An updated version of the Constitution and Laws of the Polish National Catholic Church has been posted at the PNCC website.
The updates are pursuant to the determinations of the Church’s Holy Synod of 2006.
Had a few interesting conversations recently with brother clergy.
The main topic was the PNCC – RC dialog and a few of the questions rising out of the recent Motu Proprio and the and the other more recent statements from Rome concerning the Roman Catholic Church’s understanding of itself.
As I pointed out at the time of both, I agree with the Motu Proprio in that it reconnects the Roman Church to its liturgical tradition, the riches the PNCC never lost. I also agree with others who saw the Roman Church’s statement on its self definition as exactly that. The Roman Church, as with the Orthodox, believe that they are the one and only true Church. The Roman Church said so – which is not surprising.
The two interesting things I took away from those conversations were that fellow clergy saw the Motu as a break in the Church’s teaching on the role of the Bishop as the overseer of the liturgical life in his diocese and the fact that this restatement of the Roman Church’s self understanding was difficult for some.
As to the Motu, in an address to the Institut Supérieur de Liturgie of the Institut Catholique de Paris Cardinal Francis Arinze stated:
Obviously ecclesial communion has to mean “communion” with the diocesan bishop and between bishops and the Pope. In the diocese, the bishop is the first steward of the mysteries of Christ. He is the moderator, promoter and guardian of the entire liturgical life of the diocesan Church (cf. “Christus Dominus,” No. 15; Code of Canon Law, Canon 387; “Redemptionis Sacramentum,” No. 19). The bishop directs the administration of the sacraments and especially of the holy Eucharist. When he concelebrates in his cathedral church with his priests, with the assistance of deacons and minor assistants, and with the participation of the holy people of God, “the Church reveals herself most clearly” (“Sacrosanctum Concilium,” No. 41).
The Motu’s delegation of authority of parish priests breaks the bond between the priest and the diocesan bishop, and would seem to negate the role of bishop as “first steward”.
While the Motu has a worthy purpose, this end run may be a vexing problem in Catholic ecumenical circles. It strengthens the role of the Bishop of Rome as the actual bishop of every diocese; the full, immediate, and universal jurisdiction issue.
Prime Bishop Emeritus of the Polish National Catholic Church, the Most Rev. John Swantek wrote extensivly on this issue in the most recent edition of God’s Field (God’s Field, Vol. 85, No. 22, October 30, 2007). Therin he quoted Canon II of the First Council of Constantinople:
Diocesan bishops are not to intrude in churches beyond their own boundaries nor are they to confuse the churches… Unless invited bishops are not to go outside their diocese to perform an ordination or any other ecclesiastical business.
Now, I imagine that an argument could be made stating that diocesan bishops are so out of control, and universally so, that the Bishop of Rome had to act. Yet that begs the question of the Roman Church’s own discipline.
There are all types of approaches that could be used, but what it seems to have come down to is a choice between correcting those who have wandered far afield, or taking direct control from everyone.
An interesting discussion.
As to the Roman Church’s self understanding, what I found most heartening was an affirmation of our own self understanding – that the PNCC fully believes that we have it right.
For someone who has not been a lifelong PNCC member that affirmation of our conviction was something I had longed to hear – and I have. Something that does not negate our brotherhood with all who proclaim the name of Jesus Christ as Lord, and something that does not diminish our commitment to dialog, nor our prayer for unity.
St. Justus of Canterbury, Bishop, (627)
Saints Trypho, Respicius, and Nympha, Martyrs, (unknown)
St. Andrew Avellino, Monk, (1608)
St. Theodore Tiro, Martyr, (306)
St. Benignus, Bishop, (467)
St. Victonus or Verdun, Bishop, (525)
Saints Claudius, Nicostratus, Symphoian, and Castorius, Martyrs, (306)
St. Deusdedit of Rome, Bishop, (618)
St. Godfrey of Amiens, Bishop, (1115)
St. Willibrord of Utrecht, Bishop, (739)
St. Herculanus of Perugia, Bishop and Martyr, (547)
St. Florentius of Strasburg, Bishop, (7th century)
St. Leonard of Noblac, Monk, (6th century)
St. Melaine of Rennes, Bishop, (530)
St. Demetrian of Khytri, Bishop, (912)
Saints Zachary and Elizabeth, Prophet and Matriarch, (1st century)
St. Bertila, Virgin, (705)
Saints Galation and Episteme, Martyrs, (unknown)
“Today salvation has come to this house
because this man too is a descendant of Abraham.—
Depending upon who got to us first, we carry differing perceptions of God. These range from visions of God as a punishing strict arbitrar of justice, to God as the laissez-faire overseer who doesn’t get much involved in the day-to-day affairs of men, to God as an all loving pappy who doesn’t much care what we do, as long as we don’t really hurt anyone.
