From the Denver Post: Griego: Little church’s St. Francis statue a target for vandals
By Tina Griego
Someone’s got it out for St. Francis. Or just the little church named in his honor. Or the church as a whole. Who knows? Maybe just fiberglass statues depicting humble saints who turn their backs on wealth to live in poverty.
It’s hard to know the mind of a vandal. This doesn’t keep Father John Kalabokes from trying.
Not quite five months ago, someone stole the bolted statue of St. Francis from its concrete base outside the St. Francis of Assisi Polish National Catholic Church. You might remember this story. The little church sits just below Leetsdale Avenue at South Jersey Street, across from a McDonald’s. Father John speculated the thief or thieves wrapped a chain around the 5-foot-tall statue, secured the other end to a vehicle and hit the gas.
This is a poor church, not affiliated with the Catholic Archdiocese of Denver as it has its differences — small but significant — with Roman Catholicism.
When the news got out, people sent in donations, and about two months after the statue was stolen, the church dedicated a new one: St. Francis, gleaming white, a blue bird perched on his hand.
Credit: John Prieto, The Denver PostAnd now this.
“St. Francis was attacked again,” Father John tells me in an e-mail.
I call him in disbelief. “What?”
The statue wasn’t stolen this time, he says. This time, someone or someones went after it with some kind of tool until the head smashed and the face came off.
“This was brutal,” he says, sounding weary. “Somebody has real issues. Whoever did it just beat on the statue, just beat on the head. The whole face came off in one piece.”
When Father John first discovered it Wednesday, he called a television reporter and a short piece aired. Afterward, he wondered whether it was the right thing to do. He wonders, even now, whether more publicity will just gratify the culprit. I don’t try to persuade him one way or another. As I said, it’s hard to know the mind of a vandal. Maybe, Father John decides, more publicity will prompt someone to come forward.
“Let’s face it,” he says. “These kind of crimes only get solved because someone comes forward, a witness or someone who knows something.”
It might not be the same person as last time, I say.
“There’s no way of knowing,” he says. “We suspect it’s an ongoing crime. It’s hard to accept that there would be more than one person out there who would do this.”
He tells me something he didn’t reveal before. About a week and a half after the statue was stolen, someone left a note on its concrete base. The letters were cut out of newspaper like a movie-version of a ransom note and said something like: ” ‘You will be struck,’ ” Father John said. “The police have it now.
“I’m a little discouraged and depressed,” he says. “I don’t understand the joy someone would get out of that. It’s a hateful action. It’s an act against the faithful.”
On Sunday, most of the congregation got its first look at the headless St. Francis. It’s a startling sight. Church members are angered and baffled and they compare it to recent attacks on statues at the Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden.
After Mass, Father John talks to the congregation. “I’m sure most of you, if not all of you, noticed that St. Francis was attacked again,” he starts, and the woman next to me starts to cry. He says he can’t figure out why someone would do this and that he no longer thinks this is a teenage prank. He says the good news, such as it is, is the statue might be reparable, but the church needs to figure out a way to protect it.
Someone out there is troubled, he says, so pray for him or her. Good came from bad last time, he tells them. It can again.
Each year the churches of Duryea choose a different theme for the service. This year it was decided to honor and give thanks to the emergency service personnel of the borough.
The service began with a procession consisting of personnel from the Duryea Police Department, Germania Fire Department, Excelsior Hose Company and Duryea Ambulance and Rescue, along with his honor Keith Moss, Mayor of Duryea.
The host Pastor Rev. Fr. Carmen G. Bolock welcomed everyone to the St. Mary’s Church. Participating clergy along with Fr. Carmen were from the Duryea Churches: Rev. Michael Shamboro, Pastor of Brick United Methodist Church; Rev. Fr. Charles Rokosz, Pastor Nativity of Our Lord Roman Catholic Church and Rev. Fr. Louis Kaminski, Pastor of Prince of Peace Roman Catholic Church, Old Forge. Fr. Louis was the guest homilist and spoke about how much we depend on those who protect us in our communities.
Lori Biscontini served on the ecumenical service planning committee. Mary Jayne Milkanin served as reader. Jan Cwikla was the organist. Many residents of Duryea attended the service.
