Saint Patrick's Anderston

08/09/2026

Rest in peace, Deacon Jim.

08/09/2026

Canon Gargaro was at another St Patrick's today, St Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne. Its a wee bit bigger than ours!

07/09/2026

People will do anything to get to Anderston!

The red car was seen driving over the Anderston Footbridge, which crosses over the busy M8 motorway linking the city centre with the West End.

06/09/2026

Canon Gargaro was at the very impressive St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney today. The great Cardinal Pell is buried in the crypt.

03/09/2026

𝗕𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗻 𝗞𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗻: 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱

I note with concern the Scottish Government’s response to a recent parliamentary question on abortion law and access to later-stage abortion services. While the Government has indicated that it has no immediate plans to reform abortion law in 2026–27, it has also reaffirmed its intention to consult on the recommendations of the abortion law review advisory group and to establish a nationally commissioned later-stage abortion service in Scotland.

The advisory group, which excluded prolife voices and which adopted a principle of “non-regression” on abortion provision, lacks both legitimacy and credibility. It has made radical recommendations to the Scottish Government which, if implemented, would effectively permit abortion up to birth for any reason and remove the current requirement for two doctors to approve abortions up to 24 weeks. It is astonishing that the report also recommends that future legislation should make no reference to s*x-selective abortion, paving the way for unborn babies to be aborted simply because they are deemed to be the wrong s*x.

I recognise the real fear, pressure and hardship that can accompany an unexpected or crisis pregnancy. Women in such circumstances deserve compassion, practical assistance, emotional support and the assurance that neither they nor their children will be abandoned. A truly caring society must respond to vulnerability by offering hope and help, not by making abortion more readily available at later stages of pregnancy.

The establishment of later-stage abortion provision in Scotland, alongside proposals to weaken existing legal safeguards, raises grave moral and social questions. Every unborn child is a unique human life deserving of protection, and every mother should be supported in ways that uphold her dignity and the dignity of her child. I therefore make a direct appeal to all elected representatives who recognise the inherent dignity of every human life, to reject any further liberalisation of abortion provisions in Scotland and to oppose measures that would remove essential safeguards or further weaken protection for unborn children.

I urge the Scottish Government and all MSPs to prioritise policies that expand support for women and families, reduce the pressures that lead to abortion, and foster a culture in which every life is welcomed and protected from conception to natural death. Scotland should aspire to be a nation where compassion means standing with both mother and child.

Bishop John Keenan
President of the National Office for Marriage, Family and Life, Bishops’ Conference of Scotland

02/09/2026

Canon Gargaro said Mass today at the shrine of St Mary McKillop - the first Australian saint but from a Scottish family. We pray for her intercession in all our necessities.

30/08/2026

Canon Gargaro is saying Mass in St Anne's Bondi Beach today, which is linked with a St Patrick's church as well! They have their own parish surfboards! If you look closely at the third picture you might see Canon riding the waves🤔.

26/08/2026

Let's pray for all those killed, injured, affected and bereaved by these terrible floods.

Nepal's tourist board says the missing tourists include 133 from India, 54 from the US, and 33 from the UK, as well as more than 100 from Nepal itself.

25/08/2026

𝗕𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

As the Scottish Government prepares to publish its Programme for Government, Bishop John Keenan, President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, has called for human dignity and the common good to be placed at the heart of its priorities.

In a statement published today, Bishop Keenan urges the Government to judge its policies particularly by their impact on the poorest and most vulnerable.

Bishop Keenan said:
“Public policy should be judged by how it protects the weakest, supports families, strengthens communities and enables every person to flourish.”

He calls for a consistent commitment to protecting human life from conception until natural death, alongside decisive action on poverty, homelessness, addiction, mental ill-health, social isolation and palliative care.

The statement also highlights the importance of strengthening families and communities, improving health and social care, supporting migrants and refugees, protecting freedom of conscience and religion, supporting Catholic schools and caring for creation.

Bishop Keenan added:
“Human dignity is not granted by the state, nor earned by wealth, health, productivity, age, ability or social status. It belongs to every person.”

The Bishop concludes by assuring the Scottish Government and all elected representatives of the prayers of Scotland’s Catholic bishops, asking that the Programme for Government “honour human dignity, strengthen the common good and give renewed hope to those who need it most.”