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Homilies, PNCC

Solemnity of the Christian Family

First reading: Genesis 1:26-28,31
Psalm: Ps 128:1-5
Epistle: Ephesians 6:1-9
Gospel: Luke 2:42-52

Not finding Him, they returned to Jerusalem in search of Him.

Break downs:

It’s been a interesting couple of weeks in the Konicki household. Someone damaged my car in the parking lot at work. Our refrigerator and freezer went. The roof on the house is going. Everyone is antsy over the economy and jobs. Between the children’s school and sports schedules there isn’t an extra moment. The cleaning, the laundry, the odds and ends, the bills… and I don’t mean the football kind. The pressure is building and in the midst of all that we reach the point of breakdown.

We’ve all been there at one time or another. My wife and I were watching the new ABC show The Middle. In the last episode the mom was showing off her skills as the family’s emotional support amidst just that kind of stress – until kaboom and she just couldn’t do it anymore. Breakdown.

The pressure and the stress of life rarely lead to a romantic night together, quiet, or peace. Stress doesn’t seem to enhance family closeness. Conversations become arguments. People push apart and we feel we are at the point of breaking.

Get lost:

When we get to the point of breaking we rarely seek the peaceful path. Of course it all doesn’t happen at once. The stresses build and lead to anger, anger to resentment, resentment to bitterness. Fights become an end unto themselves — after all it’s about the points.

Over time, the breakdown leads to the most famous statement in American English — get lost. We want to be apart, alone, to be conversant with ourselves in the midst of misery. Get lost, get out of my life. There’s got to be someone, some place better than this. The decision to be separate is a decision for the anti-family. Family is seen as excess baggage.

The separation:

Hence the separation. The family breaks down into little pockets, winners, losers, the strong, the weak. I’m using family as an example, but it happens in friendships, among colleagues, in the Parish. We can’t seem to take it. We can’t deal. Separation and the new frontier seems to be our only way out. We enter a world of self. The quest for self-fulfillment overrides our need for family, for relationship. After-all, if I love myself the most who can compete?

Alone:

I hear the chorus of angels singing — finally alone. We’ve escaped the confines and the stresses of that woman, that man, those kids, my jerky co-workers, the bingo workers, the spaghetti dinner puters-oners, the rummage sale folks. I’m ready for my new frontier……..

And the crickets chirp, and we’re alone, and the grass — the same brown spots reappear, not so green on this side of the mountain.

When my older daughter was little I used to read her The Cow Who Went Over the Mountain. The cow gathered her friends and took them to the other side of the mountain, all under the promise of what would be. For the cow the grass would be munchier, for the frog the bugs would be crunchier, for the ducks the water would be splashier, and for the pig the mud would be sloshier.

We know the moral here. It wasn’t to be. Just disappointment, and a longing for home.

Reconnecting:

Mary and Joseph had a plan. Jesus was surely among their friends and relatives. But they didn’t leave it at that, they looked for Him — and didn’t find Him.

How like us, how like the world. We inherently know He is out there and that the right relationships are out there; out there somewhere and we look. We search for Him and for our relationships in many ways — until we can’t find Him, until we find we are alone. Then what?

If we follow the choice of Mary and Joseph we choose our obligation, our commitment, what is right and proper and we move to reconnect. If we follow the path we think is easiest, maybe we head for the greener pastures; leaving Jesus, our families, those around us, and search for what we think is the better life — a life defined my the world’s standard of self. Do we choose the way of life or the way out?

The choice to reconnect, to rebuild, to take the occasionally harder choice is what this Sunday is about.

Where we are:

We are in a place that is very human. The sinful choice, the wide and easy paths are always available, usually marked with flashing neon signs that say shop here, gamble here, run away, leave the losers behind. That’s the road to the Vegas of our dreams where what we do and say is our own business, ours alone. What happens in that world stays in that world. The other path is the path Jesus points to, the one of relationship and family. It can be hard at times and is covered with the bumps of disappointment, hard work, leaking roofs, dented cars, defrosted freezers. It’s the spouse we bicker with but love dearly. The children who tax our taxes and our patience. The co-workers and parishioners who demand so much, who need so much. We are in a very human and frail place, but we have a way to get us through.

Where we will be:

I alluded to the show The Middle. After mom had her breakdown she discovered something wonderful. The rest of the family, each and every one, led by the father, were her source of reassurance. When Mary and Joseph found Jesus they found their source of assurance. These are not two different and separate assurances, two different things but the same. The assurance and the connections we seek must include God and each other.

Our human family is in search of connection, of relationship and the Holy Church shows us that the ideal model is found in the lifelong commitment of family, beginning in Holy Matrimony and lived in accord with the laws of God and His Holy Church. The family then extends beyond that at home to the family of neighbor-to-neighbor, co-worker to co-worker, citizen to citizen, all of us in God’s Holy Polish National Catholic Church. Those relationships, the family at home and the wider family of Christ are what we celebrate today. Each of these relationships and connections has God in its midst. Each of the relationships and every family that includes Jesus as its center destroys selfishness and opens the door to real joy. Jesus lives in each and His hand blesses each. His grace sustains us in our families, in our relationships.