Each year during the service an offering is taken up for the support of a good cause. This year the offering was divided between each of the emergency service departments of Duryea. Following the service a social hour was held in St. Mary’s Parish Hall.
The holiday spirit was bustling in East Meadow on Sunday at the St. Francis Polish National Catholic Church. The congregation held their annual Christmas fundraiser dinner. There were approximately 80 members in attendance, making the event full and joyous.
The congregation adopts a family in need every year. St. Francis fundraises through this dinner to provide necessities for that family.
“We have three dinners a year, but this dinner is meant to fundraise for the family that we adopt,” Reverend Andrzej Koterba explained.
The evening was full of festivities. Throughout the church hall, there were smells of homemade Christmas dinner, sounds of happy chatter and children running around, excited at the thought of meeting Santa Claus.
Giving is definitely a sentiment that the church members were comfortable with. The congregation held a raffle where almost all members participated. A donation box for the adopted family was brimming with dollar bills. The church also had a “wish list tree,” a tree filled with cards on ornaments that list an item that the church needs. Churchgoers are able to pick any ornament that they want, and then they can purchase and donate that item to the church. Everyone was so willing to give generously, which contributed to the true Christmas spirit felt throughout the evening.
St. Francis also gave out Polish wafers. The wafers are used at Christmas dinner on Christmas everyone breaks off a piece of the wafer, symbolizing peace for the year to come.
The children, especially Natalie, 5, and Adam, 4, were more than happy to chat with a newcomer. They both eagerly explained what they wanted Santa Claus to bring them: a Lego jet, Batman, a glowdome and a remote control helicopter.
Before digging in to the wonderful home-cooked meal, Reverend Koterba delivered a beautiful blessing on the food.
A surprise visitor came in the middle of the raffle, ringing jingle bells and jollily greeting the children – it was Santa Claus! He gave a gift to each of the children in attendance, who were delighted to sit on his lap and smile for a lovely picture.
The night offered a sense of family and home that is rare. Everyone was incredibly welcoming and loving.
“We welcome everybody and we appreciate greatly the generosity of our congregation,” Joni Blenn, the vice president, said.
Two recent articles have appeared in MyWebTimes on the Polish National Catholic Church as a potential alternative for Streator Catholics wishing to find a Church that is both fully Catholic and democratically governed. I wish the Catholics of Streator well in their discernment process.
Having personally faced the pain of Parish closings I understand their hurt and anguish. Much can be gained from the experience of many former Roman Catholics in the Buffalo area who have formed at least two new PNCC Parishes. God works, through His grace, to bring good out of the pain and anguish we feel. Having found a wonderful spiritual home, a Church that is both fully Catholic and democratic in governance, and great personal comfort in the PNCC, I know this to be true. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
The Streator Catholic is curious about the Polish National Catholic Church but does not know much about it.
Since the city’s four parishes merged to form St. Michael the Archangel Church, the Polish National has been brought up as an alternative, but no one has approached it about starting one.
Found on page 2 of the missalette in Streator church pews, the Roman Catholic church does not object to Polish National members receiving communion, but then how is it they are not affiliated with the pope or the Vatican?
Although completely independent of Rome, the church is representative of the first 1,000 years of the Roman Catholic Church, according to the Rev. Anthony Kopka, bishop of the PNCC’s Western Diocese in Chicago.
“That’s the best way to describe it,”Kopka said. “We are a Catholic church, there is apostolic succession, but we have honored no dogmas since 1054.”
Disgruntled with the structure of power in the Roman Catholic church, the PNCC broke away in 1897 to give Polish immigrants their own Catholic church to worship. At the time, there was concern Irish and German immigrants controlled too much power in the church.
Originally Polish, all ethnicites are welcome today. The church boasts more than 25,000 members nationally with 30 parishes in its Western Diocese alone. There are eight parishes in Illinois, with six in the Chicago area and one in suburban St. Louis. The closest is Holy Trinity Church in Kewanee.
Since its independence, theological and governmental differences were drawn.
The PNCC rejected the idea of papal infallibility, which meant the pope is preserved from the possibility of error when he solemnly declares a dogmatic teaching on faith.
“We believe no one is infallable in their teaching,” Prime Bishop Anthony Mikovski told The Times.
The church created its own structure of power with an emphasis on the parishioner.
