Place rating: 4 West Dunbartonshire, United Kingdom
I have often wondered why St Mirin’s is called a cathedral and not a church. And come to think of it, what the difference between a church and a cathedral actually is.(Yes I probably do have too much time on my hands). It can’t be stature. St Mirin’s is nice but there are lots of impressive churches in Glasgow that are not cathedrals. After a bit of googling, I discovered a cathedral is the seat of a bishop. So St Mirin’s is a cathedral because it is the seat of the Bishop of Paisley. So now I can relax. St Mirin’s was actually built as a church in 1932 and became a cathedral in 1948 following the establishment of the diocese of Paisley(diocese is an administrative area of the Catholic church). It seats 1300 and is built in a Norman style of white freestone. I have visited St Mirin’s a few times over the past few years to attend weddings. The marble alter was very impressive and the young priest was warm and down to earth. It is definitely one of the nicest churches(sorry, cathedrals) in the area.