The connection that include the Lord see us through every difficulty, every problem. Do problems occur, do things happen that damage relationships? Certainly! but we are reminded today, this day amidst all its problems and conflicts, breakdowns, apartness, separation, and aloneness that God is part of our family, part of our relationships, central to our life.

We have choices, we have many paths. We can choose to wallow in our secret desires and choose to live apart, alone, always in search of the greener pasture, or we can choose the way God has shown us, the way that destroys conflict, breakdown, apartness, separation, and aloneness. Finding Jesus, finding each other even in the midst of every stress, shows us a glimpse of the joy we will find, reconnected, in the family of humanity in God’s Kingdom.

God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good.

Amen.

PNCC, Poland - Polish - Polonia, , ,

Nowy Dziennik features article on the PNCC

Nowy Dziennik, the largest Polish language daily newspaper in the United States, featured an interview with the Very Rev. Paul Sobiechowski of St. Joseph’s Parish in Davie, Florida. My sources inform me that this is the first time in many years that Nowy Dziennik has written on the PNCC. The article is entitled Nasze drzwi są zawsze otwarte (Our doors are always open)

Ksiądz Paul Sobiechowski przed kościołem św. Józefa w Davie, FL. Jest bardzo życzliwy, łatwo dostępny dla parafian i dla wszystkich innych, niezależnie od przekonań, narodowości i stanu posiadania. Urodził się w Detroit, mówi biegle po polsku, aż 17 razy odwiedził Polskę, prowadząc między innymi wycieczki parafian ze Stanów Zjednoczonych.
Ksiądz Paul Sobiechowski przed kościołem św. Józefa w Davie, FL. Jest bardzo życzliwy, łatwo dostępny dla parafian i dla wszystkich innych, niezależnie od przekonań, narodowości i stanu posiadania. Urodził się w Detroit, mówi biegle po polsku, aż 17 razy odwiedził Polskę, prowadząc między innymi wycieczki parafian ze Stanów Zjednoczonych.

Rozmowa z księdzem Paulem Sobiechowskim, pastorem parafii św. Józefa w Davie na Florydzie, należącej do Polskiego Narodowego Kościoła Katolickiego

18 października parafii św. Józefa w Davie odbędzie się Dzień Narodowego Dziedzictwa Kulturowego. Ile osób w USA wie o istnieniu Polskiego Narodowego Kościoła Katolickiego, zna jego historię i działalność?

—“ Prawdopodobnie niewiele. A przecież Kościół ten powstał ponad 100 lat temu właśnie tutaj w Stanach Zjednoczonych, aby lepiej służyć katolickiej amerykańskiej Polonii.

Polacy zawsze byli narodem głęboko wierzącym, o bogatych tradycjach chrześcijańskich. Kiedy zatem w XIX wieku zaczęli masowo emigrować do Ameryki za chlebem, szukali w miastach, w których się znaleźli, kościołów katolickich, gdzie mogliby nie tylko się modlić, ale również spotykać się z innymi, dzielić się swoimi radościami i troskami, szukać pomocy i pocieszenia. Byli to zazwyczaj ludzie prości, słabo wykształceni, niemówiący ani po łacinie, ani też po angielsku.

Kapłanami w kościołach byli przeważnie duchowni pochodzenia irlandzkiego i niemieckiego, czasami francuskiego. Nie rozumieli oni problemów ani zwyczajów polskich emigrantów. Emigranci nie mogli więc poradzić się księdza, nie mogli też wyspowiadać się. Ta sytuacja spowodowała początkowo opór wśród katolików polskiego pochodzenia, a później bunt i odłączenie się od Kościoła rzymsko-katolickiego.

W latach 1897-1904 powstały trzy główne ośrodki Kościoła polsko-katolickiego w Ameryce: w Buffalo, Chicago oraz w Scranton. W roku 1909 ośrodek w Chicago połączył się z ośrodkiem w Scranton, a w roku 1914 dołączył do nich ośrodek w Buffalo. Przyjęto oficjalną nazwę: Polski Narodowy Kościół Katolicki. Przewodził mu ksiądz Franciszek Hodura, który wkrótce potem został wyświęcony na biskupa i dołączył do kościołów starokatolickich.
Trochę później, bo na początku lat dwudziestych XX wieku powstało też kilka parafii w Polsce. Pierwszą była parafia w Bażanówce na Podkarpaciu (w 1921 roku), a drugą parafia w Krakowie, na Podgórzu (w 1922 roku).

Czy nazwa Polski Narodowy Kościół Katolicki oznacza, że jego członkami są tylko wierni pochodzenia polskiego?

—“ Mimo nazwy, kościół nasz jest kościołem służącym wielu narodowościom. Świadczy o tym chociażby fakt, że msze święte w naszej parafii odbywają się w trzech językach: po polsku, po angielsku i po hiszpańsku.

Dzięki postanowieniom II Soboru Watykańskiego i reformie papieża Pawła VI, który w roku 1969 zezwolił na odprawianie mszy w językach narodowych, nie stanowi to już różnicy pomiędzy Kościołem rzymsko-katolickim a Polskim Narodowym Kościołem Katolickim. Jakie są zatem inne różnice?

