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

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

At Christmas, Christians across Scotland gathered around the crib to contemplate the life of a vulnerable child; God entering our world as a baby in need of care, protection and love. Christmas places fragile human life at the centre of everything.

It is therefore unsettling that this season saw the first person in Scotland charged under the new so-called “buffer zone” law in Scotland; a law the Church believes curtails Scotland’s commitment to freedom of expression and conscience, and restricts critical voices from democratic debate in the public square.

The Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024 establishes “buffer zones” of up to 200 metres around abortion facilities — currently around 30 locations across Scotland. Within those zones, any conduct deemed to “influence” a decision about abortion may be criminalised. That vague description should trouble anyone who values legal clarity or free expression.

The Catholic Church does not condone harassment or intimidation, but that was not the intention of this law. The Church has been clear: harassment, intimidation and obstruction are wrong and unacceptable. But Scotland already has robust laws to deal with harassment, public disorder and threatening behaviour and it is telling that, when consulted on the proposed new law, Police Scotland did not ask for more powers, and went as far to state in written evidence to Parliament that, “existing powers and offences are sufficient to address any unlawful behaviour in the vicinity of healthcare premises.” When parliaments introduce criminal offences where existing law is already sufficient, questions should be raised and alarm bells ring.

We oppose this law because it is disproportionate and undemocratic. It represents state overreach and curtails basic freedoms. The Church would similarly oppose legislation mandating buffer zones outside nuclear weapons facilities or refugee detention centres. This should concern every Scottish citizen, regardless of their views on abortion.

As the Parliamentary Officer for the Catholic Church in Scotland pointed out, women experiencing crisis pregnancies may be “denied the opportunity to freely speak to people and organisations who may be able to help them.” A law supposedly designed to protect choice risks doing the opposite — eliminating one side of a conversation and one set of choices altogether.

Even more troubling is what the legislation anticipates. Official documentation accompanying the Act acknowledges that the law envisages criminalising “praying audibly” and “silent vigils."

This is unprecedented in modern Scotland, and it is no wonder it has raised eyebrows around the world, with concerns raised around Scotland’s commitment to human rights and freedom of expression and religion.

The implications go further. The Act extends to private homes within designated zones. A pro-life poster displayed in a window, a conversation overheard, a prayer said by a window; all could, in principle, fall within the scope of criminal sanction. When asked directly whether praying by a window in your own home could constitute an offence, Gillian Mackay, the Scottish Green Party MSP, who spearheaded the legislation, replied: “That depends on who’s passing the window.” That sends a chill down the spine of anyone who cares about civil liberties. Criminal law that depends on the perception of a passer-by is certainly not the hallmark of a free Scottish society.

The law also potentially criminalises a person standing alone in a buffer zone without any visible expression of protest, but who is deemed by others to be offering a silent pro-life inspired prayer. Even Police Scotland expressed unease. Superintendent Gerry Corrigan told Parliament that policing thought is an area they “would stay clear of,” adding: “I do not think we could go down the road of asking people what they are thinking or what their thoughts are. That feels really uncomfortable.” Yet, this is the territory into which Scottish law now ventures. Bishop John Keenan, President of the Bishops’ Conference, noted that “none of the arguments made were able to get around the basic premise that Police Scotland had never asked for more powers.” and that the law is “draconian” and “unnecessary,” particularly considering its impact on people of faith.

Some parliamentarians attempted to mitigate the effects of the law— proposing a reasonableness defence, or exemptions for chaplains who might be criminalised for pastoral conversations. All amendments were rejected or withdrawn.

We support all those who, motivated by conscience and compassion, stand up for the right to life. It cannot be a crime to give our voice and our prayers to the unborn.

Christmas is the message that every human life has infinite dignity from its beginning. That truth is not confined to private thoughts. A society confident in its values does not fear opposing voices. It does not criminalise silent prayer. It does not ask its police or judges to peer into the minds of its citizens.

