Thoughts and opinions from a Priest in the PNCC
Gradual:
V. Yours, O Lord, are grandeur and power, majesty, splendor and glory. For all in heaven and on earth is Yours;
R. Yours, O Lord, is the sovereignty; You are exalted as head over all.
Communion Verse:
V. You love justice and hate wrongdoing; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your fellow kings.
R. With myrrh, aloes, and cassia Your robes are fragrant.
Dr. John Z. Guzlowski recently posted a short blog about journalist Justine Jablonska’s series of online articles about four Poles who survived the Nazi and Soviet invasions of Poland. In The Stories of Four Poles he notes:
The population of Poland was about 36,000,000 when the Nazis decided to destroy the country and its people. Six million of them died. The ones who didn’t die lived unimaginable lives for decades and decades to come, first under the hammer of the Nazis and then under the hammer and sickle of the Communists.
Not all of them want to talk about what happened. Some Poles don’t want to remember the killings, brutality, deportation, enslavement, deprivation, and suffering that many of them felt would never end. My mother was one of these Poles. If I asked her about what those years under the Nazis were like, she would wave me away and tell me simply, “If they give you bread, you eat it. If they beat you, you run away.”
I respect the silence of those like my mother who wouldn’t talk about those years. I’m sure she felt that she was protecting my sister Donna and me from the kind of sorrow few can bear.
Other Poles, however, were like my dad. He was a man who felt that it was his duty to let people know about the terrible things that were done. He didn’t want people to forget the evil that came down upon the Poles.
Justine Jablonska, a graduate student in the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, recently published a series of reports about four Poles who, like my father, feel that they must keep the memories of what happened alive.
These reports are gathered together under the title “Four stories: The nurse, the child, the Resistance fighter and the Home Army soldier.”…
The Polish Community Center in Albany will be hosting its regular Polish-American buffet on Friday, January 8th from 4-8pm. The PCC is located at 225 Washington Ave. Ext., Albany NY 12205. Call 518-456-3995 for more information.
The Polish National Catholic Church of the Holy Trinity and Saint Joseph in Linden, NJ will conduct its annual Christmas Dinner on Sunday, Jan. 10, in the parish center at 407 Ziegler Avenue in Linden. Prior to the dinner, homemade Polish delicacies will be served as appetizers. Cost of the complete dinner is $15. The dinner will begin at noon following the 11:00 a.m. Polish Mass. Take out orders will be available. During the dinner the parish children will present a Christmas pageant. Reservations for the dinner and take out orders are encouraged and can be made by calling 908-925-6537.
Dearest readers,
I have several blogging projects I am going to work with in 2010.
I will likely not be doing a regular series on anything. The 2009 poetry project was a massive undertaking and frankly, was a bit too much. I’ve learned a lot in the process, but I need to take a break from that sort of posting schedule. Note too, there are a few gaps I still need to fill in for 2009 and will complete that shortly. I do hope that my poor personal translations, as well as my broader inclusions, will provide all of you with an appreciation of the depth and scope of Polish (and other) poetry. In some small measure I can see why Bishop Hodur encouraged the study of poetry. It is an inspiration, a history, a challenge, and part of humanity’s song.
On other fronts, I plan a recap of things I liked, enjoyed, found inspiration in, and had fun with in 2009. I would like to do a little with Polish art works on an irregular basis. I do plan to complete my 10 reasons series. I’m working on a piece on “The Flag in the National Church ethos.” I will also keep you abreast of the news across the PNCC, the Catholic faith in general, ecumenism, and all the goings on in Poland and Polonia.
Beyond that I am up to managing 12 websites, 9 PNCC Parishes, 1 Reformed Church site, 1 not-for-profit, and this blog. There are at least 2 other projects in the hopper.
Again, my heartfelt thanks to all my readers, correspondents, and all who gather information, inspiration, and challenge in what I write. God bless you in this new year.