Unlike the Roman Catholic church, members control the fate of their own parish. A committee of at least nine members is voted on by parishioners once a year. This committee controls the finances of the church and determines whether their parish needs to be closed.
The parish also elects a senator to represent it at the general synod. This is conducted every four years to discuss church matters and law.
A priest is appointed to a parish from the bishop of its diocese. The committee can then vote to accept or reject the appointment. Committee members also can hire or fire priests.
The priest serves as the parish’s spiritual leader and financial adviser. He makes no final decisions on the finances of the church.
“It’s up to us if we stay open,” said Resurrection Polish National Catholic Church parishioner Chris Cremean. “A church closes only if it runs out of money.”
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In 1993, the Vatican’s Council for Promoting Christian Unity stated that PNCC members in the United States and Canada can receive Roman Catholic Communion and other sacraments, and the PNCC issued parallel guidelines in 1998.
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Only time will tell if it is a viable option for alienated Streator Catholics.
Cremean said he likes the idea of having married priests that can relate to family life and enjoys the traditionalism practiced within the church.
“I feel like Ihave a parish I can call home for my family.”
His home parish in Toledo, Ohio closed in 2005 and he felt abandoned like many in Streator.
“I started to search for where my family would end up,” said the former St. Jude parishioner, noting there were at least 40 others like him. “We were looking for something traditionally Catholic and something that was ours — that our parish could say we owned.”
He had never heard of the Polish National Catholic Church in his hours of study on the issue, but it would provide him with his answer. An answer he suggests to the others he refers to as “Roamin’ Catholics.”
“It’s not for everyone, there are a few differences (from the Roman Catholic church),” Cremean said. “It’s an option that caters most to those who want a say in their own parish. Parishioners control their own parish.”
Groups like Save the Catholic Parishes in Streator wished they had more say in the merging of their four parishes into St. Michael the Archangel.
A handful of St. Jude parishioners found a Polish National church on a trip to Hamtramck, Mich. Impressed by its hospitality, the group discovered a small church with apostolic succession and no attachment to the diocese that closed them. In 1897, Pope Leo XIII recognized the Polish National as a Catholic church.
Within three years, St. Jude parishioners had their own parish in a Toledo suburb called Resurrection Polish National Catholic Church.
“We found our home,” Cremean said. “You don’t have to be Polish to start a parish.”
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Like in Streator, when the Catholic Diocese of Toledo closed 17 parishes, it was met with disagreement. Cremean’s home parish St. Jude filed two rounds of appeals to Rome to save their parish.
The Polish National Catholic Church has its own dioceses, but the dioceses cannot close a parish; that must be done by a board of parishioners.
The Rev. Anthony Kopka, bishop of the Western Diocese in Chicago, said no one in Streator has expressed an interest in starting a Polish National Catholic Church.
“I think a lot of people would be interested in finding out more about (the PNCC),” said St. Anthony parishioner Mike Sheridan. “I feel so many are still alienated. Some are still sad and some are very angry. People have thrown it out as an option, but I just don’t know.”
Kopka said anyone interested in starting a parish in Streator would have to contact him and then he would send out the Rev. Jaroslaw Rafalko from Holy Trinity Parish in Kewanee — about 75 miles west of Streator.
About 20 parishioners are all that is needed for a charter, said Cremean. Resurrection had 40 members to start and the priest from Hamtramck conducted Mass. Services were conducted at rented halls and churches until a combination of fundraisers and a loan from the PNCC provided a new building in 2008…
A wonderful, prayerful, and celebratory time in the holy city of Scranton yesterday.
God was greatly praised by the prayers and singing of over 600 members of the PNCC along with ecumenical guests. I was honored to be the crucifer for the Prime Bishop’s procession as well as assistant to the Masters of Ceremony. I also had an opportunity to spend some time in conversation with two of the ecumenical guests, a minister from the UCC and a representative of Bishop Tikhon, Bishop of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania (OCA). Here is Protodn. Sergei Kapral presenting an icon to Prime Bishop Mikovsky on behalf of Bishop Tikhon.
“It’s both a very jubilant day as well as a very humbling day,” said the man at the center of Sunday’s historic day for the Polish National Catholic Church in Scranton. 44-year-old Anthony Mikovsky was installed as prime bishop at Saint Stanislaus Cathedral. More than 600 people from the Polish National Catholic Church — both near and far — gathered to witness the installation.
