Govan Old Parish Church
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Govan Old Parish Church was a parish church in the Church of Scotland, serving Govan in Glasgow. It was also known as "St Constantine's". Govan Old Parish Church is an ornate, Category A listed building of significant architectural merit, designed by Rowand Anderson and influenced by features at Pluscarden Abbey near Elgin. Govan has, however, known considerable socio-economic problems and has been severely affected by the decline in the shipbuilding industry.
The current church building was constructed in 1888, although the site is one of the oldest places of Christian worship in Scotland. Upon construction, the congregation was closely associated with the Scoto-Catholic High Church movement within the Church of Scotland - several former ministers have been actively involved with the Scottish Church Society. Notable former ministers include the Reverend George MacLeod, later the Lord MacLeod of Fuinary.
The church's collection of early Christian carved stones is of international significance. 31 monuments survive, most of which are highly decorated. They mostly date from the 9th and 10th centuries.
Following arbitration, the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Glasgow has decided upon a union of the three local Church of Scotland congregations in the Govan area, Govan Old (along with the charges of Linthouse St. Kenneth and New Govan) was terminated on October 28th 2007, becoming part of Govan and Linthouse parish and congegation. The future of the Govan Old Parish Church building remains uncertain as the united congregation continues to use all three original buildings, albeit with the former New Govan building being the main centre of worship. The former minister of Govan Old (until his retirement in June 2007) was the Reverend Dr Norman Shanks, a former leader of the Iona Community and a former Convener of the Church of Scotland's Church and Nation Committee.
The church is located near Govan Station on the Glasgow Subway.