— Dcn. Jim
At the coming of the New Year
Bid the old year farewell
and remember the best moments
Moments of sadness and despair
Moments of joy and love
When the old year passes
Each of us will forget the old year
Everyone wonders what the New Year will bring
They think of happiness
Raising toasts with wishes
Great joy
Drinking champagne
So that you may always have good luck
So that fortune will never forget us
Play until the morning
So that you will not sleep through the new morn
Translated by Dcn Jim
Kiedy nadchodzi Nowy Rok
Żegnamy stary Rok
I wspominamy najlepsze chwile
Chwile smutku i rozpaczy
Chwile radości i miłości
Kiedy stary rok przemija
Każdy z nas staje cię starczy o jeden Rok
Każdy się zastanawia jaką nowinę niesie Nowy Rok
Myślą że szczęście
Toast wznoszą życzenia wypowiadają
Wspaniałą radością
Szampanem popijają
Aby szczęściu dobrze się wiodło
Aby szczęście o nas nigdy nie zapomniało
Bawią się do samego ranna
Aby nie przespać całego rocznego ranna
As evening fell we gathered in the juniper grove,
In the deep valley. And I was given
The gift of speech this night,
Comprehension. We selected
A full-branched tree in a small glade.
We sniffed its smells, on its branches
Hung small apples, carrots,
Dried mushrooms. Then raised
Our snouts to the moon and howled a half hour
Until moonlight silvered the snow
On the branches and the stars
Delivered their masks: the Evening Star —“
At the very top, others —“ for the branches
In place of candles… But how
To decorate the tree whose trunk
Turns into a backbone, on whose top a flower glows,
And at whose feet sleeps a serpent
Coiled into a triple ring? How can
It be made more beautiful? We polished our
Bloody fangs on the snow, the trees’ bark,
And with the stinking warmth of our bodies
Melted the snow around it,
So out of the earth
Could crawl worms and moles,
Spiders and snakes, toads and frogs, so fish
Could swim out from underground rivers, in the end
The Serpent would slither in, would wind round
The prickly trunk proclaiming
The holidays’ beginning —“ the birth
Of the new sun.Later we ran in a circle around the tree
Howling, giddy
With joy and hunger.
We ate the snow, the bark of shrubs,
Last year’s leaves, and afterwards swallowed
The tree’s decorations
And attacked one another…
Translated by Jonas Zdanys
Vakarop susirinkom eglyne,
Giliame slÄ—ny. Ir man buvo
Suteikta kalbos dovana Ł¡iai nakÄiai,
Suvokimas. IŁ¡sirinkome
Kuplią eglaitę nedidelÄ—j laukymÄ—j.
ApuostÄ—me, ant Ł¡akeliŁ³
PrikabinÄ—jome obuoliukŁ³, morkŁ³.
DŁ¾iovintŁ³ grybŁ³. Paskui pakÄ—lÄ—me
Snukius į mėnulį ir staugėme kokį pusvalandį,
Kol mÄ—nesiena nusidabravo sniegą
Ant Ł¡akeliŁ³, o Ł¾vaigŁ¾dÄ—s
AtsiuntÄ— savo kaukes: VakarÄ— —“
PaÄiai virŁ¡Ł«nei, kitos —“ Ł¡akoms
Vietoj Ł¾vakuÄiŁ³… Bet kuo
PapuoŁ¡ti eglę, kurios kamienas
PlŁ«sta stuburu, virŁ¡Ł«nÄ—je spindi gÄ—lÄ—,
O papÄ—dÄ—je miega Ł¾altys,
Susisukęs į trigubą Ł¾iedą? Kuo
Ją dabinti? Ä® sniegą,
Ä® medŁ¾iŁ³ Ł¾ievę
NuŁ¡veitÄ—m kruvinas iltis,
DvokianÄiŁ³ kŁ«nŁ³ Ł¡iluma
IŁ¡tirpdÄ—me sniegą aplinkui,
Kad galÄ—tŁ³ iŁ¡ Ł¾emÄ—s
IŁ¡lįsti sliekai ir kurmiai,
Vorai ir gyvatÄ—s, rupŁ«Ł¾Ä—s ir varlÄ—s, Ł¾uvys
IŁ¡plauktŁ³ iŁ¡ poŁ¾eminiŁ³ upiŁ³, galiausiai
AtŁ¡liauŁ¾tŁ³ Ł½altys, apsivytŁ³
DygŁ³ kamieną, paskelbdamas
Ł ventÄ—s pradŁ¾ią —“ naujos
SaulÄ—s gimimą.Paskui bÄ—gom ratu aplink eglę,
StŁ«gaudami, apsvaigę
IŁ¡ dŁ¾iaugsmo ir bado.