—“ Wbrew powszechnemu mniemaniu, więcej nas łączy, niż dzieli. Wyznajemy te same dogmaty religijne, wierzymy w jednego Boga w Trójcy Świętej. Oddajemy cześć aniołom, apostołom, świętym i męczennikom. Nasz Kościół uznaje również siedem sakramentów świętych. W sposób szczególny czcimy Maryję Pannę. Nie uznajemy jedynie niepokalanego jej poczęcia. Podkreślam jednak, że jest to dla nas doktryna a nie dogmat religijny i człowiek nie musi w to wierzyć, żeby dostać się do królestwa niebieskiego.

Nie uznajemy również nieomylności papieża oraz jego wszechwładzy w Kościele. Ważne decyzje w sprawach Kościoła zapadają w sposób bardzo demokratyczny. Na każdy synod kościelny, który odbywa się co 4 lata, są wysyłani —“ oprócz kapłanów —“ przedstawiciele parafii: jeden delegat na 50 członków parafii. Organem zarządzającym jest Rada Kościoła, która kieruje pięcioma diecezjami na terenie Stanów Zjednoczonych i Kanady. Zbiera się raz na rok. Protokoły z jej posiedzeń są dostępne w naszym czasopiśmie “Rola Boża”.

Komunię świętą przyjmujemy pod dwoma postaciami: ciała i krwi pańskiej. Osoby laickie nie mogą rozdawać komunii za wyjątkiem, kiedy przy niedostępności księdza sakrament ten chce przyjąć osoba ciężko chora lub umierająca. Spowiedź sprawowana jest w dwóch formach: indywidualnej w konfesjonale i ogólnej, zwanej spowiedzią powszechną.

Siedzibą najwyższych władz kościelnych jest Scranton w stanie Pensylwania. Liczbę wiernych aktualnie ocenia się na około 26 tysięcy.

No dobrze, a co z celibatem? Przecież Ksiądz ma żonę, nieprawdaż?

—“ Tak, mam żonę, którą bardzo kocham. Poznaliśmy się jako bardzo młodzi ludzie i po długim okresie narzeczeństwa (cztery i pół roku) postanowiliśmy doznać sakramentu małżeństwa. Nasz 21-letni syn służy teraz w armii amerykańskiej (US Marine Corps). Zawsze chciałem mieć rodzinę, dzieci i jednocześnie służyć Bogu. Rodzina daje mi poczucie równowagi, dodaje sił i radości. Sprawia, że jestem naprawdę szczęśliwy.

Moja żona jest prawdziwym partnerem w związku, pełni również funkcję organistki w naszej parafii. Pomaga mi w działalności charytatywnej kościoła.

To, że jestem mężem i ojcem, pomaga mi zrozumieć problemy rodzinne moich parafian, doradzać im w ich drodze życiowej, w przekazywaniu dobrych wzorców rodzinnych dzieciom.

Czyli, zdaniem Księdza, celibat w kapłaństwie powinien być wyborem, a nie nakazem?

—“ Zdecydowanie tak. Często zapominamy, że przez ponad 1000 lat, od początku istnienia chrześcijaństwa, apostołowie i księża mieli rodziny i nikogo to nie gorszyło. Wręcz przeciwnie —“ pomagało funkcjonować kapłanom w społeczeństwie. Idea obowiązującego celibatu powstała w Hiszpanii, na początku IV wieku. W roku 580 papież Pelagiusz II ogłosił, że powinno się tolerować małżeństwa wśród księży, jednak nie mogą oni zapisywać dóbr materialnych swoim rodzinom.

A śluby czystości?

—“ Ten, kto je złoży, powinien ich dotrzymać. Tego typu decyzja powinna wynikać z wewnętrznej potrzeby, a nie z nakazu. Należy również pamiętać, że małżeństwo jest jednym z sakramentów i tak też powinno być pojmowane. W obecnych czasach zbyt lekko traktuje się przysięgę małżeńską. Ludzie szybko się żenią, a kiedy miną pierwsze uniesienia —“ często zniechęcają się przy najmniejszych kłopotach z partnerem i rozwodzą się zbyt łatwo, zamiast próbować odbudować harmonię w związku.

Jakie jest miejsce Waszego kościoła wśród polonijnej społeczności na Florydzie?

—“ Nasz kościół —“ mimo pięknych witraży przedstawiających stacje Drogi Krzyżowej —“ jest bardzo skromny. Prawie wszystkie pieniądze pochodzące z ofiar naszych wiernych lub też z akcji zbierania funduszy przeznaczamy na pomoc ludziom w ciężkiej sytuacji, zwłaszcza dzieciom. Uczestniczymy w programie EASE. Jest to skrót od angielskiej nazwy organizacji charytatywnej —“ The Davie Emergency Assistance Service Effort. Celem tej organizacji jest zapobieganie bezdomności i doraźna, szybka pomoc w krytycznych sytuacjach dla rodzin zubożałych nagle, na skutek utraty pracy i ogólnego kryzysu ekonomicznego. W ciągu ostatniego roku —“ dzięki tej organizacji —“ prawie 500 rodzin otrzymało żywność i artykuły codziennego użytku oraz zabawki dla dzieci w okresie Świąt Dziękczynienia i Bożego Narodzenia. Nasza mała parafia dostarczyła taką pomoc aż 54 rodzinom.

