Pre-trip work!

 May 4, 2025   Mass in English!!   

We walked to St. Mary's Church, Stirling for the 10:15 Mass. It was wonderful to hear Mass in English again. The church is big and "new" compared to Italy's churches, built in 1905. Here's a little history off the web.

"Saint Mary's Church in Stirling is a Roman Catholic parish church built between 1904 and 1905. It was designed by Peter Paul Pugin in the Gothic Revival style, a popular architectural trend of the period. 

The origins of Catholic worship in Stirling post-Reformation date back to 1835 when land on Irving Place was purchased for a new church. This led to the construction of the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, which opened in 1838 as the first Catholic church in the area since the Reformation. However, as Stirling's Catholic population grew, the need for a larger space became evident by the late 1800s.

On May 4, 1904, the foundation stone for Saint Mary's Church was laid by Archbishop James Smith of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh. The construction was partly funded by Lady Agnes Murray of Polmaise Castle, underscoring the community's support for the project. The church was completed and opened in 1905, serving as the primary place of worship for Stirling's Catholic community."

Walking up the hill to the entrance.

Facing the back of church.

Facing the sanctuary.

After Mass, Father said there was coffee and treats in the social hall, and we have learned that the best way to make the most of a visit is to spend time with local people. As hard as it is to walk into a room of people and find a place to begin a conversation, I highly recommend it. We sat down with an older gentleman and began some small talk. He was very nice and easy to talk with especially when we hit on "football" (soccer). There was a big game starting soon on tv and he was looking forward to watching it. The gentleman was joined by a younger fella named Frasier (I think). I asked him to repeat his name because, you know, the accent is kinda thick in Scotland. 😀 Frasier is a city planner and could answer many questions about the area. We hope we run into him next week too. 

After lunch, we played cards until it was time to walk back to town for some shopping and dinner. Rod found a fish and chips place called Vincenzo's that had great reviews so we ate dinner there. It was a tiny place with one or two counters with bar stools for eating in. The locals preferred take out, by the looks of it. Vincenzo spoke Italian to his wife while cooking and Rod was able to toss out a couple of Italian words that he had mastered a month ago. Unfortunately, none of us took any pictures of our food.