“I’m very happy to be leading the church and want to work together with all of them,” said Prime Bishop Mikovsky. “They’re all wonderful people and I know that together we can do really good things for the church.” Mikovsky will lead some 25,000 Polish National Catholics primarily in the Eastern United States.
At 44-years-old, PNCC members have the youngest prime bishop in the history of the church second only to its 19th century founder. “He’s a very young man in terms of prime bishops and he’s got a very good heart,” said St. Stanislaus Parishioner Roger Seliga of Scranton. He believes the church hierarchy picked the right person for the job. “I think he’ll be a person who progresses with the traditions of the Polish National Catholic Church.”
Mikovsky replaces 67-year-old Robert Nemkovich who was too old by church law to run for a second eight-year term as prime bishop. Also taking part in the installation as a sign of christian unity, Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton Bishop Joseph Bambera and Bishop Emeritus James Timlin. Mikovsky considers himself a man on a mission to grow the Polish National Catholic Church. “To bring it to the people who are in need, to bring the church to the people who are hurting, who want to experience God in ever new and exciting ways.” Prime Bishop Mikovsky will also serve the church as bishop ordinary of the central diocese until February when Bishop John Mack will take over that position.
The Rev. Anthony A. Mikovsky was installed as prime bishop of the Polish National Catholic Church on Sunday before an overflow crowd at St. Stanislaus Cathedral in South Scranton, the mother church of the faith.
Turning over the crozier was Prime Bishop Emeritus Robert Nemkovich, who asked for God’s blessing on the church’s new leader.
“Direct and defend him by your grace that he may guide your people into the ways of truth, love, of holiness and peace,” said the outgoing bishop.
Prime Bishop Mikovsky, 44, is no stranger to the area, having spent his 13-year priesthood in Scranton, first as an assistant pastor, then as bishop of the Central Diocese. Members of his congregation, who watched him grow to become the leader of their faith, were happy for the man and their church.
“He is spiritual, intelligent and approachable,” said Paul Cimino, a member of St. Stanislaus parish. “He has always been there for the church and the people. He is perfect for the job.”
The installation, held during Mass, was attended by numerous bishops. Buses carried faithful from as far away as New York. The overflow crowd watched the Mass on closed-circuit television in the church hall.
The service began with business. Attorney Ernest J. Gazda, Jr., certified the results of the October election where delegates, on the 42nd ballot, selected Prime Bishop Mikovsky.
Then Prime Bishop Emeritus Nemkovich surveyed the congregation, then priests, then the bishops individually, asking if they will support Prime Bishop Mikovsky. They said they would.
Members of the church offered their new spiritual leader gifts symbolic of his role: holy water for restoration, salt for grace and wisdom, oil for healing, a Bible for the word of God, bread and wine for sacrifice. Prime Bishop Emeritus Nemkovich passed the crozier, completing the transition.
During the homily, he reminded the new bishop of the “awesome” responsibility – the care, administration and destiny of the church and its 25,000 adherents.
“Pray daily, ask God to help you and live an exemplary life,” he said.
Among the ecumenical dignitaries were the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton, and Bishop Emeritus James C. Timlin.
“We have been in dialogue with this church for years, and they remain our brothers and sisters in faith,” Bishop Bambera said of the PNCC before the procession, just as the hymn “The Church is One Foundation” began. “It is important that we celebrate this special day together,” he added…
Ś.P. Andrzej Weroniczak
Ś.P. Emilia Weroniczak
Ś.P. Józef Konicki
Ś.P. Rozalia Konicki
Ś.P. Louis A. Konicki
Ś.P. Bernice Konicki
Ś.P. Walenty Opach
Ś.P. Maria Opach
Ś.P. Marianna Nowak
Ś.P. Jan Nowak
Ś.P. Marianna Nowak
Ś.P. Marcin Nowak
Ś.P. Louis T. Konicki
Ś.P. Rita Konicki
Ś.P. Sister Mary Agnese Nowak
Ś.P. Agnes and Joseph Kolek
Ś.P. Angeline Nowak
Ś.P. John Nowak
Ś.P. Walenty Nowak
Ś.P. Walerka Nowak
Ś.P. Francis and Mary Nowak
Ś.P. Ludwis Nowak
Ś.P. Anthony and Laura Nowak
Ś.P. Joseph Balnis
Ś.P. Chester Kucharski
Ś.P. George and Joan Smyntek
Ś.P. Paul Caito
Ś.P. Bishop Franciszek Hodur and all the departed Bishops of the Polish National Catholic Church
Ś.P. All the departed Priests, Deacons, and Clerics of the Polish National Catholic Church
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord and may the perpetual light shine upon them.