Skąd pochodzą pieniądze na tę pomoc?

—“ Wspaniałym pomysłem na gromadzenie funduszy przeznaczonych na pomaganie dzieciom i rodzinom potrzebującym w Polsce jest akceptacja ofiary (przykładowo —“ w wysokości 25 centów) za dekoracyjne znaczki Świętego Mikołaja, które w okresie świątecznym są rozprowadzane przez naszą parafię. Inicjatorem tej akcji 20 lat temu był pan Robert Strybel z Polski. Trwa to do dzisiaj.

Co macie w planach parafii na najbliższą przyszłość?

—“ Dwie bardzo ważne imprezy! 18 października —“ Dzień Narodowego Dziedzictwa Kulturowego, a w grudniu, w trzecią niedzielę adwentu o godz. 5 po południu w naszym kościele w Davie odbędzie się już po raz 18 koncert “Candlelight 2009”, połączony z kolacją. Impreza zawsze cieszy się bardzo dużym powodzeniem. Są to występy artystyczne przedstawicieli różnych grup narodowościowych. W ubiegłym roku na imprezę przyszło około 250 osób. Było ciekawie, wzruszająco, kolorowo oraz smacznie. Zapraszamy!

W parafii św. Józefa będą również odbywać się zebrania Polskiego Legionu Weteranów Amerykańskich oraz zebrania Kongresu Polsko-Amerykańskiego na Florydzie, którego prezesem jest prof. dr. Zdzisław Wesołowski. Pragnę podkreślić, że drzwi naszego kościoła są zawsze otwarte i dla wszystkich.

Dziękuję Księdzu za rozmowę.

ROZMAWIAŁA: ANIA NAVAS

St. Joseph’s Polish National Catholic Church
służy wiernym na Florydzie od 1956 roku
5401 SW 64 Avenue
Davie, Florida 33314
tel. (954) 581-5293

Msze święte odprawiane są:
Sobota: 7 pm —“ w języku hiszpańskim
Niedziela: 9 am —“ po angielsku; 11 am —“ po polsku
W tygodniu: 8:30 am —“ w języku angielskim

Christian Witness, PNCC, , , ,

Eucharistic sharing etc.

From the Q&A’s at BustedHalo: Can I receive communion as a Catholic in a —high Anglican— church if they hold the same beliefs about the Eucharist that Catholic do?

Question: I went to a —high Anglican— service and was told that they believe the same thing about the Eucharist as we do. Is it OK therefore for me to receive communion here as a Catholic and if not, why does the church say that I shouldn’t receive here?

The Anglican and Catholic International Dialogue Commission, in a 1981 document entitled The Final Report, claimed in the sections relating to the Eucharist —to have attained a substantial agreement on eucharistic faith.— This, however, does not resolve the question of intercommunion. The reason is that, while both churches may have a common understanding of what is happening at the Eucharist, the significance they attribute to sharing in the Eucharist together is different.

For the national churches that make up the world-wide Anglican Communion, sharing holy communion with members of other denominations is a way of growing together in unity. For the Catholic Church, sharing in eucharistic communion = ecclesial communion. —Ecclesial— means —church.— So communion in this sense takes on an expression of church unity. In what does ecclesial communion consist? Vatican II’s document Constitution on the Church sees four bonds: professed faith, sacraments, ecclesiastical government, and fellowship.

As Anglicans and Catholics are still working out issues relating to authority (ecclesiastical government), the mutual recognition of ministry (sacraments), and our fellowship is sporadic at best, from the Catholic Church’s point of view, it’s not yet —honest— for us to invoke together the consummate sign of unity in faith and life.

That said, the Catholic Church’s Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms Concerning Ecumenism, —recognizes that in certain circumstances, by way of exception and under certain conditions, access to these sacraments (eucharist, penance, anointing of the sick) may be permitted or even commended for Christians of other churches and ecclesial communities— (129)… —The conditions under which a Catholic minister may administer these sacraments . . . are that the person be unable to have recourse for the sacrament desired to a minister of his or her own church…, ask for the sacrament of his or her own initiative, manifest Catholic faith in this sacrament, and be properly disposed— (131).

You will not fail to notice here, I’m sure, that the situation envisioned is one in which a member of another church is present at the Catholic eucharist and wishes to receive communion, and not vice versa. In situations of pastoral need, Catholics have the approval of their own Church to receive the eucharist only in the Polish National Catholic Church, the Syrian Church, and in Orthodox Church, though the latter has not given a corresponding approval so the door is really not open there…

I am including this simply for the reference to the PNCC. The answer leaves off much on the issues that now separate Anglicans/Episcopalians of whatever stripe from the wider Catholic Church. Interestingly, the questioner certainly perceived the lex orandi of the parish he attended as equal to the lex credendi. This common worshiper viewpoint goes right to the heart of recapturing proper liturgy in the Roman Church. He or she likely saw the outward prayer of that particular Parish as more Catholic than thou.

Christian Witness, PNCC, ,

Faith and H1N1

The Departments of Health and Human Services and Homeland Security held a conference call on Thursday, September 24 entitled “Community and Faith-based Organizations and Response to 2009 H1N1 Flu.”

