Scottish Catholic Observer

Following the SCO exclusive that St Patrick’s Shieldmuir, was to be the first Scottish parish to host a relic for the late Pope, St John the Baptist’s in Uddingston has announced it is to welcome another relic of the Polish Pope after its parish priest recently travelled to Krakow, Poland, to collect it (above).

Uddingston priest Fr Dominic Towey personally took possession of the relic coming to his parish earlier this summer from the Cardinal Archbishop of Krakow, Pope John Paul II’s former private secretary. This relic will be housed in the John Paul II Adoration Oratory at St John the Baptist’s, which has been open at the parish for the past seven years and boasts a large statue of the saint.

St John the Baptist’s is arranging an extensive series of events around the saint’s feast day on October 22, including Mass and discussion at 7pm from October 14-22. Each event will have a different theme, covering John Paul II’s commitment to issues such as youth, pro-life, the family, Our Lady, the sick and vocations.

The oratory will be open on the Tuesday of the Novena all night, as it is every Tuesday in that parish. The novena will culminate with the Mass of the Feast Day. Bishop Joseph Toal of Motherwell will be the principal celebrant at Mass in the parish that day at 7pm at which the relic of the saint will be venerated for the first time

Bishop Toal will also be at St Patrick’s a few days earlier to install the relic of St John Paul II coming there on Sunday October 18.

The vial of blood coming to St Patrick’s is one of four containing the former Pope’s blood, drawn in case they were needed for transfusion but never used. Fr Krzysztof Garwolinski, parish priest at St Patrick’s, hopes the relic from Cardinal Dziwisz of Krakow will help further unite his Polish and his Scottish parishioners.

His parish has also arranged a special series of talks ahead of the formal installation. They will take place every Tuesday at 8pm from September 8 to October 13. Topics will include John Paul II Man of Peace and John Paul II Man of Poland.

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