www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Update on Holy Trinity in Bridgeport, CT

Dear Fr. Deacon Lance:

Thanks for the clarification!

If Archbishop Basil Schott was not invested with the pallium as a Metropolitan, then we go back to his ordinary authority as Archbishop of the Ruthenian Church.

As I adverted to in my initial post on this subject, failing to have the Passaic Eparch(y)'s attention, could the "aggrieved" parties go up to the office of His Eminence and request a covening of the Council of Hierarchs, over which the Archbishop presides?

Amado

Amadeus,

Please don't misunderstand. Metropolitan Basil is a metropolitan, ours are just not going to receive the pallium anymore. I don't know about the Romanians. The reason being the Ecumenical Patriarch threw a fit when Metropolitan Judson was to be invested. He refused to attend the Mass of SS. Peter and Paul if a Byzantine Catholic metropolitan were to be invested. As a last minute compromise it was decided to give Metropolitan Judson his in a private ceremony. It was handed to him in a box. He was invested in a liturgical rite. It was decided not to give Metropolitan Basil one at all. This does not affect his power as metropolitan. Those powers just don't include intervening in lawful decisions of a bishop in his own eparchy. Closing parishes is never popular, especailly with those affected but I have yet to see Rome intervene and there have been many closings in the Pittsburgh area.

Fr. Deacon Lance

Dear Fr. Deacon Lance:

Yes, I don't foresee Rome intervening in these issues, which was the main point in my first post. These can and should be resolved in the local level.

Now, how can this be resolved then by the Metropolia to the satisfaction (or near satisfaction) of all concerned?

If everything doesn't come into place through the offices of the Passaic Eparchy, don't you think the Metropolitan Archbishop has to step in, motu proprio, or through the Council of Hierarchs?

Amado

What is the proper channel to file a complaint and have a day in court, so to speak? The actions and behavior by our Bishops and priests is unchristian and immoral. Do the parishioneers have rights to the property? Can they take the church Orthodox? Holy Trinity is the oldest Byzantine Catholic church in all of New England.

I don't think so.

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Can they take the church Orthodox?

They can become Orthodox, probably without the property. I believe it was under the administration of bishop Takach that Rome had the titles to the property collected. There are plenty of people here who know the details better than I.

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Holy Trinity is the oldest Byzantine Catholic church in all of New England.

Wow, that's a horrible shame. It is so sad things have come to this.

I can think of two approaches to take if the congregation wants to stick together:
One is to approach the local ordinary and ask to be served. According to canon law the local Ordinary has primary responsibility to serve Eastern Catholics who otherwise do not have a church. I don't really think that will come to anything though.

The second option I can think of is to approach ACROD and ask if the church would be interested in organizing a mission in your area.

+T+
Michael

There is St. John the Baptist American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Church (might go under Greek Catholic Orthodox or something similiar as well, but it is the same) in Bridgeport.
There are also two American Carpatho-Russian Parishes in Standford.
http://www.homestead.com/ht/index.html
This is in Danbury.
American Carpatho Russian Dioces parish listings Scoll down, the first few are the parishes in CT.

Thanks Basil...Actually, I believe Holy Trinity is the oldest Eastern Christian Church (Catholic or Orthodox) in New England. Although, official records put the churches founding in 1894 I have an article from the 1960's which placed the founding along closer to 10 years earlier than that. Either way 1894 in New England is definitely the oldest Eastern Catholic Church.

While it is a parish closing, and they do happen as Deacon Lance says, this is not how to handle your flock. If it were a parish merger it could have been explained and conducted in a fashion that represents the Christian values the Church was founded on.
I do not know how anyone could just pass this off as a clear cut parish closing. There were according to the information we have, no concessions to merge with the other local Byzantine Catholic Church. They were basically taken for a ride, had money taken, and then driven out at gunpoint.

Glory to Jesus Christ!

I just realized that Orestes Chornock was a Byzantine Catholic priest in Bridgeport CT, before the dustup over the parish property rights and married clergy in the late 1930's.

Small world indeed, this episode is totally ironic.

+T+
Michael

Well, the OCA or Carpatho-Russians will surely welcome them into Orthodoxy with or without the parish, but the building will be sold at auction, so...Shame after such a dignified history as a parish!!! This really was a sickening account, and these people and their community should have been treated in a Christian manner. My next question is what has happened to the value of real estate in the area--follow the money and you'll find out why this travesty occured. I think a collection would be in order to restore to these poor people some place to pray.

This is the most tragic thing I have heard about our church in a while...Smells like the 30's all over again. ACROD membership could be swelling soon. God bless these people...

P.S. I met the chancellor of the diocese, Fr Frank Miloro last year in Johnstown while on vacation. Very nice man and and could probably lead these people home where they belong. I've seriously been considering converting over the last few years. As a former BC priest told me years ago, I'm getting tired of the schizophrenia of the Greek Catholic Church.

It's starting to seem to me that to be Eastern is to be Orthodox. Lord help me in my decision.

Look - can we let cooler heads prevail here?

Bishop Pataki will leave eventually and one bishop does not an entire church make. Let us pray that God gives our church a shepherd over Passaic who will know how to guide Byzantine Catholics through the difficult times and clear opportunities that lie ahead. Leaving for Orthodoxy is not the answer. Besides, there are other Byzantine Catholic jurisdictions, such as Melkite and Romanian, that remain faithful and have hierarchs who are zealous for evangelization. I feel blessed to be in Bishop John's jurisdiction, and hope that all of our hierarchs in the Metropolia commit to the apostolic effort of helping our church grow, instead of presiding over its untimely demise.

The irony here, is that Holy Trinity even had Orestes Chornock as a parish administrator in 1915, yet Holy Trinity remained loyal to Rome and did not get caught up in the formation of ACROD in our own backyard. 90 years later we were driven into bankruptcy (remember we had a close to a quarter million in the bank and outstanding loans receivable as recently as 1999, (yes we had lent $$$ to other parishes since we had it), property valued in the millions) to close the parish and nothing was done about it.

As far as I can tell from my limited understanding of Canon Law is that an Eparchy or diocese is essentially set up like a fifedom where the Bishop (Lord of the land) has complete reign and although pressure can come from above nothing can force him out. I think this was best shown with Cardinal Law in Boston. He would not leave, until Rome "rewarded" him with a minor basilica in Rome. I don't think Rome's intention was to reward him but that's what it took to get him out. I think when Bishop Andrew was "removed" from Parma, there was a lot of uproar about his behavior there as well, but he got out of Parma since Passaic opened up and he was able to look at it as moving up to the larger Eparchy.

Maybe Kir Andrij (Pataki Andrush) can become the
new ordaining prelate for the Eastern Rite in Rome, as Kir Nicholas became in 1967!

Ungcsertezs

There are indeed 3 ACROD parishes in the Bridgeport area--all named St. John Baptist. Each sucessively breaking away from each other after the (first) SJB Mill Hill Ave. parish broke from St. John the Baptist Greek Catholic. Just in case anyone thinks that the grass is greener...

The good news is, that all four parishes (the 3 ACROD and 1 Greek (Byzantine) Catholic) use the SAME cemetery. At least they rest together after all the fighting is over.