A jointly prepared resource document “H1N1 Flu: A Guide for Community and Faith-based Organizations” [pdf] is now available. They note that local organizations are crucial leaders and resources in their communities and essential partners in comprehensive state and local flu response.

HHS has posted a call summary on their listserv. If you are not part of the HHS listerv, you can join here. Click ‘Join the Mailing List’ under the ‘Newsletter’ box on the right-hand side of your screen.

Copies of the new guide and other resources are available for download.

PNCC, , ,

Library resources

From Martina, a Reference Librarian at the Albright Memorial Library in Scranton, PA who writes at Notes from a Reference Libarian: New Titles in the Local History Collection

Many of you may not know, but we have a nice collection of resources on the Polish National Catholic Church. These are local and non local resources about the origins and other information about the Polish National Catholic Church. If you are unfamiliar with this church here is a link that explains the history.

As I said we have two new books both on the Polish National Catholic Church. The first book is

  • Journeying Together in Christ: The Report of the Polish National Catholic-Roman Catholic Dialogue
  • Journeying Together in Christ: The Journey Continues.

These are available in the Local History Collection at the Scranton Public Library. You are unable to check out these resources, but you may look at them in the library.

Perspective, PNCC, Poland - Polish - Polonia, , ,

Around the R.C. Church

From Jacksonville.com: Catholic Church sees influx of foreign-born priests: Priests from other nations are needed to meet shortages

Fully agree with the movement toward tradition. The problem of course is inculturation. There are sets of preconceived expectations on the part of the priests and the people and it takes time to adjust. Sometimes it can be a train wreck rather than a God-send.

The Rev. Andy Blaszkowski’s English is clear, but his Polish accent unmistakable as he reads from the Gospel and preaches during Masses at the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Augustine.

During a recent service for some 300 parish school children, he told them the Eucharist is a “geeft” from God and that they should rely on their faith for direction in how to “leaf” their “lifes.”

But that was OK with 24-year-old parishioner Jason Craig, who traded Presbyterianism for Catholicism three years ago.

“I’m a convert, so it’s new and unique for me” to hear accents from the pulpit, Craig said. “In other denominations, there are no foreign priests, so it really shows the universality of the Catholic Church.”

It also shows the future for the American church and the Jacksonville-based Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine. Studies and church officials are reporting that seminaries and parish priest openings are increasingly being filled by men from other nations. And given the shortage of priests in the United States, few Catholics complain about the trend.

Study: more foreign-born priests

According to The Associated Press, a new report reveals that the latest and next generations of priests, brothers, sisters and nuns who belong to Roman Catholic religious orders in the U.S. are more ethnically diverse and tradition-bound than their predecessors.

The report confirmed what many have speculated: The few orders that are attracting and retaining younger members are more traditional. That generally means fidelity to the church and other members of the order, living in a community, taking part in daily devotions and wearing a habit.

The familiar white and black habits of nuns teaching elementary school or the robes worn by some fathers and brothers were shed by many orders as remnants of clericalism in the last 40 or 50 years, but a younger generation sees them as tangible displays of their faith and symbols of fidelity to church and community.

“This younger generation is seeking an identity, a religious identity as well as a Catholic identity,” Brother Paul Bednarczyk, executive director of the Chicago-based National Religious Vocation Conference, a professional organization of Catholic religious vocation directors, told The Associated Press. “Symbolism, images and ritual is all very important to this generation, and they want to give witness to their faith.”…

From Pew: Poll: Six in 10 U.S. Catholics ambivalent about Latin Mass

Of course the problem is that it is about Latin over right faith and right belief. A continuum is important and vital to renewal in the R.C. Church, but shouldn’t be sacrificed on the pyre of Latin-or-bust.

Two years after Pope Benedict XVI eased restrictions on celebrating the Latin Mass, more than six in 10 American Catholics have no opinion on the return of the traditional liturgy, according to a new survey.

In 2007, Benedict told priests to work with local parishioners when there is a “stable group” interested in the Latin Mass, which is celebrated in Latin by a priest facing away from the congregation. The Mass dates to the 16th century but fell out of use after the reforms of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.

Benedict said the move was intended to promote “reconciliation” with Catholics disaffected by the contemporary version of the liturgy and to encourage greater “reverence” during worship.

According to Georgetown University’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, one in four U.S. Catholics favors having the Latin Mass as a liturgical option, 12 percent oppose it, and 63 percent have “no opinion.”

Only three in 10 U.S. Catholics who do not oppose bringing back the Latin Mass — equivalent to about 5.7 Catholics — say they would attend the service if it was convenient, according to CARA. Apathy was most prevalent among Catholics born after 1982 — 78 percent said they have no opinion Benedict bringing back the Latin Mass…

From the Baltimore Sun: Episcopal nuns’ exit widens rift: As sect ordains women and gays, Catonsville sisters become Catholic

They are right. The Catholic faith is untenable in the face of such innovations.

In a move that religious scholars say is unprecedented, 10 of the 12 nuns at an Episcopal convent in Catonsville left their church Thursday to become Roman Catholics, the latest defectors from a denomination divided over the ordination of gay men and women.