We live with preconceived notions, the beliefs and feelings that come out of our experiences, out of our earliest memories, the picture painted by those who taught and trained us.
Those notions, beliefs, and feelings require the occasional adult reality check.
Brothers and sisters,
Let’s take that reality check.
Our first reading, from the appropriately named Book of Wisdom tells us that God has mercy on all, because He can do all things. Wisdom also tells us that God overlook[s] people’s sins that they may repent.
The reality is that God is merciful to us. He is merciful, not so we can do as we please, but so we can become what is our destiny, the perfection of humanity.
Humanity perfected is what Christ came to call us to be. It is humanity that takes up His name, humanity that repents of its sin.
Wisdom further tells us that God love[s] all things that are, and loathe[s] nothing that [He has] made.
In other words, God made us, fashioned us, and we remain simply for this reason, because God wills it so. Wisdom asks:
how could a thing remain, unless you willed it;—¨
or be preserved, had it not been called forth by you?
Listening to that we know that we have the assurance, by our very being, that we are willed to being by God. God has called us forth and He preserves us. He spares us because we are His. And, He loves us.
The most beautiful thought is this:
O LORD and lover of souls,
…your imperishable spirit is in all things!
God is in us.
The reality is that we bear likeness to Him. Our likeness to Him is in our ability to be more and more like Him, in every decision we make for Him, and in our doing every good and holy thing He taught.
My friends,
In our likeness to God is the promise that we will be reunited to Him one day.
We draw closer and closer to Him each day, when we pray, when His grace enters us in the sacraments, when we meet our brothers and sisters and see in them the likeness of Christ.
When we stumble on the way to God we are not doomed. Rather we are called to repent, to come back and reclaim our place in His family. In that we draw ever closer to Him.
Brothers and sisters,
Our reality check continues with St. Paul as he tells the people of Thessalonica, and us:
We always pray for you,—¨
that our God may make you worthy of his calling—¨
and powerfully bring to fulfillment every good purpose
and every effort of faith,—¨
that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you,—¨
and you in him.
The apostles, the saints, the entire Church prays each day. They and we pray that God bring us to fulfillment.
Fulfillment is this, that the imperishable spirit of God that is in us continues to perfect us, continues to draw us closer and closer, transforming us to perfection in Him.
That is the joy of the Church. That in Jesus Christ we become perfect.
In Jesus Christ we are fulfilled and perfected, not by magic or hocus-pocus, but by the reality of God among us. God as he came to Zacchaeus saying:
“Today salvation has come to this house—¨
because this man too is a descendant of Abraham.—
It is no less for us. We too are descendants of Abraham, grafted onto the chosen people, adopted and born of the Spirit of God. Salvation has come to us.
That is the adult reality of faith. That is the truth of the sacraments.
By baptism we are grated onto the Church, onto the new Israel. By penance we are strengthened to avoidance of sin and to a spirit of true repentance. By the Eucharist we are transformed into the very likeness of Jesus.
These graces, and the others available to us, transform us as Zacchaeus’ encounter with Jesus transformed him.
Zacchaeus was once again able to sing along with the psalmist this song of praise and thanksgiving:
The LORD is gracious and merciful,—¨
slow to anger and of great kindness.—¨
The LORD is good to all—¨
and compassionate toward all his works.
Zacchaeus, and all of us have this reality check stated in Jesus’ own words.
—For the Son of Man has come
to seek—¨and to save what was lost.”
That is God, that is who He is.
Amen.
Saints Vitalis and Agricola, Martyrs, (unknown)
St. John of Iberia, Monk, (580)
St. Charles of Milan, Bishop, (1584)