- Bauchi honours Fr. Leo for his dedicated pastoral work, strong missionary commitment – Bishop Dachelem
- “We give thanks for Canon Glancy’s long and devoted priestly ministry.” – Archbishop Cushley
- He shared the gospel with those with hearing impairments
- The “readings for today have been chosen with the blessing of Leo’s family”
Today, family, friends, and members of Scotland’s Catholic community gathered at St. Mary’s Catholic Cathedral and St. Andrew’s Church in Edinburgh to bid farewell to Canon Leo Glancy, who devoted over sixty years to the Archdiocese, including time spent serving in Africa.
In his homily, Archbishop Leo Cushley disclosed that “Leo was a cheerful and faithful priest, long-serving and with a dash of courage and tenacity that took him with some of our priests to Nigeria to work in the Diocese of Bauchi as a missionary in a very difficult, even dangerous, moment for that country.”
Bauchi honours Fr. Leo for his dedicated pastoral work and strong missionary commitment – Bishop Dachelem
The Archbishop praised the late Fr. Glancy, who passed away at the age of 87, for his determined missionary work in Africa, noting that he continued his efforts even during times of unrest in Nigeria.
In an obituary announcement dated 27 July, the Archdiocese of St. Andrew’s and Edinburgh disclosed that “He volunteered for missionary work in Nigeria from 1968-1971 and played a pivotal role in rebuilding the Catholic community in Gombe after the devastation of unrest, restoring the parish and helping it flourish once again.”
Priests from Bauchi Diocese serving in Scotland paid their respects: (Left to Right) Fr. Justine Dyikuk (Archdiocese of Glasgow), Fr. Emmanuel Chorbe (Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh), Fr. Dr. Emmanuel Obidah (Diocese of Dunkeld), Archbishop Leo Cushley, Fr. Innocent Simon (Archdiocese of Glasgow), Fr. Dr. Cletus Ikpa and Fr. Joshua Kauras (Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh).
Six priests from Bauchi Diocese working in the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, the Archdiocese of Glasgow and Dunkeld were at the funeral, where Fr. Joshua Kauras presented a condolence message on behalf of the Catholic Bishop of Bauchi, Most Rev. Hilary Dachelem, CMF.
“Canon Leo Glancy will be fondly remembered in the Diocese of Bauchi for his years of dedicated pastoral service and missionary commitment,” Bishop Dachelem stated.
The Nigerian missionary Bishop remembered the Scottish priest’s remarkable contributions, praising his important role in the Church’s growth in northern Nigeria.
“During his time with us, he contributed immensely to the growth and development of the Church….he was instrumental in the building and development of the Church in Billiri and St. James Church in Gombe.
“His dedication, generosity and contribution to the work of evangelisation have left a lasting legacy in the Diocese.”
Fr. Joshua Kauras reads the condolence message on behalf of Most Rev. Hilary Dachelem, CMF, Catholic Bishop of Bauchi. Credit: Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh.
“We give thanks for Canon Glancy’s long and devoted priestly ministry.” – Archbishop Cushley
“We give thanks for Canon Glancy’s long and devoted priestly ministry, and we commend him to the mercy of God,” the Archdiocese noted.
Earlier, Archbishop Cushley offered a warm welcome and expressed his condolences to the faithful and the late priest’s family.
“My dear friends, A renewed word of warm welcome to Canon Leo’s brother James and family who join us today as we say goodbye to their beloved brother and offer our sincere condolences to them and to his sister Marie in America, and to all their many relatives and friends, as well as brother priests and parishioners who remember Leo and his many years of service in Edinburgh and far beyond,” he said.
Ordained at St Mary’s Cathedral in 1963 by Cardinal Gray, he began his ministry as a curate at St Francis Xavier’s in Falkirk.
Over the years, he also served at St Mary’s Cathedral; Our Lady’s, Currie; St Mary’s, Haddington; St Catherine’s, Edinburgh; Christ the King and Sacred Heart, Grangemouth, and was a Spiritual Director at the former Gillis Seminary.
The onetime spiritual director to the seminarians of this Archdiocese and Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Scotland was remembered as a faithful pastor.
“He was a pastor of souls in our parishes, latterly in Sacred Heart and Christ the King in Grangemouth, but elsewhere too, and he will be gratefully remembered by many,” the Archbishop stated.
In his later years, Fr. Glancy lived at Nazareth House in Glasgow, where he fell ill and passed away at Gartnavel Hospital.
He shared the gospel with those with hearing impairments
Archbishop Cushley recounted meeting Fr. Glancy as a simple priest who cared for the young and signed at Masses for the deaf.
“For much of his priesthood, he patiently found time to share the good news with those whose hearing is impaired in some way, and he worked to communicate the Lord’s call to love and life by learning to use sign language.
“In doing so, he therefore became in some way the voice of the Lord of life to others: Leo encouraged others with the Lord’s own words, he reached out to them, and he comforted many hearts with the Word of God through his ministry of signing.”
Narrating their encounter, he said, “I first came across Leo over 35 years ago, and my first impressions of him have never left me. We were on pilgrimage with HCPT, a group which has been bringing young people with special needs to Lourdes for a holiday with Our Lady.
“He went with different groups, but I think when I first saw him it was Group 89 from Fife, and I can still see him and the others wearing a very jaunty glengarry to mark them out.
“But more than that, he was the first priest I saw signing at Mass for the deaf and, as it were, dramatizing the Gospel and the homily of the priest doing the speaking.”
The Archbishop stated that he does not “remember who the celebrant was or what he was saying,” but added, “I remember Leo communicating the Gospel in this way with a smiling enthusiasm, and it’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
The body is being placed in the hearse.
The “readings for today have been chosen with the blessing of Leo’s family”
On the readings, the Prelate explained that the “readings for today have been chosen with the blessing of Leo’s family, and they’re intended to reflect something of him and what he gave us as an example of his Christian and priestly spirit.”
He assured the faithful that in the passage from St. John, “the Lord declares that his disciples will one day hear the voice of God and will rise to the ‘resurrection of life,’ something that Leo surely aspired to throughout his life as a priest and as a disciple of Jesus, the Lord of the living and the dead.”
Archbishop Cushley paid tribute to those whose lives he had touched, offering prayers for the peaceful rest of Fr. Glancy’s soul.
Archbishop Cushley noted that the deceased priest would be fondly remembered for “his winning simplicity, his smile, and his tenacious enthusiasm,” adding that “This was only one part of a varied and long life of ministry in the diocese and beyond, but his ministry of signing is one that sets Leo apart in a way for which many will be especially grateful.”
“Along with all those he touched in this life with God’s word through his life and ministry, in Scotland and abroad, may Leo one day himself hear the voice of God, and be raised to life forever with the Lord and all his saints in paradise,” he prayed.
Many thanks to all who attended the funeral service of my brother, Canon Leo Glancy yesterday.
It was special to have not only such a large number of priests present but particularly
the representation of those from Nigeria and the condolence message from the Catholic Bishop of Bauchi Province. Also the large representation from the Deaf Community.
Finally, a really big thank you to Archbishop Leo Cushley for all he did to make the occasion a very special one for our family and friends.
Thank you, James, for your kind words. Canon Leo Glancy was indeed a priest after the heart of Jesus and a builder. It was only proper to pay our last respects to the memory of his life and ministry in Africa. Accept our sincere condolences. May his gentle soul rest in peace!