The members of the All Saints Sisters of the Poor were welcomed into the Catholic Church by Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien, who confirmed the women during a Mass in their chapel. Each vowed to continue the tradition of consecrated life, now as a religious institute within the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

“We know our beliefs and where we are,” said Mother Christina Christie, superior of the order that came to Baltimore in 1872. “We were drifting farther apart from the more liberal road the Episcopal Church is traveling. We are now more at home in the Roman Catholic Church.”

Also joining the church was the Rev. Warren Tanghe, the sisters’ chaplain. In a statement, Episcopal Bishop Eugene Taylor Sutton wished them God’s blessings.

“Despite the sadness we feel in having to say farewell, our mutual joy is that we remain as one spiritual family of faith, one body in Christ,” he said…

From Voice from the Dessert on the former Bishop of Scranton: Why did the bishop of Scranton, Pa., resign? Though Bishop Martino is gone, the diocese’s future may be set

A lot to this article — a few excerpts below and of course mention of the PNCC.

Like Cardinal Egan in New York, Bishop Martino’s personality and work habits were exactly what was ordered for the hatchet job he was to perform. Really, I’m astonished at all the wonderment this resignation has raised. The Roman Church sends the man that they feel is needed for the job. It has nothing to do with being liked, that’s reserved for the man they send to be pastoral. Of course the big problem is that’s the way corporations are run, not the way the Church should be run. The need for change and being pastoral can be reconciled, they are not mutually exclusive. This was simply a choice for expediency sake. I pray for Bishop Martino… to do one’s duty and to be distanced from love is a terrible cross.

When Bishop Joseph F. Martino resigned Aug. 31 after six tumultuous years as bishop of Scranton, Pa., he left behind a diocese badly divided and demoralized, but, ironically, better prepared for the future than it was in 2003.

Sources contacted by NCR said the problem was Martino’s remote, uncommunicative and often authoritarian leadership style, not his decisions to close nearly half the Catholic schools and 40 percent of the parishes in the northeastern Pennsylvania diocese.

One longtime pastor said the parish and school closings and mergers —were absolutely needed.— He predicted that the basic program of restructuring the parishes, scheduled to be completed by 2012, will continue —pretty much as planned, with perhaps some fine tuning,— regardless of who the next bishop is. The basic program of school closings is already completed.

For months preceding his resignation —” at the age of 63, 12 years before the usual retirement age for bishops —” rumors flew around the diocese that the increasingly unpopular bishop had been called to Rome in June and had been asked, urged or maybe even ordered to submit his resignation.

No one contacted could offer positive evidence to confirm or rebut the speculation.
—It is very unusual for a bishop to resign at 63 years of age— and the Vatican would accept such a resignation only for exceptional reasons, said Jesuit Fr. Thomas J. Reese, a senior fellow at Woodstock Theological Center in Washington.

At the same time, —it is extremely rare for the Vatican to pressure a bishop to resign,— said Reese, author of three in-depth studies on how U.S. bishops and the Vatican exercise authority, pastoral leadership and administrative duties.

At the press conference announcing his resignation, Martino said he did so for health reasons, including —bouts of insomnia and, at times, crippling physical fatigue.— But he also acknowledged that his recent physical ailments stemmed from the stress and sorrow he felt over the lack of a —clear consensus among the clergy and the people of the diocese of Scranton regarding my pastoral initiatives or my method of governance.—

He said the diocese needs a —physically vigorous— bishop to lead it into the future and —I am not that bishop.—

—I think the bishop seems to have recognized that there really was a need for new leadership,— said Reese.

—I congratulate him for his courage and willingness— to face that and resign, he added. —I only wish a few other bishops would do the same.—

…

Mary Ann Paulukonis, who recently retired as Scranton diocesan family life director, said that when Martino first arrived in October 2003, —he came with a vision that excited most of us. … Initially he was friendly and open and easy to dialogue with.—

But that started to change as the problems of the diocese emerged, she said. —I don’t think he expected— the serious financial problems that were facing the diocese and its schools and parishes.

—There were parishes in debt— with no way to pay it off —and some of the schools were bleeding,— she said.

Reorganization

Just one month after his arrival, Martino announced to the staff that one of his first priorities was going to be restructuring to tackle the debt problem, Paulukonis said, and that winter he announced his intention to reorganize the schools.

In the meantime he also began reorganizing diocesan offices to cut administrative costs and installed four regional episcopal vicars to serve as his chief deputies on all church matters in those parts of the diocese.

…

—When troubles started occurring, he wasn’t available. A leader who is invisible is the enemy. People started misinterpreting [things Martino said or did]. … He was a villain— in people’s perception of him, she said.

She, Milz and the pastor who asked not to be named all said the bishop’s unilateral decertification of the Catholic teachers’ union in January 2008, right after the schools had all been consolidated and regrouped administratively under four regional diocesan structures, marked a new turning point in the bishop’s souring relations with the faithful —” most of them descendants of Irish, Polish, Italian and other immigrants who owed their entry into the American middle class to church-supported unions.

Union factor

Scranton’s union history is a major factor here. In the mid-19th century, the city grew rapidly because of iron ore veins in hills a little to the south, substantial anthracite coal deposits to the south and north, and the steel industry in town that melded the two natural resources.

