Welcome to St Brigid's Roman Catholic Church

St Brigid's Church

Welcome to St Brigid's Roman Catholic Parish in the Diocese of Motherwell, Scotland.

St Brigid's is a thriving parish of some 1,600 people, with a proud history in Newmains that stretches back to 1871.

Indeed the chapel/school established here in 1871 is still standing - though it is now a Parish Centre serving the social needs of the whole community.

We became a Parish in 1896 and our present Church was built in 1933. Now we gladly carry the Gospel of Christ into the third millenia.

Visit the heritage section of the website to find out more about the history of St Brigid's.

Words from Father Kelly

 

VOCATIONS AWARENESS WEEK. 

This week we have enjoyed a return to some very pleasant autumn weather. The pleasant weather does not mask the passing of the days and already we see the shortening of our daylight hours. It is a reminder from nature of our own journey in life and the cycle it takes us on. It has been marked too by those who seek to raise our understanding of the importance of looking after our world, our planet, the future of our civilisation.

Pope Francis, since the beginning of his Papacy, constantly reminds us of our stewardship of the gifts of creation. The story of creation in the Book of Genesis is a story about love. The love of God, the love that pours out in preparing a place of life for the summit of his creation, our humanity. The story unfolds from the darkness of nothingness into light, the formation of land and water, the beginnings of life in vegetation, birds and fish and finally when the garden is ready man himself but soon to be joined by woman and the constant refrain of the story "God saw that it was good".

It is strange that so many varied interests in the anxiety of climate change worry about our world, how we use or abuse its gifts, the quality of the air we breathe, the purity of the waters we drink, the healthiness of the food we eat, but we have to reflect also on a society that has lost respect for the dignity and sacredness of life. The garden made for humanity must be as perfect as we can make it but in Scotland in advance of 12,000 infants now each year never get the chance to enjoy it and the treatment of the elderly and seriously ill gives you the sense there is no great respect for them also. It is a strange anomaly of our times and far from the love of God for each one of us.

Fr Hugh P Kelly

Parish Prayer to St Brigid

Saint Brigid
You were a woman of peace.
You brought harmony where there was conflict.
You brought light to the darkness.
You brought hope to the downcast.
May the mantle of your peace
cover those who are troubled and anxious,
and may peace be firmly rooted in our hearts and in our world.
Inspire us to act justly and to reverence all God has made.
Brigid you were a voice for the wounded and the weary.
Strengthen what is weak within us.
Calm us into a quietness that heals and listens.
May we grow each day into greater
wholeness in mind, body and spirit.

Amen

St Brigid's Cross

The Saint Brigid’s cross is a custom that marks the feast day of St. Brigid, which falls on the 1st of February, the beginning of spring.

The making of the cross has many meanings and stories; one ritual is that the cross is hung over the door as a way of protecting the household from evil spirits and energies.

Another tradition that is practiced is that a new cross is made each year on St. Brigid's day, and the old one hanging from the year before is then burned to keep fire from the household.