The bishops released seven options in a press release on Monday, five of which envision the merger of two dioceses, one the merger of three dioceses and one to maintain the current diocesan structure, but with stronger cooperation and mutual support.
With one exception, the merger proposals provide for the merger of dioceses currently in various church provinces.
All options would now be submitted for further reflection and consultation in the eight dioceses.
The bishops stressed that there was no fixed roadmap and that it was merely possibilities for further decision-making.
Therefore, there should be a consultation process in which "everyone in every parish" is encouraged to "raise his voice."
However, the faithful are called upon to "look beyond their own interests and to consider what serves the Catholic Church in Scotland as a whole best."
Focus on Evangelization
At the same time, the Bishops’ Conference underscored that the process is not just about administrative adjustments or a more effective distribution of resources.
"First and foremost, it is about how we can better proclaim the Gospel, support our clergy, our religious and lay people, and strengthen our parishes and communities with regard to evangelization," it says.
In March, the bishops announced that the Vatican had asked them to review the structure of the Church in Scotland. It should be explicitly discussed whether the current division into eight dioceses is still appropriate.
The Vatican's mission was justified, among other things, by challenges such as the decline in the number of clergy and dwindling resources. The bishops announced initial results for the autumn.
The Catholic Church in Scotland is divided into two church provinces.
The Church Province of Glasgow includes the Archdiocese of Glasgow and the dioceses of Motherwell and Paisley; the Church Province of St. Andrews and Edinburgh own the archdiocese of the same name, as well as the dioceses of Aberdeen, Argyll and the Isles, Dunkeld and Galloway.
According to the census in 2022, around 723,000 people in Scotland are committed to Catholicism, representing a share of 13.3 per cent of the total population.