No 5495 YOUR NATIONAL CATHOLICwww.sconews.co.uk NEWSPAPER SUPPORTS THE YEAR OF FAITH Friday November 30 2012 | £1 SCIAF FUNDING BOOST CELEBRATING ST ANDREW’S DAY WITH A SMILE OR TWO MALAWI PROJECTS run by the charity receive nearly £500,000 from the Scottish Government Page 7 Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow joined staff and pupils of the city’s St Andrew’s Secondary School on Monday to celebrate a feast day Mass for the school’s patron saint. In anticipation of the feast day, today, Gerry Lyons, St Andrew’s headteacher, and the school community were delighted to welcome Archbishop Tartaglia and priests of the archdiocese —including Fr Joseph Sullivan, school chaplain and a former pupil at the school, and Fr Mark Morris, also a former pupil—for the celebrations. The archbishop, making his first visit to a Glasgow secondary school since his inauguration in September, blessed St Andrew’s new oratory and also launched the school’s charities’ campaign PIC: PAUL McSHERRY Face up to anti-Catholicism ST ANDREW’S CONFERENCE IArchbishop Tartaglia says the Scottish Government must endeavour to tackle the problem By Ian Dunn Catholic community of Scotland “I think the vast majority of clergy remains steadfast in faith, joyful in and laity in this country have developed ARCHBISHOP Philip Tartaglia of hope and fully committed to being part very thick skins,” he said. “The vast Glasgow has said that the Scottish of Scottish society.” majority of crimes against Catholics are Government is refusing to face up never reported.” to the brutal nature of anti-Catholi- Failing Catholics cism in Scotland, as new Crown Peter Kearney, director of the Scottish Problem worsening Office statistics show an increase in Catholic Media Office, said the rise in Dave Scott of the charity Nil by Mouth attacks on Catholics. religiously aggravated crimes shows that admitted the problem appears to be get- A senior Church official has backed the work of anti-sectarianism charities, ting worse. the archbishop’s comments, suggesting such as Nil by Mouth, is not helping. “These figures are striking both for the work of anti-sectarianism charities “We have more than a decade’s worth the nearly 30 per cent rise in the num- is ‘making the situation worse.’ of evidence that the blanket approach of ber of offences and the fact that we The data contained in the latest these organisations is not helping,” he have seen arrests in all 32 of Scotland’s report—Religiously aggravated offend- said. “The one trend we can see is that local authority areas,” he said. “This ing in Scotland 2011-2012—shows an Catholics come off worse every time problem goes far beyond football and increase of 26 per cent in religious hate these figures are reported.” Facebook and it is worrying that nearly CARDINAL PELL crimes, with 509 attacks on Catholics Mr Kearney said the approach of the two thirds of those arrested were under and author George making up 58 per cent of all such Scottish Government funded organisa- the age of 30.” Weigel speak on New offences. Anti-Catholic attacks are PIC: PAUL McSHERRY tion to sectarianism would not be toler- Roseanna Cunningham, Community more prevalent than attacks on all other ated in other areas. Safety Minister said: “It is completely Evangelisation at special religious groups combined. Scotland which is truly unfortunate.” “Look at domestic violence, now unacceptable for people to think that The archbishop (above) also said the there are a number of different types of offensive religious or sectarian language, event in Glasgow Saddening statistics Scottish Government had to face up to domestic violence, male on female, or verbal or physical attacks based purely Archbishop Tartaglia, newly elected the reality that Scotland was, and still female on male, male on male and on religious prejudice, have any place in Pages 12-13 president of the Bishops’ Conference of is, an anti-Catholic country. female on female,” he said. “Yet every 21st century Scotland.” Scotland, said the statistics proved that “Sadly, it seems incontrovertible campaign on that issue is based around However she claimed that ‘while it Catholics cannot feel completely safe now that our problem is not so much male on female violence because that is concerning that the number of cases in Scotland. sectarianism but anti-Catholicism,” he is the nature of the overwhelming num- has risen, I hope that the increase does “I am saddened by the latest figures on said. “This is regrettable because pop- ber of domestic violence cases.” indicate people feel more confident religiously aggravated offending,” he ular culture is inventing all kinds of Mr Kearney also said that he about reporting the perpetrators.’ said. “While most Catholics are safe most new reasons to marginalise and hate believed the figures last week were just of the time, these figures show a side of Catholics. In the face of this, the the ‘tip of an intolerant iceberg.’ I [email protected] SCO, 19 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 6BT I tel 0141 221 4956 I fax 0141 221 4546 I e-mail [email protected] 2 PICTURE NEWS THE SCO SUPPORTS THE YEAR OF FAITH SCOTTISH CATHOLIC OBSERVER Friday November 30 2012 Caritas Award winners from St Francis Xavier’s, Carfin promote the Scottish Catholic Observer AS PART of ongoing events Catholic newspaper,” Ms marking the Year of Faith, McMahon said. young parishioners of St The parish is also keen to pro- Francis Xavier’s Church in mote the 150th anniversary of its Carfin recently took part in foundation, which will be an SCO promotion event. marked by the celebration of The St Francis Xavier parish- Mass with Bishop Joseph ioners were among the first Devine on Monday December 3. youngsters in Scotland to receive Priests who have served the the inaugural Pope Benedict XVI parish in recent years will join Caritas Award, which was intro- Bishop Devine for the Mass, duced in Scottish schools and which will be followed by a parishes last year to encourage reception at the Xavier Centre. young people to become more Pictured handing out free involved with their faith. copies of the SCO (right) are Lorraine McMahon, from St Maria Burns, Christopher Cul- Francis Xavier’s parish Liturgy lion, Katie McShane, Erin team, explained more about the McCann and Erin’s mother, Lor- SCO promotion event and the raine McMahon. Other Caritas role of the Caritas pupils in the students who assist with the St parish. Francis Xavier choir are “They want to encourage each Rebecca Hughes, Aimee Craw- and every family in the impor- ford and Amanda Connolly. tance of taking home the PIC: TOM EADIE Underlining the need for Catholic communications in Glenrothes Mgr Gerard Hand with young THE parish of St Paul’s, parishioners from the parish of St Glenrothes and St Mary, Paul’s, Glenrothes and St Mary Mother of God, Leslie, was Mother of God, Leslie delighted to welcome SCO representative Steve Lavery The parish boasts a strong lay to all its Masses last week- involvement in Church life and is end to speak to the Faithful proud of its lively music ministry on the importance of and children’s Liturgy team. Catholic communications. Many parishioners are also Mgr Gerard Hand and his involved in parish Divine parishioners provided the Mercy and Rosary groups. friendliest of welcomes to the In addition to being parish SCO and were encouraged to priest at St Paul’s and St Mary, learn more about the place of Mother of God, Mgr Hand Catholic media, its many publi- also serves the Chapel Royal, cations and periodicals and its Falkland. importance in an increasingly At last weekend’s Masses, secular world, particularly as Mgr Hand informed children, we celebrate the Year of Faith, after returning from their own which was called for by Pope Liturgy of the Word, that Benedict XVI. parishioners had been dis- The St Andrews and Edin- cussing Catholic communica- burgh Archdiocesan parish tions and that, perhaps, they comprises of an energetic mix themselves will feature in of parishioners young and old parish news stories in the who are keenly embracing the months and years ahead… as Year of Faith. well as in this week’s edition. SPOTLIGHT ON... Clergy and parishioners from across Dunkeld Diocese recently joined together to mark the opening of the Year of Faith with the celebration of Mass at Dundee’s St Andrew’s Cathedral. Mgr Basil O’Sullivan, administrator of Dunkeld Diocese, was the principal celebrant at the Mass, at which priests from across Dunkeld joined him. The Year of Faith, which was called for by Pope Benedict XVI, began last month, the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, and will run until November 24, 2013. Celebrations marking the opening of the year have been held in dioceses across the country, while a national Mass was celebrated at Motherwell’s Our Lady of Good Aid Cathedral earlier this month Friday November 30 2012 SCOTTISH CATHOLIC OBSERVER THE SCO SUPPORTS THE YEAR OF FAITH NEWS 3 Don Bosco’s relics to tour Scotland in January 2013 EARLY in January 2013, The relics of Don Bosco have the casket containing the been recomposed from the urn relics of Don Bosco is due that contained his remains since to arrive in Scotland as part 1929, when the body was of a pilgrim journey through exhumed for his Beatification 130 nations, which began on and Canonisation. The bones January 31, 2009 in prepara- and tissues of the right hand and tion for the celebration of arm have been taken and placed the 200th anniversary of within a wax replica of Don Don Bosco’s birth on John Bosco’s body, which in August 16, 1815.