Northeast Pennsylvania was the birthplace of the United Mine Workers, and founder John Mitchell converted to Catholicism largely because of local church support for coal mine workers’ efforts to unionize and obtain better living standards. Mitchell is buried in the Scranton cathedral’s cemetery and there is a monument to him next to the Lackawanna County Court House in Scranton, scene of a key decision ending the historic 1902 strike of anthracite coal miners in the area.

…

A longtime theology professor at one of the local Catholic universities who is involved in many Catholic activities and organizations locally and nationally —” who also asked to remain unidentified, not for personal concerns but for fear of diocesan repercussions for the university where he teaches —” said the longtime union culture in the diocese was one of the key factors in the division between Martino and his priests and people in the past couple of years.

The theologian said the religious conservatism and the history of ethnic tensions of Catholics in the Scranton diocese —” including the century-old Polish National Catholic church [sic] schism from Roman Catholicism, which started with an Irish-American bishop’s insensitivity to a Polish national parish in Scranton —” are also major factors that have to be taken into account in any assessment of the complex negative response of local priests and laity to Martino’s style of governance.

In many cities in the diocese, national parishes for Poles, Italians, Irish or other Catholic immigrant groups that were established in the late 19th or early 20th century, sometimes within two or three blocks of one another, still existed when Martino arrived, even though membership numbers had dropped dramatically over recent decades because of deaths, suburban emigration and other factors, the theologian said…

From PolskieRadio: Sunday trading ban —“ legislation for lazybones?

Think Blue laws. Really they are right. If a society truly values family over commerce it would have just such a law. Government is not the arbiter of right and wrong but is can cooperate in creating an environment that supports what is right.

A Solidarity trade union initiative to ban shops opening after noon on Sunday has divided politicians, even those from the same party.

A draft of the bill forbidding trade on Sunday afternoons is to be ready this year and is supported by numerous politicians from the opposition Law and Justice party and even some in the ruling Polish Peasant’s Party/Civic Platform coalition.

One MP who is very much against is Janusz Palikot from Civic Platform. —MPs who want to forbid trading [on a Sunday] are just lazybones. They don’t feel like working and they want to prevent others from working to excuse themselves.’ says the politician, quoted by Gazeta Wyborcza.

Senator Jan Rulewski, also from Civic Platform, is of the opposite view.

—Those who want to keep shops open on Sundays think in the same way the communist did. They wanted us to work weekends, arguing that the development of the socialist motherland was more important than the family,— he says. —We strongly oppose this point of view and want to restrict trade on Sundays and ban it completely in future.—

…

The bill has the support of church authorities and trade unionists, however, claiming that working on Sunday is harmful to family life.

Christian Witness, Perspective, PNCC, , , , , ,

Two kinds of people who know better than the Holy Church

From BreakingNews: Supreme Court ruling loosens Catholic diocese hold on priest sex abuse papers

The first kind are those that make themselves greater than the Church, substituting private judgment and corporate fear for faithful duty consistent with Scripture and Tradition.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday against a Roman Catholic diocese in Connecticut, saying that thousands of documents generated by lawsuits against six priests for alleged sexual abuse cannot remain sealed.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Tuesday denied the Bridgeport diocese’s request to continue a stay on the release of the papers until the full court decides whether to review the case.

Ralph Johnson III, a lawyer for the diocese, said church officials were considering whether to ask all nine justices to rule on the request.

The diocese said on its Web site Tuesday afternoon that it was disappointed with Ginsburg’s decision and that it —intends to proceed with its announced determination to ask the full U.S. Supreme Court to review the important constitutional issues that this case presents.—

Jonathan Albano, attorney for three newspapers who requested the documents, said the ruling compels the diocese to release the documents, but he acknowledged the church could ask the full court to reconsider Ginsburg’s decision.

—At the end of the day, the diocese will be able to say they were heard before every court that was available to them,— Albano said.

…

The Connecticut high court also rejected the claim by church officials that the documents were subject to constitutional privileges, including religious privileges under the First Amendment…

From The Deacons Bench: Dissident (Fr.) Roy Bourgeois: ‘I will not be silenced.’

The second kind — those who see their private judgment and assessment as some sort of revelation when it is no more than mimicry of the the world’s message.

The controversial priest who participated in a woman’s ordination ceremony last year is back in the news again — and continuing to stir the pot:

“A prominent priest whose support for women’s ordination has him in trouble with the Catholic Church ratcheted up his confrontation with the hierarchy yesterday, calling the church’s refusal to ordain women a —scandal” and —spiritual violence.”

—I will not be silenced on this issue,” said the priest, the Rev. Roy Bourgeois, to about 100 people in Weston at an event hosted by the congregation of Jean Marchant, a former staffer for the Archdiocese of Boston who claims she was ordained as a priest in an unsanctioned ceremony four years ago.

“The Catholic Church views Marchant and Bourgeois as having been automatically excommunicated for participating in unsanctioned ordination ceremonies.

“Yesterday Bourgeois said he remained unclear about his status because he has had no formal communication from his order, the Maryknoll Fathers, or from the Vatican, which last fall told him he would face excommunication if he did not recant.

