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I tend to regard as good news any time we ECs get out from under the control of Latin-rite bishops.

Mod Note: This thread was formed from several posts split off from the thread in Church News regarding erection of a Syro-Malankara Exarchate for the US & Canada

We should be thankful to these bishops for having taken care of our Syro-Malankara brethern. Without their care over the years, there may not have been enough parishes to warrant an exarchate.

sielos' comment unfairly suggests a negative influence or environment exercised over the Malankara by the Latin hierarchs; I know of no reason to believe that the Latin hierarchy has done anything to hinder the praxis of the Malankara. On the other hand, I am unaware that they've been the beneficiaries of any particular outpouring of episcopal pastoral care for which one needs to express gratitude.

There has been an Apostolic Visitator for the Malankara in the US, Canada, and Europe for several years - operating from the New Hyde Park site and those who have held that position (one of them having been His Beatitude Isaac Mar Cleemis, now Catholicos of the Malankara Church) have done well by the needs of their faithful - assuring the erection of parishes in locales where there has been a need.

Many years,

Neil

I can see how what I initially said was unfair and could be taken as unkind. For that I ask everyone's forgiveness.

Unfair? Shall we discuss du Bois, Pennsylvania? Or Scranton? Or Minneapolis? Or Shenandoah? Want more names for the list?

Fr. Serge

Bless, Father,

No, but then was then and now is now - and the number of Latin hierarchs in the US who are running roughshod over Eastern and Oriental Catholics is decidedly not what it was then - thank God.

Many years,

Neil

Oh, dear.

What happened in DuBois?

I lived there for five years (and still can't manage the local pronunciation, close to "do Boys"). [It's almost always spelled without the space, with the capitalization of the B varying. Also, his name was anglicized before Charles du Bois made it to town (then Rumbarger or some such); the place was never called do-Bwah)

It's also where I first came across Eastern Catholicism.

?

hawk

Go and investigate the "Melkite" (or is it "Maronite"?) parish in du Bois - and get set for an unpleasant shock.

Fr. Serge

Other than it isn't there any more what is the story because I can't find anything.

The thread title really caught my eye, as DuBois is my primary parish.

I'm not an authority on the subject, but I know a little about the parish in DuBois. Fr Serge, I originally thought that it was Maronite, but later discovered that it was Melkite. It existed as a parish with a "circuit priest" for the first half of the 20th century, but then was closed and sold. The records are kept at St Catherine's Roman Catholic Church and most, if not all the families joined the RC parish...not our Byzantine Catholic Parish.

In fairness, I don't know why this happened...maybe it was encouraged by the RC priest (or bishop)....maybe because they associated with the Italian culture more than our Slavic.....

The church is now a warehouse for a contractor. The bells and marble altar top were donated to Nativity BC Church, where one bell and the marble are put to good use. The ethnic makeupup, I believe, was Syrian and Lebanese and the people and the church are located in "the flats" section behind Prontock Distibuting (Sandy, DuBOis & New Streets).

I talked briefly to Bishop Nicholas (who was trying to collect some history) about it; he wasn't too happy about the situation but has seen it repeated far too often.

But then again, there are probably over 150 Rusyn/Ukrainian Greek Catholics from our parish who have been (willingly) swallowed up in the various RC parishes....none seem to have been discouraged by the local RC priests. So much for Canon law...

Fr Deacon Paul

The pronunciation using local dialect is Dew-boyss.
Deacon Paul, where we drink pop and say roof instead of roff.

I never could hear the difference between "dew" and "do" there, even after five years . . . (and they sound the same in my western dialect)

You're right, Hawk. There is no difference.

If it's any help, I grew up 30 miles away from DuBois and the pronunciation is as hawk and Deacon Paul mention. I guess we're people who tend to lessen our pronunciation differences. Mary, marry, and merry are all the same. Ditto for Barry, berry, and bury.

Bob

All right. Add Saint George's Melkite Church, New York, to the list.

Fr. Serge