Bishop Ian Murray (15 December 1932 – 22 January 2016), was a Scottish divine, the ninth Bishop of Argyll & the Isles after the restoration of the hierarchy.

Early life

Ian Murray was born in

Lennoxtown Lennoxtown ( gd, Baile na Leamhnachd, ) is a town in East Dunbartonshire council area and the historic county of Stirlingshire, Scotland at the foot of the Campsie Fells, which are just to the north. The town had a population of 4,094 at the 201 ...

Stirlingshire Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling, gd, Siorrachd Sruighlea) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration countyRegisters of Scotland. Publications, leaflets, Land Register Counties. of Scotland. Its county town is Stirli ...

, as the eldest of the four children of John Murray and Margaret Rodgers. He was educated at St Machan's Primary School in Lennoxtown, St Ninian's High School in

Kirkintilloch Kirkintilloch (; sco, Kirkintulloch; gd, Cair Cheann Tulaich) is a town and former barony burgh in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It lies on the Forth and Clyde Canal and on the south side of Strathkelvin, about northeast of central Glasgow. ...

and the National Junior Seminary at St Mary's College in Blairs,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. His great uncle Paddy Murray was a

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played for Hibernian and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Priesthood

After Blairs, he completed his ecclesiastical studies at the

Royal Scots College The Royal Scots College (Real Colegio de Escoceses) is a major seminary in Salamanca, Spain, for the Catholic Church in Scotland. It was located originally at Madrid, then Valladolid, and then Salamanca (from 1988). History The Royal Scots Colleg ...

(el Real Colegio de los Escoceses),

Valladolid Valladolid () is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province o ...

. He was ordained to the Priesthood for the Archdiocese of St Andrews & Edinburgh in the college chapel on 17 March 1956 by Bishop Joseph McGee. After ordination, Father Murray served at St Mary's Metropolitan Cathedral,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, St Kenneth's,

Lochore Lochore is a former mining village in Fife, Scotland. It takes its name from the nearby Loch Ore. It is largely joined to the adjacent villages of Ballingry to the north and Crosshill to the south. Education Most of the children in Lochore go to ...

and St Columba's, Edinburgh. Thereafter he returned to Valladolid as Vice-Rector until 1970. On returning to Scotland he was appointed as the Catholic chaplain to the

University of Stirling The University of Stirling (, gd, Oilthigh Shruighlea (abbreviated as Stir or Shruiglea, in post-nominals) is a public university in Stirling, Scotland, founded by royal charter in 1967. It is located in the Central Belt of Scotland, built w ...

where he remained until 1977. He then served at Our Lady & St Bride's,

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 18 ...

and subsequently at St Ninian's,

Restalrig Restalrig () is a small residential suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland (historically, an estate and independent parish). It is located east of the city centre, west of Craigentinny and to the east of Lochend, both of which it overlaps. Restalrig ...

. In 1987 Father Murray was appointed Rector of the

in Valladolid. He assisted with the transfer of the College to

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritag ...

in 1988 and remained there until his return to Scotland in 1994. On recommencing his work in the Archdiocese he served in

Galashiels Galashiels (; sco, Gallae, gd, An Geal Àth) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive ...

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a ...

and was appointed

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the Archdiocese of St Andrews & Edinburgh.

Episcopate

In 1999, Monsignor Ian Murray was nominated ninth Bishop of Argyll & the Isles by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He was consecrated by Archbishop Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien on 7 December that year, the feast of St Ambrose, a patron of the Royal Scots College. On 15 December 2008, reaching 75 years of age, in accordance with Canon Law, Bishop Murray submitted his resignation to

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

, who appointed the Very Reverend Monsignor Joseph Anthony Toal, the Rector of the Royal Scots College, to succeed him as tenth Bishop of Argyll & the Isles. In retirement Bishop Murray lived at St Columba's, Newington, St Mary's Metropolitan Cathedral, Edinburgh and then, until his death in January 2016, with the Little Sisters of the Poor at St Joseph's House, Gilmore Place, Edinburgh. Following his demise, Requiem Mass was offered for Bishop Murray in the presence of the Metropolitan of St Andrews & Edinburgh and the hierarchy of Scotland at St Columba's Cathedral, Oban on Friday 5 February 2016. On the same day he was buried at Pennyfuir Cemetery alongside his predecessors. Bishop Murray's motto "Obedience gives strength" was taken from the writings of St Teresa of Avila who once wrote, “When I was in Salamanca in 1571 the Lord said to me, 'Daughter, obedience gives strength'”.

External links

Biographical information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Ian Roman Catholic bishops of Argyll and the Isles 1932 births 2016 deaths People from Lennoxtown People educated at St Ninian's High School, Kirkintilloch