Scotland’s buffer zones law represents a profound shift in the relationship between the State and the individual — one that restricts free speech, free expression and freedom of religion in ways that should concern us all.

As we look to the child in the manger this Christmas and Epiphany, we are reminded that babies do not have a voice of their own. It is a shame that the State has now also curtailed the voices of ordinary citizens who advocate for them within its borders.

The Catholic Bishops of Scotland
6th January 2026

News from the Commissions and Agencies

June 2025

17Jun

A new poll commissioned by SPUC has found that most of the British public still believe in upholding legal protections for unbor...

17 Jun, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

A new poll commissioned by SPUC has found that most of the British public still believe in upholding legal protections for unborn children and their mothers. The finding comes ahead of votes on two amendments that would, if passed, decriminalise abortion up to birth.

Read More: spuc.org.uk/majority-of-public-believes-in-legal-protections-for-unborn-children-spuc-poll-finds

17Jun

Justice & Peace Scotland's cover photo

17 Jun, 2025 | Justice & Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

17Jun

🧡 REFUGEE WEEK 2025: 16TH - 22ND JUNE

17 Jun, 2025 | Justice & Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

🧡 REFUGEE WEEK 2025: 16TH - 22ND JUNE

📜Claiming asylum is a human right, enshrined in the customs and treaties of international law to which the UK is party. Yet too often those fleeing violence, oppression, and persecution are met not with compassion but with hostility and are scapegoated as the cause of our societal problems rather than recognised as people seeking sanctuary and hope.

📖Catholic Social Teaching has long affirmed the rights of refugees and migrants. From the apostolic constitution Exsul Familia Nazarethana of Pius XII in 1952 to today, the Church has consistently called on nations to protect those forced to flee their homes.

🇻🇦Pope Francis challenged Christians to reject the prevailing attitudes of indifference and hostility towards migrants and refugees in his 2020 papal encyclical Fratelli Tutti:

💬“Migrants are not seen as entitled like others to participate in the life of society, and it is forgotten that they possess the same intrinsic dignity as any person… No one will ever openly deny that they are human beings, yet in practice, by our decisions and the way we treat them, we can show that we consider them less worthy, less important, less human.
For Christians, this way of thinking and acting is unacceptable since it sets certain political preferences above deep convictions of our faith: the inalienable dignity of each human person regardless of origin, race or religion, and the supreme law of fraternal love.”

🦺Many of those arriving on UK shores by irregular routes like small boat crossings do so not by choice but because there are no safe or accessible alternatives. If the UK provided more secure and fair pathways for people to claim asylum, these dangerous journeys would not be necessary.

🕊️Justice & Peace Scotland has consistently advocated for a fairer, more humane asylum system and added our voice to the call for greater welcome, safety, and sanctuary for refugees who are first and foremost our sisters and brothers in Christ.

📢This Refugee Week, we continue to stand in solidarity with those forced to flee their homes and encourage our supporters to speak out for a more compassionate asylum system, to challenge the language of fear and division, and to welcome the stranger in our midst.

17Jun

Justice & Peace Scotland's cover photo

17 Jun, 2025 | Justice & Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

16Jun

Photos from Justice & Peace Scotland's post

16 Jun, 2025 | Justice & Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

📸 Dignity Not Detention: Solidarity Gathering at Dungavel Detention Centre

On Sunday 15th June, Father’s Day, almost forty people braved the rain and joined our peaceful solidarity gathering outside Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre under the banner of Dignity Not Detention.

Led by Archbishop William Nolan and joined by Justice & Peace Scotland members, supporters and long-time collaborators, we reflected emotively and prayerfully on the injustice of indefinite immigration detention in the UK.

The UK is the only country in Europe that detains people in prison-like conditions without a time limit. Some inside Dungavel are held indefinitely for something as minor as working more hours than allowed on a visa. For this, they are stripped of liberty, cut off from their communities, relationships, and families, with no idea when they will be released.

