by Mary Cullen

Two years after his appointment to the Archdiocese of Glasgow, Archbishop William Nolan has set in train a programme of change that could transform Scotland’s largest Catholic community.

Drawing on Pope Francis’ vision of a church which goes out into the world to share the joy of the Gospel, his pastoral focus is on evangelisation and the development of outward looking Christian communities. He speaks of investing in people rather than property, closing churches that were built for another age and developing a collaborative approach to decision making which involves lay people as well as clergy.

One of the biggest challenges the church faces, he says, is to change the mindset that kept it for so long within its own walls.

Legacy

Archbishop Nolan supported the development of collaborative working and lay leadership in the Diocese of Galloway, where he was Bishop from 2015-2022 (Open House, June/July 2019). In rural areas where there might be one priest for several parishes, lay people were encouraged to share the responsibilities of leadership, sacramental preparation, funerals and fabric of church buildings. They formed parish pastoral committees which met on a regular basis at deanery level to share their vision, the practicalities of their ministry, and their priorities for the year ahead.

Archbishop Nolan is also known for his commitment to Catholic Social Teaching. As President of the Justice and Peace Commission for almost a decade, he is a familiar figure at peace rallies and demonstrations at the gates of the Clyde Submarine Base at Faslane. He has visited the Calais refugee camp, spoken out passionately against the UK government’s policy on asylum seekers and announced the formation of the Scottish Bishops’ office for the Care of Creation ahead of COP 26 in Glasgow.

One of the first things he did when he was appointed to Glasgow, a year after the death of his predecessor, Archbishop Tartaglia, was to get to know the people and the places under his pastoral care. He visited all the priests and spent a weekend in every parish, starting with communities furthest from the city. What struck him most about his new diocese?

‘The very warm welcome’, he said. ‘The number of good people and committed people who are keeping the parishes going’. Rather than focus on empty pews, he spoke of strong faith, social activity and the commitment to justice he encountered: ‘like stars shining in the darkness of a clear night sky’.

Priorities

When asked about his priorities for the archdiocese, he answers with no hesitation: ‘Evangelisation. The good news. We can’t keep it to ourselves’. He speaks about Pope Francis’ first Apostolic Exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel, and its emphasis on ‘going forth’ to enhance the lives of others.

‘The main barrier we need to overcome is our mindset. We, clergy and people, were not trained to think this way. We stayed within our communities and looked after ourselves. We need to evangelise those who are committed, those who have fallen away, and above all those outside the church. This has not been our tradition’.

Evangelisation is a word which conjures up images of preaching on the High St. How do we get over that?

‘We don’t force our faith on others’, he says. ‘But we don’t need to keep it quiet either. It can be as simple as saying we go to Mass on Sunday. Or a parish employing a youth worker instead of spending money on buildings.

‘Religion can be seen as negative but there is also a recognition of the contribution faith groups make to the cohesion of society’.

Fund

Last November he launched a £1 million evangelisation fund to encourage projects which reach those untouched by the Gospel message. The money comes largely from the sale of the former Archbishop’s house used by Archbishop Tartaglia. The fund will provide financial backing for new projects, generally with a one-off grant. Parishes, deaneries and Catholic organisations can apply.

Archbishop Nolan said: ‘Parishes should be spending money on this kind of project anyway. We are challenged to make evangelisation – reaching out in faith to others – our principal objective. The resources we have, including our energies, our buildings and our material resources, should all be directed towards this objective’.

Pruning

This is the context in which he is tackling the issue of fewer priests, dwindling congregations and too many churches, many of which were designed and built for a different age. He speaks of a ‘time of pruning’ which will involve discussions at parish and deanery level across the archdiocese to decide what can be closed or cut back in order to focus on what needs to grow. The aim is to have fewer parishes, fewer church buildings, new approaches to developing outward looking faith communities and greater responsibility for lay people.

Archbishop Nolan acknowledges that it will be a difficult process. The road to change will be bumpy, he says, because we have left it for so long, but change is inevitable.

‘There is little awareness of the reality faced by the archdiocese. People tend to focus on their own parish. A few years ago there was an attempt to cluster parishes and co-ordinate Mass times, but it didn’t happen. We have lost ten years.

‘We currently have 68 parish priests, and in a few years there could be 50. We have 22,000 people coming to Mass on Sunday. That’s one priest for 400 people. Some parishes have only 100 people and would like to keep their priest. Things can’t stay the same’.

He agrees that people will need training to help them through the process and has invited Fr Stephen Wang, who developed the Sycamore programme, to talk to priests. Sycamore is an informal course about faith and its relevance today, which is widely used in adult faith education, including in the Diocese of Galloway.

Synodality

Archbishop Nolan is also planning to invite a speaker to help priests support the growth of a synodal church in the archdiocese. A key focus will be on ‘conversations in the spirit’ – the method of shared prayer with a view to communal discernment, which is central to the synodal process. It is a way of prayerful dialogue which could become the model for co-responsible decision making between bishops, priests and lay people. We need to learn to listen to the Spirit, Archbishop Nolan says.

What of those priests and lay people who oppose Pope Francis’ reforms?

‘They are often doing good work’, he says, ‘but are not engaging with the archdiocese and its priorities. They may think things are going well in their area but changes will affect them too. I can’t extend deadlines or spend energy on those who are sluggish. The bus is moving off and change will happen. We need to do it now. ‘Pruning is necessary, but we don’t necessarily appreciate being pruned’.

Last year Pope Francis’ theme for the World Day of the Poor was ‘Don’t turn away’. That could be a motto for Glasgow’s archbishop, who doesn’t turn away from confronting poverty and injustice, or from the challenge of changing mindsets in the church. He has five years to make it happen – bishops are required to submit their resignations at 75. Is he enjoying the work?

Yes, he says, he is happy in Glasgow. Archbishop Conti told him that when he came to Glasgow from Aberdeen there was so much more to do, but there were also more people to help do it. Archbishop Nolan agrees and pays tribute to the archdiocesan staff. It’s not just the archbishop who runs the diocese, he says.