Ä–dÄ—me sniegą, krŁ«mokŁ¡niŁ³ Ł¾ievę,
PernykŁ¡Äius lapus, po to surijome
EglaitÄ—s papuoŁ¡alus
Ir puolÄ—me vienas kitą…
On the highway to Egypt
Near David’s Bethlehem,
Outside the suburbs, a retreat
A shed in open meadow meet.No door and no cover,
Dry reeds piled there,
From of old the earth provides,
Purest Virgin there resides.A moment before a donkey and an ox
Rested in that place
At this moment, the Mother of God
Sojourns after giving birth.Jewess beloved of God
The Hebrew bore for us.
The name Jesus he gave,
As Eternal wisdom made.Look, the man, lying there
Poorest of poor and without clothes,
In full view of the Father in heaven,
And with nothing to cover Him.He who gives color to the birds,
On a bundle of hay lays.
He who held the whole world in his fingers,
Now reaches for milk at his Mother’s breast.Joseph, compassionate and old,
Covers them under his gray cloak.
Cattle, sensing their Lord,
Fall on their knees before Him.A mother’s veil,
A moment for her beautiful cheeks
As is custom she wraps,
Wrapped Him tightly in it there.He goes to the bosom that bore Him
And in this nativity scene placed:
She, who bore You
Greets You first.
Translation by Dcn. Jim
Na gościńcu Egiptowym
Przy Betlejem Dawidowym,
W bok przedmieścia, na ustroniu
Stoi szopa w szczerym błoniu.Niczym z wierzchu nie pokryta,
Suchą trzciną wnątrz poszyta,
Od starości w ziemię wległa,
Tam przeczysta Panna zległa.Kędy przedtem osioł z wołem
Odpoczywał pod okołem,
Na tym miejscu Matka z Bogiem
Rozgościła się z połogiem.Żydóweczka Bogu miła
Hebrajczyka nam powiła.
Imię Jezus mu nadała,
Jako wieczna mądrość chciała.Patrz, człowiecze, jako leży
Ubożuchny bez odzieży,
Mając Ojca Boga w niebie,
A nie ma czym okryć siebie.Ten, co ptaszkom barwę daje,
Na wiązce siana przestaje.
Co wszystek świat w palcach dzierży,
Żebrze mleka u Macierzy.Użalił się Józef stary,
Posłał podeń swój płaszcz szary.
Bydło, czując swego Pana,
Padło przed Nim na kolana.A Matuchna z bawełnice,
Którą swoje śliczne lice
Jako zwyczaj zawijała,
Pieluszek z niej nakrajała.Na łonie Go swym powiła
I w jasłeczkach położył:
Ta, którego porodziła,
Sama naprzód pozdrowiła.
O radiant star of the heavens,
Shed forth thy brilliant light,
Lead us on to the slumbering Saviour,
Born unto us this night.
Arise, O sin-burdened mankind,
LIft up your voice and sing,
This night is born your Saviour,
This night is born your King!
Translation by the National United Choirs of the Polish National Catholic Church, Music Commission.
O gwiazdo Betlejemska,
zaświeć na niebie mym.
Tak szukam Cię wśród nocy,
tęsknię za światłem Twym.
Zaprowadź do stajenki,
Leży tam Boży Syn,
Bóg – Człowiek z Panny świętej,
dany na okup win.O nie masz Go już w szopce,
nie masz Go w żłóbku tam?
Więc gdzie pójdziemy Chryste?
gdzie się ukryłeś nam?
Pójdziemy przed ołtarze,
Wzniecić miłości żar,
I hołd Ci niski oddać:
to jest nasz wszystek dar.Ja nie wiem; o mój Panie,
któryś miał w żłobie tron,
Czy dusza moja biedna
milsza Ci jest, niż on.
Ulituj się nade mną, błagać Cię
kornie śmiem,
Gdyś stajnią nie pogardził,
nie gardź i sercem mym.Czy zamieszkasz w tym sercu,
Zbawco mój i Panie,
Gdzie nędzniejsze ni w stajni
znajdziesz tam posłanie?
Ulituj się nade mną,
nad stworzeniem Twoim,
Jakoś stajnią nie wzgardził,
nie gardź sercem moim.