Archbishop Nolan reminded us yesterday that when someone goes through the criminal justice system and receives a prison sentence, they at least know how long they’ll be held. Those in immigration detention do not even have that information.
He called for an immigration and asylum system that recognises the human dignity of all, that sees every person, citizen or not, as a brother or sister in Christ, and refuses to deprive someone of liberty simply because they are a foreigner.

On a day when so many were celebrating fatherhood, we held in our hearts the fathers behind the barbed wire of Dungavel and all those harmed by a system that values control over compassion.

16Jun

Today is the new Feast of All Saints of Scotland remembering the many saints of our land

16 Jun, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

Today is the new Feast of All Saints of Scotland remembering the many saints of our land. How many do you know?

15Jun

Happy Father's Day!

15 Jun, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

Happy Father's Day!

🙏Today, we celebrate fathers around the world and remember those who are no longer with us.

15Jun

🕯️JOIN US IN AN URGENT PRAYER FOR PEACE

15 Jun, 2025 | Justice & Peace Scotland | Justice & Peace Scotland Facebook |

🕯️JOIN US IN AN URGENT PRAYER FOR PEACE

In these past days and weeks, the world has witnessed the terrifying escalation of warfare and its devastating consequences in too many places.

🇮🇱🇮🇷Rising tensions between Israel and Iran threaten to ignite further regional conflict. In the past 72 hours civilian deaths have be confirmed in both countries following ongoing missile strikes, including among the children and the elderly.

🇵🇸The suffering in Gaza worsens daily, with lives lost both to violence and to the disastrous humanitarian situation in the region. 94% of all hospitals are damaged or destroyed according to the WHO.

🇺🇦In Ukraine, intensified fighting continues to devastate cities and communities. A recent Russian drone attack struck a maternity hospital in Odessa. UNICEF reports that over 2500 children have been killed or injured since the war began.

🇸🇩In Sudan, where famine has now been confirmed in some regions, the suffering of millions, especially children, is unimaginable. The more than two-year-old civil war there has spread hunger and disease and destroyed most health facilities.

Across all these conflicts, we see again and again the brutal consequences of war: violence against civilians, grave war crimes, widespread hunger and displacement, and the disregard for human dignity through loss of lives on all sides.

🕊It is clearer than ever: warfare is not a solution. The only path to a just and lasting peace is through diplomacy, dialogue, and an end to hostilities.

🙏We offer an urgent prayer for peace, asking Jesus to give us all but most especially those who wield the power and make the decisions, the courage and the heart of a peacemaker:

Lord Jesus Christ,
You are our peace.
You calmed the storm, healed the wounded, and taught us to love our enemies.
We come to You now, heartbroken by the violence tearing our world apart.

Jesus, Son of God,
Turn the hearts of those who wage war to the path of dialogue and respect for human life. Help them to realise that war is a victory for no one.
Convert the minds of leaders to seek the good of all, not the power of the few.
Strengthen those who work for peace, often in silence and in dangerous situations.

Lord of Life,
Comfort the wounded, console the mourning, shelter the displaced, feed the hungry, strengthen the weary.
Give courage to all who dare to hope that another way is possible and who strive to make it a reality.

Teach us to live as the peacemakers you called us to be:
To resist indifference, to speak truth with love, to seek justice for all,
to defend human dignity,
And to build a world where every life is protected and every nation chooses the way of peace.
We ask this in Your holy name,
Amen.

15Jun

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity - June 15, 2025 - Liturgical Calendar

15 Jun, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2025-06-15

The fundamental dogma, on which everything in Christianity is based, is that of the Blessed Trinity in whose name all Christians are baptized. The Solemnity of the Blessed Trinity needs to be understood and celebrated as a prolongation of the mysteries of Christ and as the solemn expression of our

14Jun

Congratulations to Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski (pictured with BCOS in Spain last year) who has been awarded an OBE for his service...

14 Jun, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

Congratulations to Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski (pictured with BCOS in Spain last year) who has been awarded an OBE for his service in the UK🙏