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord and may the perpetual light shine upon them.
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord and may the perpetual light shine upon them.
May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
Wieczne odpoczynek racz im dać Panie, a światłość wiekuista niechaj im świeci.
Wieczne odpoczynek racz im dać Panie, a światłość wiekuista niechaj im świeci.
Wieczne odpoczynek racz im dać Panie, a światłość wiekuista niechaj im świeci.
Niech odpoczywą w pokoju, Amen.
I ask of all my readers your prayers for two priests of the Polish National Catholic Church, Father Augustin Sicard and Father Amaro Rojas of Saint Marin and Saint Rose Parish in San Antonio, Texas.
Father Amaro, together with his wife Rosie, and their children Fernanda and Regina, have prayerfully considered a great and generous gift to Father Augustin. By the grace of God, Fr. Amaro felt the call to donate one of his kidneys to Father Augustine. Both priests underwent the transplant procedure this past week.
The generosity of the Puerto Rican community in San Antonio, and a number of parish members, has also become evident in that they have gathered to help raise funds for both priest’s costs.
Father Augustine made a promise to Our Lady, to shave his head completely when the final decision was made for the transplant.
O Holy Lord, Father Almighty, everlasting God, who by pouring the grace of Thy blessing upon sick bodies, dost preserve by Thy manifold goodness, the work of Thy hands; graciously draw near to us as we call upon Thy name, beseeching Thee to behold, visit, heal and deliver from sickness Thy priests Augustine and Amaro, and according to the multitude of Thy tender mercy, look with favor upon them, grant unto them patience, strengthen them by Thy might, defend them by Thy power, cast out from them all pain of mind and body, and mercifully restore them full health both inwardly and outwardly, that having recovered by the help of Thy loving kindness, they may be enabled to return again to their daily ministry and glorify Thee in Thy Holy Church. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. — A Prayer for a Sick Person from A Book of Devotions and Prayers According to the Use of the Polish National Catholic Church.
Come, O Holy Comforter, and grant me a relish
for heavenly things. Produce in my soul the
fruits of virtue, so that, being filled with all
sweetness and joy in the pursuit of good, I may
attain unto eternal blessedness. As the Holy
Synod will gather tomorrow to begin its
historical deliberations and planning for the
next four years, allow Your gifts to be ever-
present in all that is said, done, prayed for,
believed in, and accomplished until
adjournment. Allow also that all that is decided
upon be for the praise of Your Holy Name and
for the benefit of all the members of the Polish
National Catholic Church.
Come, O Spirit of Wonder, penetrate my inmost
heart, that l may set You, my Lord and God,
before my face forever; and shun all things that
can offend You so that I may be made worthy to
appear before the pure eyes of Your divine
Majesty in the heaven of heavens, where You
live and reign in the unity of the Ever-blessed
Trinity, world without end. Especially allow
our Holy Synod to gather and deliberate while
all the while having wonder in Your Presence,
and allow them to depend on Your interaction
in all the deliberations that shall take place
during the time of Holy Synod.
Come, O Spirit of Piety, possess my heart;
incline it to a true faith in You, to a holy love of
You my God, that with my whole soul I may
seek You, and find You my best, my truest joy.
Especially give this gift to our Seminary, its staff,
program, and those who shall answer the call to
ordained ministry. Allow our Seminary to stand
with holiness in Your presence, as it prepares
shepherds of Your Holy Church.
Come, O Spirit of Knowledge, and make me
understand and despise the emptiness and
nothingness of the world. Give me grace to use
the world only for Your glory and the salvation
of Your creatures. May l always be very faithful
in putting Thy rewards before every earthly gift.
Especially give this gift to our fraternal
organization, the Polish National Union Spójnia.
Allow this organization to promote fraternalism
and concord within its membership and its
interaction with our Holy Church.