In midnight silence,
Came a voice so clear:
Rise, I ye shepherds,
Christ, your Lord, is here.Leave your flocks, forsake your watchings,
In a manger wrapped in swaddlings,
Ye shall find the Lord.‘Twas there they found Him,
There in Bethlehem,
And with thanksgiving,
They did worship Him.And their hearts were filled with gladness,
As they knelt before God’s greatness,
For they saw their Lord!
Translation by the National United Choirs of the Polish National Catholic Church, Music Commission.
Wśród nocnej ciszy głos się rozchodzi:
Wstańcie, pasterze, Bóg się wam rodzi
|: Czem prędzej się wybierajcie,
Do Betlejem pośpieszajcie,
przywitać Pana. |Poszli, znależli Dzieciątko w żłobie,
Z wszystkimi znaki, danymi sobie.
|: Jako Bogu cześć Mu dali,
A witając zawołali,
z wielkiej radości. |Ach, Witaj Zbawco z dawna żądany!
Tyle tysiący lat wyglądany;
|: Na Ciebie króle, prorocy
Czekali, a Tyś tej nocy,
nam się objawił. |I my czekamy na Ciebie, Pana,
A skoro przyjdziesz na głos kapłana.
|: Padniemy na twarz przed Tobą,
Wierząc, żeś jest pod osłoną,
Chleba i winia. |
From the website of the Polish Orthodox Church: Feast of St Gregory (Peradze) in Warsaw
The service of all night vigil started the celebration of the feast of St Gregory (Peradze) in Warsaw chapel of his name. It was also the day of St Nicolas.
During the service there guests from Georgia were also present, who came to Warsaw to participate in the feast and to take part in the Kartvelological Conference in the name of St Gregory (Peradze), which will start on December 7, on the University of Warsaw. There was also archbishop Andria of Samtavisi and Gori from Georgia present on the feast.
The service was celebrated in Polish language, which is quite unusual, as most parishes in Poland use Slavonic as their liturgical language.
After the vigil all the guests were invited for dinner, prepared by the parishioners of the chapel.
On the feast day Divine Liturgy was celebrated. There were more than 60 people present, which made it almost impossible to get inside the small chapel.
At 16.45, an hour of the death of St. Gregory (Peradze), a wreath was placed at the board, remembering professors of Warsaw University, who died during II world war. This board is placed on the area of the university and there is a name of St Gregory Peradze —“ who was the professor on this university before the war. During this celebration sang the choir of the chapel of St. Gregory. Archbishop Andria also participated.
St. Gregory (Peradze) was born in 1899 in Tbilisi (Georgia). He finished a spiritual seminary in Tbilisi. Then he started studies in Berlin (Germany). In 1927 he received PhD in philosophy.
After two years he organized a Georgian, Orthodox parish in Paris. In 1931 he became a monk and was a first parish priest in this parish. In 1933 he came to Poland to be a lecturer on the faculty in Orthodox Theology Section of Warsaw University. He worked there till the break of the war.
On May 5, 1942 St. Gregory was arrested by the Germans, who then occupied Poland. The reasons are not well known, but possibly he helped Jews and cooperated with the Polish resistance movement. After half a year he was moved the the concentration camp in Auchwitz (Oswiecim). He died there on December 6, 1942. The reasons for murdering him are not well known. A witness said, that he had volunteered for the death instead of other man there. He stood barefoot on the snow, he was bitten by fierce dogs, and then he was poured with fuel and fired. Till today it is not known, what happened with saint’s body.
St Gregory was canonised by the Georgian Orthodox Church in 1995. He is also well known and worshipped in Poland, as he spent many years, made a lot of his work and died there.
The chapel of St. Gregory (Peradze) was established by the metropolitan Sawa (the head of the Polish Orthodox Church) in 2006. Then regular services in Polish language started to be celebrated regularly. Now all the major feasts services are celebrated there also in Polsih. From September 2009 Sunday school started to operate for 10 children. About 60 people regularly attend Sunday services, and it is maximum which are able to get to the small chapel.
The chapel belongs to the Polish-Catholic church and is used by permission by Orthodox community.
Saint Gregory became a patron of the community because he is very close to young people, who are the members of this community. He lived not long ago in Warsaw and was active in similar spheres as people from the community (like science, conferences, university lectures etc.). This saint also attracts many Georgian people, who live in Warsaw or come there on different goals —“ they are often present on the services.