Edward Wilson Douglas (26 August 1901 – 12 June 1967) was a Scottish Roman Catholic clergyman who served as the first Bishop of Motherwell from 1948 to 1954.

Life

Born in Glasgow, Scotland on 26 August 1901 in the parish of Holy Cross, Edward W. Douglas was educated at

St Aloysius' College, Glasgow St Aloysius' College is a Public school (UK), selective fee-paying, Private schools in the United Kingdom, private, Society of Jesus, Jesuit day school in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1859 by the Jesuits, who previously staffed the coll ...

. In 1916, he began his studies for the priesthood at St. Mary's College, Blairs. In 1919, he entered the diocesan seminary, St. Peter's in Bearsden. He was ordained to the priesthood at

St Andrew's Cathedral, Glasgow The Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew or Glasgow Metropolitan Cathedral is a Latin Catholic cathedral in the city centre of Glasgow, Scotland. It is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Glasgow, Archdiocese of Glas ...

by Archbishop Donald Mackintosh on 1 May 1924."Bishops of Motherwell", Parish of Saint Augustine, Coatbridge
/ref> Douglas served as a parish priest at St. Margaret's, Airdrie, St. Bridget's,

Baillieston Baillieston () is a working class suburb of Glasgow, Scotland. It is about east of the city centre. It also gives its name to Ward 20 of Glasgow City Council and forms part of the Glasgow East constituency of the UK Parliament. Geographical ...

, and St. Alphonsus', Glasgow. and then spent eighteen years on the staff of St. Mary's College, where he was choirmaster and organist, and is remembered as a devoted and gifted teacher. Douglas then served as parish priest at St. Joseph's in

Glenboig Glenboig (Scottish Gaelic: An Gleann Bhog) is a village in North Lanarkshire, Scotland lying north of Coatbridge and to the south east of Kirkintilloch and is approximately from Glasgow, Glasgow City Centre. According to a estimate, the popula ...

and iinspector of schools for the Archdiocese. A few years later he went to St. Anthony's, in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...

, Glasgow."Right Rev. Edward Douglas", Diocese of Motherwell
/ref> His brother Robert was also a parish priest. He was appointed the

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Diocese of Motherwell The Diocese of Motherwell () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Scotland. History The diocese, which was erected on 25 May 1947 by Pope Pius XII from the Archdiocese of Glasgow, along with the D ...

by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

on 7 February 1948. The Church of Our Lady of Good Aid in

Motherwell Motherwell (, ) is a List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Shires of Scotland, Historically in the p ...

was chosen as the cathedral of the new diocese. Douglas was consecrated to the

Episcopate A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

on 21 April 1948. The principal

consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches ...

was Archbishop Donald Alphonsus Campbell of Glasgow, and the principal co-consecrators were Bishop Kenneth Grant of Argyll and the Isles and Bishop John Alexander Matheson of Aberdeen. During his six-year tenure, fourteen new parishes were established and two new churches built in older parishes, and the Cathedral Chapter erected in 1953. The Capuchins were established in

Uddingston Uddingston (, ) is a small town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is on the north side of the River Clyde, south-east of Glasgow city centre, and acts as a dormitory suburb for the city. Geography and boundaries Uddingston is located to t ...

, the Missionaries of Africa in Rutherglen, and the Xaverians in Biggar. The Society of the Helpers of the Holy Souls founded a retreat house for women and girls at Newmains. The

Poor Clares The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare (Latin language, Latin: ''Ordo Sanctae Clarae''), originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Or ...

and the Notre Dame Sisters also established houses in the diocese. Douglas resigned as Bishop of Motherwell due to continuing ill health and was appointed

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of ''Botrys'' on 9 February 1954. He retired to Fairlie, Ayrshire and later underwent a serious throat operation. He died on 12 June 1967, aged 65, at Bon Secours Hospital, in Glasgow and was buried in St. Patrick's cemetery, New Stevenson, Lanarkshire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Edward Wilson 1901 births 1967 deaths Clergy from Glasgow 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Scotland Roman Catholic bishops of Motherwell 20th-century Roman Catholic titular bishops Scottish Roman Catholic bishops