The Magazine

The following article relates to a small display of sculptures made from soap which is on one of the windowsills in St Mary’s. It is written by Marion Bryans, who writes regularly to the person who carved them – a prisoner on Death Row.

I was asked to write something about the sculptures made from soap that are on display in the Cathedral just now. It is my pleasure to do this.

The soap sculptures were made by my friend Rodney Emil on Death Row in Nevada. He also had to make his own tools from what was available in the prison. Rodney is self-taught and makes things “to order”. He made a garden pond with butterflies and flowers for a friend of mine who wanted to give it as a birthday present. It was exquisite. The butterflies were “flying” suspended in air.

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St Mary’s Cathedral opened as St Mary’s Church in Great Western Road on 9 November 1871 with considerable ceremony. The architect’s original vision for St Mary’s can be seen in this picture: However, when the church was opened the spire was not yet completed. So in 1871 it looked like this: There are extensive details […]

This article was published first by the International Anglican Family Network

Some years ago, I was shocked to read in the newspaper about a young man, an asylum-seeker, who had sewn his lips together to draw attention to his plight. He lived near me! How could I ignore what was happening on my doorstep? My husband and I got involved as volunteers in a church-run night -shelter for destitute asylum-seekers. I also volunteered as a holiday host for the charity Freedom from Torture, offering week-long holiday- and respite-breaks for asylum-seekers from elsewhere in the UK.

The Primates of the Anglican Communion recently met in Canterbury. Rather than rely on media reports of what they said, here’s what they said in their own words.

As a band, we have continued to take it in turns to run the ringing throughout the year – again my thanks to everyone who has got involved.  However, personally I feel that this year we have lost some of the common threads of the prime ring and taking time to concentrate on striking.  Furthermore, […]

It is 6.45am on a glacial morning in early March. The streets of Glasgow are still and silent, the city only just beginning to wake up. I turn into my local park beneath a sky that is turning pink and gold. My lips feel frostbitten. It has been a long and dark winter, but, when […]

Dr Alan McManus has been part of the community in St Mary’s for a number of years. He is now working with at the Abbey on Iona with the Iona Community. In this article he reflects on how Yes and No voters might relate to one another more than a year on from the Scottish Referendum.

This week’s magazine entry is a photogallery of the stalls at the World Christmas Fair.

In this week’s article, Deryl Davies, reflects from the perspective of being an American in Glasgow on the Thanksgiving holiday.

In this week’s article, Pam Barrowman reflects on the past musical tradition of St Mary’s and asks – was it a golden age?

This week, John Doyle writes about some insights that he gained whilst shadowing the Provost and Vice Provost for a couple of weeks.

A central element of the service was the idea of laying down the burdens of worry, anxiety for self or others, the need for forgiveness that we had carried on our pilgrimage. In turn, we each poured out a little water from a glass as a symbol of all that we were relinquishing and laying down in God’s care.

Anne Jones, the Provost’s Warden writes about a recent visit to our local mosque in Carrington Street.

The Vice Provost, Cedric Blakey has devised a game to enable small groups talk about God. In this week’s article explains why he did it and how it works. I have found an astonishing interest and energy for enquiry about God in Glasgow. The following were just a few of the questions asked by the […]

On 18 July 2018, Nelson Mandela’s birthday, a container of 50,000 books left from City Chambers, George Square, Glasgow to be delivered to school and public libraries in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. David Kenvyn describes how that helped to change the world.

Member of the choir, Riko Kumabai is running for St Mary’s. In this article, Lesley Buntain interviews her about the running project and what she is raising money for.

The Rev Prof John Riches writes about the relationship between trade and aid.

During the summer period, Rosemary Hannah and Sophie Agrell have been leading a special programme for the Young Church at St Mary’s. When asked about what it was like on their final Sunday, Rosemary said, “It’s been a blast”. In this article she explains why.

On 2 August 2015 the Vice Provost led 35 Muslims, Jews and Christians into the cloud and rain on Glasgow’s nearest Munro. Here Cedric Blakey tells of the why, who and what of that long afternoon.