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.

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

Bishops’ Conference of Scotland announces Luisa Campbell as the next General Secretary

The Bishops of Scotland welcome Luisa Campbell to the office of General Secretary of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland from February 2026, when Fr. Gerry Maguiness completes his second term of office.

In parallel with her working career, Luisa has been actively involved in the life of the Church in Scotland at both parish and diocesan level in the areas of youth work, parish administration, liturgy, evangelisation, RCIA and finance.

Luisa retired early from work in 2020 to pursue her passion for voluntary work in the Catholic Church.

After gaining Master’s degrees in both Engineering and Business Administration, she worked for almost forty years in industry, ultimately as chief executive of a Scottish business which she led for over two decades. Her roles involved leadership, governance, strategy, commercial finance, mergers and acquisitions and organisational development.

During that time, she also acted as a trustee of several charities, served as a non-executive director and as trustee of a large pension scheme.

Luisa grew up in the diocese of Galloway and has lived in both the archdiocese of Glasgow and the diocese of Aberdeen. Her work has taken her to every diocese in Scotland.

She will be the first member of the lay faithful and first woman to take on the role of General Secretary.

Responding to her invitation from the bishops, Luisa said, ‘I look forward to serving the Bishops of Scotland in my new role as General Secretary, bringing together my experience in the Church and in the world of business.’

Bishop Keenan, President of the Bishops’ Conference said, ‘The bishops are delighted that Luisa has accepted this post and will continue the good work carried on by Fr. Gerry Maguiness over the past years. Luisa brings a wealth of experience both as a committed laywoman in the Church who has served our parishes and dioceses loyally over the years and who also has vast experience of life in the world and where she has made a fruitful contribution. We look forward to working with her in the service of the Church in Scotland in the years ahead’.

The Bishops of Scotland would like to take the opportunity of commending and thanking Fr. Gerry Maguiness for his wise, effective and tireless stewardship of the General Secretariat over the past six years. We wish him similar blessings as he takes up the office of parish priest of St. Bride’s in Cambuslang.

Bishop John Keenan
President, Bishops’ Conference of Scotland.

News from the Commissions and Agencies

April 2025

17Apr

✝️Today we begin the Paschal Triduum with the The Lord's Supper and the celebration of the Institution of the Eucharist

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

✝️Today we begin the Paschal Triduum with the The Lord's Supper and the celebration of the Institution of the Eucharist.

Over the next few days of the Triduum, we will share photographs taken at the locations in the Holy Land commemorating the sites of our Lord's Passion, Death and Resurrection. These photographs and accompanying scripture can be used to reflect, pray and journey with Jesus over these most holy of days. Our first image and reflection is from the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed after his last meal with his disciples.

📖Matthew 26: 36 - 41: "Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, ‘Sit here while I go over there and pray.’ He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and agitated. Then he said to them, ‘I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and stay awake with me.’ And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.’ Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, ‘So, could you not stay awake with me one hour?'"

📸Garden of Gethsemane, Mount of Olives, Jerusalem.

17Apr

Please pray for all your priests on this Feast of the Priesthood 🙏

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

Please pray for all your priests on this Feast of the Priesthood 🙏

17Apr

Holy Thursday celebrates the institution of Christ Himself in the Eucharist and of the institution of the sacerdotal priesthood

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

Holy Thursday celebrates the institution of Christ Himself in the Eucharist and of the institution of the sacerdotal priesthood. With the disciples, Christ is the self-offered Passover Victim, and every ordained priest presents this same sacrifice.

The action of the Church on this night also witnesses to the Church's esteem for Christ's Body present in the consecrated Host in the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. No Mass will be celebrated again in the Church until the Easter Vigil proclaims the Resurrection.

Learn more:
👉https://hubs.la/Q03hylBf0

16Apr

📄STATEMENT: "A Sanctuary of Healing Struck in the Land of the Divine Healer"

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

📄STATEMENT: "A Sanctuary of Healing Struck in the Land of the Divine Healer"

The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem have issued a statement in response to the Israeli airstrike on the al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza on Palm Sunday. The full text of the statement is below and you can download and share on our website via the link in the comments.

"On this sacred Palm Sunday, as the faithful around the world raise palm branches in remembrance of our Lord Jesus Christ’s entry into Jerusalem—an entry marked not by conquest, but by meekness, peace, and divine compassion—we find our hearts weighed with sorrow over the suffering endured in the very land upon which He walked.

"In the early light of this holy day, the al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza, a place consecrated to healing and long rooted in the Christian vocation of mercy, was struck by an Israeli air assault that rendered its emergency and other critical departments inoperative. Patients in fragile condition, including children, were forced into the open streets. Among them, a twelve-year-old who perished during the chaotic evacuation. This death, like so many others, is a silent cry, a reminder of the innocent who suffer where care should prevail.

"This hospital, already strained by months of siege, stood as one of the last beacons of medical hope in Gaza, where dozens of healthcare institutions have been systematically destroyed. The stripping away of such sanctuaries of life and dignity is a tragedy that transcends all boundaries of politics and enters the realm of the sacred.

"Yet even amidst devastation, the light of faith remains unextinguished. In Gaza’s Zaytun Quarter, within the heart of the Old City, the historic Church of Saint Porphyrius held Palm Sunday prayers—quiet, steadfast, and full of grace—affirming that the witness of Christ’s peace endures, even when sorrow surrounds the sanctuary.

"As the Church that guards the Tomb of Christ and walks daily in the path of His Passion and Resurrection, we cannot turn away from this anguish. Yet we respond in prayer, bearing witness to the truth that mercy remains stronger than hatred, and that humanity, even when wounded, is never defeated.

"For as it is written: “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4).

"Lord Jesus Christ, Divine Healer, have mercy on Gaza."

📸Photo: Aftermath of airstrike on Al-Ahli Arab Baptist hospital. Credit: AP.

16Apr

📄STATEMENT: "A Sanctuary of Healing Struck in the Land of the Divine Healer"

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

16Apr

Why is today called Spy Wednesday?

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

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/amp/news/254020/why-is-today-called-spy-wednesday

The name actually derives from the Gospel reading for today in which Judas Iscariot betrays Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.

16Apr

Gospel of the Day (Matthew 26,14-25)

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

Gospel of the Day (Matthew 26,14-25)

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples approached Jesus and said, "Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?" He said, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The teacher says, "My appointed time draws near; in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples."'" The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered, and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening, he reclined at table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, "Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me." Deeply distressed at this, they began to say to him one after another, "Surely it is not I, Lord?" He said in reply, "He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me is the one who will betray me.

The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born." Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" He answered, "You have said so."

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day/2025/04/16.html

16Apr

Amazing news from @standrewsedinburgh as 30 young people from ONE parish will convert to the Catholic faith this week

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

Amazing news from @standrewsedinburgh as 30 young people from ONE parish will convert to the Catholic faith this week. Learn the story here:
https://archedinburgh.org/seeking-truth-beauty-in-the-catholic-church/

15Apr

Pro-Life Reflection from Bishop Frank Dougan

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

A reflection from Bishop Frank Dougan (RC Diocese of Galloway) at last night's Stations of the Cross.

Thanks to everyone who has joined us throughout Lent to pray for unborn children, their mothers and all pro-life intentions.

Bishop Frank Dougan highlights how we must help others by sharing their burden so that no-one need carry their Cross aloneFrank Dougan is Bishop of the Dioce...

14Apr

Antoni Gaudí, known as “God’s architect,” declared Venerable - Vatican News

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

The Pope recognizes miracle attributed to a religious sister from India, the martyrdom of an Italian missionary; and the heroic virtues of God's ...