Good afternoon. The first item of business is time for reflection. Our time for reflection leader today is Father Gerard Maguiness, the parish priest of St Ignatius of Loyola Church, Wishaw.
I wish to thank the Presiding Officer and MSPs for their invitation to speak today.
While preparing my thought one month ago I was listening to the top 40 on the radio. Number 1 in the charts was Pharrell Williams with “Happy”. This very catchy song contains the line, “Clap along if you feel that happiness is the truth.” Mr Williams expresses a desire to define happiness. Whether we be classical philosophers, theologians, pop singers or indeed politicians, all of us seek to discover authentic happiness that will indeed lead us to the truth of who we are as human beings.
I am the parish priest of St Ignatius of Loyola parish in Wishaw. Our parish was founded 155 years ago, mainly by immigrant Irish workers. It was dedicated to the Spanish saint who founded the Company of Jesus, also known as the Jesuits, in recognition of the trade links between Lanarkshire and northern Spain at the time of the parish’s foundation.
St Ignatius was originally a young knight who sought fulfilment and glory on the battlefield. After being injured at the battle of Pamplona, he was confined to bed for one year. During that period Ignatius read the lives of the great knights and also of the saints, since they were the only books available in the monastery where he convalesced.
After much reflection he concluded that not all of our activities lead to true happiness. Victory on the battlefield does not have any value unless it establishes lasting peace. Similarly, personal happiness is found not in serving oneself for an instant high but through serving others for an enduring happiness. St Ignatius called this discovery the discernment of spirits.
In his spiritual exercises, Ignatius exhorts us to test the spirit of what we are doing in life to make sure that it leads to true and lasting happiness and is not just a quick fix or a passing fashion and, moreover, that this happiness is not just about “me” but takes into account the welfare of all—what we call in the Catholic tradition the common good.
True happiness leads to true goodness and vice versa. As you continue to legislate for the good of the Scottish people, I pray that you can be happy, clap your hands, and discern the true happiness that promotes and protects the dignity of every man, woman and child.
Thank you.
Before we move to the next item of business, I inform members that a motion to revise business tomorrow has been lodged and will be taken just before decision time today. The motion proposes that the business tomorrow begins at 1.30 pm and that decision time will be 8 pm, to allow more time for the stage 3 proceedings on the Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill. A revised section A of the Business Bulletin has been issued and copies will be available at the back of the chamber.