St Bride's Church, East Kilbride

St Bride's Roman Catholic Church
File:St Brides EK05.jpg
St Bride's Roman Catholic Church Location of St Bride's in South Lanarkshire
Location	Whitemoss Avenue, East Kilbride
Country	Scotland
Denomination	Roman Catholic
History
Dedication	Brigid of Kildare
Architecture
Status	Parish Church
Heritage designation	Category A listed building
Architect(s)	Gillespie, Kidd and Coia
Groundbreaking	1957
Completed	1964
Administration
Diocese	Motherwell
Province	Glasgow
Clergy
Canon(s)	Canon Michael Ryan (Retired)
Priest(s)	Father Owen Ness
Deacon(s)	John McGarry

St Bride's Roman Catholic Church is located in East Kilbride in Scotland. It was designed by the architects Gillespie, Kidd and Coia and built between 1957 and 1964.

Church building

Located near the town centre, St Bride's is one of the most recognised buildings in East Kilbride. It was built shortly after the new town of East Kilbride was begun after World War II. The congregation formerly met in St. Bride's Guild Hall in The Village district of East Kilbride. "Kilbride" itself means "Church of Bride" in Scottish Gaelic (the translation has been modernised), and the parishes or monasteries in what was once a village before the reformation were named for St. Bride of Ireland.

The building of St Bride's Church is regarded as one of the finest examples of British twentieth-century ecclesiastical architecture. The church building is undergoing plans, as of March 2012, to try and refurbish the church to make it more lively and revered. The church has many odd features within its architectural structure from the "light cannons" which illuminate the sanctuary, to its externally imposing brick mass. The church is a Category A listed building.

Clergy

The church seats only three members of the clergy at the moment. Father Owen Ness is the current Parish Priest who is assisted by Rev. John McGarry who is currently a Deacon at St. Brides and Canon Michael Ryan, who is a retired Priest of the Diocese and was parish priest for many years until his retirement in 2010 but remained resident in the parish. Canon Ryan celebrated his Golden Jubilee as a priest in the parish in June 2009, having been there most of his priesthood.

External links

• St Bride's East Kilbride