Cardinal Thomas Joseph Winning


1925 - 2001

Cardinal Thomas Winning
©2022 Gazetteer for Scotland

Cardinal Thomas Winning

Leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland. Born in Wishaw, Thomas Winning was educated at Our Lady's High School in Motherwell. He was ordained as a priest in Rome (1948) and returned to Rome to become Spiritual Director of the Scots College (1961). He became a Bishop (1971), the Archbishop of Glasgow (1974) and was appointed a Cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 1994. Winning was only the second Cardinal since the Reformation to be based in Scotland.

Widely respected and with a strong social conscience, Winning was also well-known for his conservative views on moral issues. No stranger to controversy, he spoke out on abortion, the celibacy of priests and homosexuality, becoming a staunch supporter of a campaign against the liberalisation of attitudes to discussing homosexuality in the class-room, led by businessman Brian Souter (2000).

Dying following a heart attack while still very much 'in harness', Winning was interred in the crypt of St Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral in Glasgow. He will perhaps be best remembered for his scheme to give financial support to young mothers, as an alternative to them having an abortion. He held honorary degrees from the Universities of Aberdeen, Glasgow and Strathclyde.


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