—If they choose to kick me out of the church because I believe that men and women are equal, so be it,” Bourgeois said. —I will never be at peace being in any organization that would exclude others…

What’s funny in this case is the Rev. Bourgeois’ name – bourgeois which describes his attitude more than anything. As the Young Fogey might say, the class that touts SWPL (stuff white people love) – knowing better than the Church based on private judgment and believing that everyone must absolutely believe what you believe or they are evil, of course all in the name of “human” justice.

The Rev. Bourgeois is completely wrong of course, and women’s ordination is non-Catholic and a non-issue. It has nothing to do with equality or exclusion, but rather people of his class and background touting their personal assessment of what equality and exclusion mean — and then forcing others to eat that assessment.

Funny how all the Churches that eat and enjoy Rev. Bourgeois’ assessment are about as non-inclusive as they come. If you don’t buy what they sell you are out — you are just the ignorant proletariat. Further their congregations and parishes are dying at a fast rate (see here or read Exodus: Why Americans Are Fleeing Liberal Churches for Conservative Christianity) while truly Catholic Churches (Roman Catholic, Orthodox) are bringing the remnant in.

People who know know that Catholic Churches are all about inclusivity – all are welcome to come and pray. All are ministered to. All have a role consistent with Scripture and Tradition within those Churches.

The voice of the Holy Spirit is not asking that we grasp at straws for an answer, but that we show our faithfulness to what has been handed on to us. Not enough men in the seminary? We need to challenge them, be dynamic examples as men motivated by deep faith, love, and service. It’s hard work to put aside the tiredness, the monotony that can creep in to our all too human lives, but we can do it — truth, work, and struggle and we will be victorious. The solution isn’t in Rev. Bourgeois’ head or in our heads. It isn’t in society. It is in faithfulness.

Christian Witness, Current Events, PNCC

In the midst of gun shots

From the Herald News: Fall River police investigate Winthrop Street shooting which always gives rise to the question of Christian witness in old, inner city ethnic neighborhoods whose demographics have changed.

I advocate for a continued presence because our history, our democratic Church, speaks to people of every background and is able to bring the message of Christ to every community. It is certainly difficult to concentrate on love driving out all fear (1 John 4:18) when bullets are whizzing by, but it is worth considering before we respond on instinct.

Police are looking for two suspects following a reported Wednesday morning shooting on Winthrop Street near Plymouth Avenue and towed a black BMW that reportedly belongs to one of the suspects.

Two witnesses told The Herald News they heard two initial shots. One man, who declined to be identified, said he fled for safety with his young son. The other witness said a young black male exited the BMW, fired another shot at a black Cadillac Escalade and jumped a wall through her yard.

From there, the second witness, whose identity The Herald News is protecting, said, —I could see the gun through his T-shirt.—

It was the fourth reported city shooting since July 24, including the fatal shooting of Charles Smith on July 27.

The initial call about 11:45 a.m. reported a shooting at 112 Winthrop St.

An hour later, police put out a call in search of a black male who may have been an unexplained shooting victim, according to radio dispatch accounts.

—I can confirm we are investigating a report of shots fired in that area. No reports have been completed,— police spokesman Sgt. Paul Gauvin said.

One of several police officers interviewing witnesses on the lower portion of Winthrop Street, near Blessed Trinity Parish National Catholic Church, said they were seeking —two suspects on foot.—…

PNCC,

Days gone by, the PNCC and the PECUSA

There are several interesting documents at Project Canterbury related to the PNCC. Among them is Intercommunion between the Episcopal Church and the Polish National Catholic Church: A Survey of its Development by the Reverend Warren C. Platt. The document gives a rather thorough and very well researched look into the history of PNCC-PECUSA relations.

Currently the Rev. Platt is a non-stipendiary priest serving at the Episcopal Church of The Transfiguration in NYC (The Little Church Around the Corner). The Church of the Transfiguration and St Mary’s the Virgin are the two remaining churches of the Oxford Movement in NYC. Rev. Platt was an active participant in many of the PNCC’s annual history conferences.

PNCC, , ,

Spaghetti dinner at Holy Cross Parish in Wilkes-Barre, PA

From the Times Leader: Holy Cross Polish National Catholic Church plans spaghetti dinner

A spaghetti dinner will be served from 4-7 p.m. Saturday, September 19th in the hall at Holy Cross Polish National Catholic Church, 23 Sheridan St., Wilkes-Barre. Takeouts will be sold. Tickets will be available at the door and proceeds benefit the church. Chances for a variety of baskets that will be raffled off can be purchased in advance from any committee member or at the dinner.

Some committee members from left, seated, are: Joseph Compton, chairman; and the Very Rev. Thaddeus Dymkowski, pastor. Standing: Cathy Morgan; Debbie Zlotnicki; Jodie Januszko; Sandy Jackson; Dolores Wodarczyk; Marion Ritsick; Arline Rosenko; Joseph Ritsick; and Martha Karweta.
Some committee members from left, seated, are: Joseph Compton, chairman; and the Very Rev. Thaddeus Dymkowski, pastor. Standing: Cathy Morgan; Debbie Zlotnicki; Jodie Januszko; Sandy Jackson; Dolores Wodarczyk; Marion Ritsick; Arline Rosenko; Joseph Ritsick; and Martha Karweta.

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