4^th Sunday of Easter

40^th Anniversary of the Opening of St. Aidan’s Church, Johnstone

1. St. Aidan’s Church, Johnstone, was opened forty years ago in 1967, a new church for a new parish which had been founded 7 years before in 1960. St. Aidan’s is a pleasingly handsome church building of generous proportions, a fine church in which to gather the People of God for the Eucharist, for the other sacraments and for the celebration of the mysteries of faith. On the 40^th Anniversary of its Solemn Opening, we give thanks to God for this Church, for the people who have worshipped and prayed here, for the priests who have served here from its first parish priest, Fr. John Early, to the those of the present day, and for the generous spiritual, pastoral and financial contribution of those, living and dead, who have built up the life of this parish over the years. As we celebrate the 40^th Anniversary of the Opening of St. Aidan’s Church, Christ the Good Shepherd still beckons us forward to follow him on the way to eternal life. We ask God to continue to bless and strengthen the priests and parish community of today.

2. On 28^th April 1967, the Mass of Solemn Opening was celebrated by my predecessor Bishop James Black who dedicated the altar with the relics of SS. Euologius and Reparatus. These saints may not be household names, but we can imagine them in the host of martyrs and saints celebrated in today’s second reading from the Book of the Apocalypse : “These are the people who have been through the great persecution, and because they  washed their robes white again in the blood of the Lamb, they now stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his sanctuary…the Lamb who is at the throne will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away all tears from their eyes.” We are reminded that what the Lord does for us at this holy altar and in this church is done in the presence of the whole communion of saints. We cannot forget that this church calls us to holiness now as it did when it was opened forty years ago. This will always be the first and most important function of this lovely church of St. Aidan’s.

3. St. Aidan’s Church was opened forty years ago in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council. The homily at that Mass, preached by the then Chancellor of Diocese of Paisley, Mgr. McGlinchey, (by a happy providence, the present Chancellor is, of course, your own parish priest, Fr. James Duggan), reflected a major theme of the Council and spoke of the Council’s vision of the unity of the People of God. From his words on that day, it is as if the preacher was reaching out for a vision which could not be clearly articulated or seen, and yet which was still capable of inspiring the Church to move forward. That vision of the unity of the People of God is still before us as we work to allow the church of the Second Vatican Council to emerge in its fullness.

4. St. Aidan’s was the 10^th new church opened in the Diocese of Paisley in 20 years. It was a time of growth. The unity of the Church was at that time an expanding unity. Forty years on, the task is different. Demographic changes, a falling birth rate and fewer priests mean that the unity of the church has to be consolidated. We have to make the most of our resources. And this will mean changes in Johnstone and elsewhere. St. Aidan’s will be called upon to play its part in facing the new challenges of the present and of the future. I am confident that the response of the parish today will be as generous as it has always been.

5. This parish and church are dedicated to St. Aidan, the first bishop of Lindisfarne. He was a disciple of the great St. Columba. Aidan was a man of prayer who went out to preach the gospel. He wanted to bring people to Christ. He was a monk who became a missionary and a bishop. So if I speak of today’s challenge of consolidating the unity of the church, I want you to understand that, true to the spirit of St. Aidan, this is nothing to do with closing in on ourselves or of cutting down on our commitment to our mission as the Catholic Church. It is not in any way a step away from evangelisation, from the pastoral care of our people, from our involvement with other churches or from our presence in the wider community. Not at all, any changes that may have to be made are precisely so that we can fulfil our mission better, with more focus, more energy and with stronger parish communities. I know that the priests of the diocese are with me on this. Today is Vocations Sunday and I call upon others to join us in the priesthood so that Christ the Good Shepherd can be more fully present to his people.  

6. The vision of the Church of the Second Vatican Council still draws us on and fills us with hope and inspiration. We want to be a holy Church, a Church which worships and prays, a Church which is one in faith and love, a Church which is intimate with the word of God, a Church which evangelises, a Church which is fully present to the world and reaches out to everyone in love. I invite the Parish of St. Aidan’s to move forward together so that mission of the Church and the work of God may continue to be done.

St. Aidan’s Johnstone,