letter of the Maltese Bishops.

Read More
https://youtu.be/Vo1OWq5v1gY?si=JuvuI_dn_NUxg2rK
Today is the feast of St Boniface, English monk who became apostle of the Germans


Discover the incredible story of Saint Boniface, the fearless missionary who challenged the gods of old and brought Christianity to the Germanic peoples. Kno...
Read More
Page 162 of 299 [162]