BY DAVID V BARRETT
ST ANDREW’S Cathedral in Glasgow is being stripped bare in advance of major renovation work. The cathedral is expected to be closed to the public for about a year.
The cathedral in Clyde Street was completed in 1816; in 1884, six years after the restoration of the hierarchy in Scotland, it became the cathedral of the Diocese of Glasgow.
Archbishop Mario Conti said: “St Andrews is the mother Church of our archdiocese. Every Catholic church in the area stems from its foundation almost 200 years ago. It is an integral part of our history and expresses so much of who we are as a Catholic community.” He continued: “My ambition is to see the cathedral as a magnet, drawing people to its threshold and discovering there, by the river of a great city, that spiritual refreshment which is the most satisfying and necessary for our life.” As well as such renovations as new underfloor heating and flooring, and new lighting and seating, the work to the cathedral will include redecoration and gold leaf work, the installation of newly commissioned bronze doors and the repair and reinstatement of the pipe organ, the installation of a massive canvas by Peter Howson depicting the martyrdom of St John Ogilvie, and the creation of a garden of remembrance next to the cathedral.