Events
Special Anniversary for Willie Halcrow
On Saturday 15th August many of the parishioners got together to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the first Mass Willie Halcrow had attended as a schoolboy. Willie later went on to become one of the first Shetlander converts to the Catholic Faith and has been one of the mainstays of the parish ever since. He is the only parishioner still living who has known all the priests who have served in Lerwick since the Jesuits took over the parish in 1954.
In 1954 there were only 18 Catholics out of a total island population of 18,000, now we have about 650 Catholics in a population of about 22,000. Willie reminded us of a saying of Fr Whitaker, the first Jesuit priest, "Be faithful to the Rosary and the church will one day be full."
Stelia Laurenson, RIP.
Stelia Laurenson died at her home in Uyeasound on 3rd August 2026. She was 94. May she rest in peace!
Summer Pilgrimage to Ireland and St Ninian's Isle
You are invited to the Parish Summer Pilgrimage to the site of the Norse St Mary Steeple-Kirk in Ireland (Bigton) and St Ninian's Isle. Both in south Mainland. Bring a packed lunch.
Programme: Gather at St Ninian's Isle beach car park at 11.30 a.m. on Friday 14th August, or go directly to the Methodist Chapel in Ireland (pictured above) for a Votive Mass of St Ninian at 12 Noon. We will have a picnic here. The chapel has toilet facilities and a small kitchenette where we can make tea. Parking is available adjacent to the chapel.
In the afternoon we will find the site of the 12th century Catholic "Steeple-Kirk", which was one of the main churches in medieval Shetland. We will then cross the sand tombolo to St Ninian's Isle to visit the remains of the medieval chapel where the 8th century Pictish treasure was found in the 1950's. This is thought to be the site of the first Christian church in Shetland and it may have been connected with the Pictish monastery in Papil, Burra Isle.
Please wear stout shoes or boots and remember to bring your waterproofs. The tombolo is sometimes cut off at high tide. There is a scenic coastal path which runs around the coast of the island if you would like an extended walk.
Diocesan Pilgrimages to Italy and Lourdes, 2026.
Pilgrimage to the Cities of Italy, September, led by Fr Domenico Zanre. Details in pdf below:
Pilgrimage to Lourdes, October, led by Fr Leo Lou Arche. Details in pdf below:
lourdes-pilgrimage-oct10-14-2026.pdf
Orthodox Liturgy at St Margaret's, Saturday 30th August 2025.
Archimandrite Antonios Kakalis of St Andrew's Orthodox Church in Edinburgh came up to Shetland at the end of August to celebrate the Divine Liturgy for the nascent Orthodox Community of St Ninian.
Summer Pilgrimage to Fair Isle, 9th July 2025.
It is about nine years since our last Mass on Fair Isle, a small island about 26 miles to the south of the Shetland Mainland. The total population is only about 42, which adds to the sense of remoteness. The island is world famous for its knitwear and migratory birds.
The ferry from Lerwick takes four and a half hours, but it was good to be able to meet two new parishioners who have recently settled on the island. That brings the Catholic population to four. It was a wonderful visit and we were given a warm welcome by the Methodist congregation who hosted our Mass in their chapel.
Parish Visit to Bottelare, Diocese of Ghent, 4th - 9th October 2024.
A group of fifteen parishioners went from Shetland to Belgium in October for the unveiling of a monument to Fr Theophilus Verstraeten, first resident Catholic priest in Shetland after the Reformation. A fuller explanation of this memorial will be found in the "Verstraeten Monument" blog elsewhere on this website.
Bottelare church is an impressive building, dating back to the eighteenth century. It owes something of its grandeur to the shrine of St Anne (just glimpsed to the right of the pier carrying the monument) which was a place of popular pilgrimage.
On the Monday, many of the group visited the nearby city of Bruges. Neil and Simon are pictured here outside the chapel of the Beguines.
Still full of tourists, even in October!
Feast of St Joachim and St Anne, 26th July.
We are grateful to the staff of the Shetland Archives for allowing us to use this drawing, made c.1850, of the Lerwick shoreline.
It shows the two lodberries which jutted out from Clark's building (now Pete's Cafe in Commercial Street). They lie near the centre of this extract, to the left of the ship in the foreground. The first Catholic chapel occupied the right hand lodberry and was dedicated to St Anne. The chapel was reached from the beach. Immediately to the right, and slightly set back, is the Zetland Hotel which was later bought by the Catholic Church. The second Catholic chapel occupied an upper room in this building with access from Queen's Lane. It was also dedicated to St Anne.
