The Archbishop of Glasgow has confirmed that around half of the city’s Catholic churches will close due to there being "too few people" and "too many churches but too few priests".
Archbishop William Nolan wrote to Catholic congregations to address rumours of the changes and confirmed that 24 churches would be closed down.
Explaining the rationale for the decision, Nolan laid out the facts of the matter: "There are too many parishes but too few people, too many churches but too few priests.
"Compared to when these parishes were formed and our churches built, there are significantly fewer people coming to Mass. Some of our largest churches are in places where there are the fewest people.”
The lack of priests was given further attention in the letter, with Nolan pointing out that in his five years as Archbishop the number of active priests had dropped by a third. Of those that remain, most are over 60 and only one is under 45.
Nolan said that without foreign priests and volunteers “the situation would be even more critical than it is”.
He added, "Our parishes and our churches hold great memories for us and are dear to our hearts, so any reduction in parishes and any closure of churches will be a painful experience. We cannot avoid that pain, though, by not facing up to reality."
Catholic commentator Mark Lambert, writing on X, said the cuts were “extraordinary”, particularly when considering the strong Catholic heritage of the city. He called upon the Church to examine itself and attempt to reverse rather than manage the decline.
“The crisis did not begin with Archbishop Nolan, and it would be unjust to hold him personally responsible for decades of secularisation. But episcopal leadership cannot be judged solely by how competently bishops administer the consequences of declining religious practice," he said.
“For generations, bishops have been responsible for safeguarding and transmitting the Catholic faith.
"If successive generations have drifted away, if priestly vocations have almost disappeared, and if churches built by our forebears must now close, surely we are entitled to ask whether the Church's pastoral priorities, catechesis, evangelisation and formation of Catholic families have been adequate to the challenge.”
