www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Church of the Resurrection - Smithtown: Any Updates?

Karen,

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak with Fr. Jack during the Ss Cyril and Methodius Lecture in Pittsburgh. When I asked him about heading to Long Island he lit up like a Christmas tree. The excitement and love he has for the Church I'm sure will touch the lives of all the parishioners. If you get the opportunity to speak with him, ask him about his conversion to the Byzantine Catholic Church, I find it to be a truly wonderful story.

Peace in Christ,
Ed

Final update and thoughts on our beloved Church. Fr. Jack is a wonderful pastor. Attendance is up, programs and organizations are being restarted, special events taking place. The only obstacle is the refusal to answer the question of why...why did it happen and why the sudden turnaround. We are ever grateful for the return of sanity, but I feel there can be no closure until it can be talked about open and freely. Some forgive, none forget. Maybe we can take some comfort in a reading from last week..Jeremiah 23:1-6

Being Byzantine Catholic means we follow both the Roman and the Orthodox mottos, both of which apply in this case. First, the Orthodox: "Never explain, never apologize". Second, the Roman: "We may not always be right, but we are never wrong".

Keeping that in mind, recognize the Parousia will come before any explanation out of the Passaic Chancery.

I don't know if Father Custer is a good pastor or not. I hope he is. I do know he is one of those who designed the Ruined Divine Liturgy. Anyone who supports the RDL doe not know what Byzantine Catholicism is all about. And he is a convert from Roman Catholicism. Call him to account for the damage he has done.

The parish needs a healing, not further antagonism. The time for bitterness is over! If Father Jack can't bring the congregation back to what it should be then there are some other serious problems. He is a good priest and is excited about returning to parish care.

It's a new start for the parish, a new spring! A new Pentecost is overexaggeration, but it is a good model.

May our heavenly Mother protect and bring you closer to Her Son, our Lord,

Fr Deacon Paul

I will agree with Father Deacon that there should be no bitterness. But he also seems to be saying that the time to stand for what is correct regarding Liturgy is over. I could not disagree with him more. The Ruthenian bishops have forbidden the Byzantine-Ruthenian Liturgy that Rome has promulgated and wants us to have, and which we have a right to. They have promulgated a revision of the Liturgy that is in open violation of the Vatican directives. That is wrong. The people certainly have right to stand and speak for what is right. It should be clear to anyone who knows Liturgy that the Revised Divine Liturgy has done nothing but harm the Church, and will continue to harm the Church until it is fixed. I would hope that the members of every parish would organize letter writing and complaints to Rome. So far they have been too polite and compliment in accepting what is wrong.

I like Father John very much and do think he has an outstanding pastoral sensibility, for which reason I have to wonder what it is, precisely, that he liked so much about the new translation. Like everybody else involved in making the sausage, he refuses to say what went into the grinder, and who was responsible for what parts of the recipe. The utter lack of transparency, as much as the end product itself, is responsible for the cynicism and disdain with which the RDL was greeted.

All I'm saying is that the parish healing should not be hijacked by another controversy...any other controversy, regardless of subject. It needs to come together to rebuild.

To paraphrase the parable of the Prodigal Son, "The parish was lost, and now it is restored."

Give thanks to God, for he is Good.

I used to attend Liturgy in Smithtown when visited my parents (who live in Mattituck). We loved Father Daniel and liked the parish atmosphere and the energy of the people. I am glad that, after the abuse of the parish and its people by the Eparchial hierarchy, some healing has occurred. Ultimately, though, bad liturgy hurts everyone and is likely to take its toll in the Church of the Resurrection as much as any place. Things look good now because they were so bad before. But over time, a good pastor can take you only so far in the absence of a rich and rewarding liturgical life.

Atta way to encourage 'em Stu!

I agree with Stuart and John K. A good pastor can only make up for so much bad liturgical life. Ruthenians had a wonderful opportunity to embrace the Vatican's directives to restore and renew their liturgical heritage - and we know from evidence that our Byzantine Liturgy in its received form builds solid parishes. Instead the bishops chose a different path, modeling the Ruthenian liturgical life after elements in the Roman Catholic Novus Ordo that even the Roman Catholics say have failed, and are now trying to correct. Running away from one's own traditions never works. Ruthenians cannot be successful by freshly copying the Latins again. No one finds that attractive and it only succeeds in chasing people away. Ruthenians can only be successful - and grow - when they be who they are suppose to be: Ruthenians.