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IS there any Eastern Catholic Church in Tampico , Mexico?

Manuel/Mexican can best answer this; the following is the info I have on parishes in Mexico.

There are 3 Eastern/Oriental Catholic canonical jurisdictions: the Eparchy of Nuestra Señora de los Mártires del Libano in Mexico of the Maronites; the Eparchy of Nuestra Señora del Paraíso in Mexico of the Melkites; and, the Apostolic Exarchate de Latina America e Mexico, Faithful of the Oriental Rites (Armenian).

The Melkites have a single parish, it's in Mexico City; the Armenians do not have a parish, but serve the Soorp Badarak in a Latin parish in Mexico City on the occasion of pastoral visits by the Exarch; the Maronites have 3 parishes, one is in Mexico City, not sure of the locations for the other two. Additionally, there may be a Syriac parish in Mexico City (I have a vague recollection of hearing that, but wouldn't swear to it).

Many years,

Neil

Neil's information is very accurate.

I believe all three Maronite parishes are in Mexico City.

I am pretty certain there isn't any Eastern Catholic Church in Tampico.

Shalom,
Memo

According to this Wikipedia article on the Eparquía de Nuestra Señora de los Mártires del Líbano en México [es.wikipedia.org], there are five Maronite churches with three more under construction, including a shrine to Saint Sharbel.

As for Byzantine Catholics in Mexico...

There exists the Apostolado Catolico Bizantino Orientale Lumen [orientecristianocatolico.blogspot.com] in Puebla.

Here is a photo of the chapel: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fLKSdKZeD...L_D4h4/s1600-h/CAPILLA+DE++AMYORAZGO.jpg

The director of the apostolate is Fr. Charles H. Brown [orientecristianocatolico.blogspot.com], a retired Byzantine Catholic priest, who had been pastor at several parishes in the Eparchy of Passaic.

There is also mention on their blog of a "Byzantine Catholic Church of the Nativity of the Theotokos", but I can't find any info to which jurisdiction this church belongs.

Thanks for the info! I like that chapel in Puebla ; it has a nice feeling to it. It looks like a small church somewhere in Europe! The icons are are very nice as well.

I'd love to see a post from any of our Mexican members, perhaps either Juan/Mexican or my Melkite brother, Bernardo (from whom we haven't seen a post in ages), who might be able to reconcile the conflicting numbers as to parishes in the Maronite Eparchy.


Father Charles (Brown) is indeed a retired priest of the Passaic Eparchy (and also holds degrees in both medicine and law). In the Official Catholic Directory (2008, latest edition that I have available to me), the Eparchy lists his address as St Theresa of the Child Jesus in Puebla.

It appears that Father Charles has, in retirement, created a small Byzantine Ruthenian presence in a place where there was none previously (not the first time this has been done; reading histories of the Byzantine parishes in CA, one can find several instances in which retired clergy effectively turned their apartments and homes into mission chapels that eventually became parishes of the later Eparchy of Van Nuys). Of course, in this instance, Father Charles has apparently done so in a place where there were likely few, if any, Ruthenians to form a base - even more the challenge.

Lest anyone be concerned that Father Charles has undertaken to create his own little ecclesiastic domain (because, as we know, it wouldn't be the first time someone did so), my pathetic reading knowledge of Spanish has determined that Father has been granted faculties to serve in the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Puebla de Los Angeles, where he is denominated as an extra-diocesan senior priest. I can't find specific reference on the Archdiocesan site as to the Apostolado Catolico Bizantino Orientale Lumen, but it isn't unusual that a Latin jurisdiction fails to list Eastern temples within its geographic bounds, even those which are subject to it - as this one is.

It's also apparent from the reference to/inclusion of Father Charles and his mission on the blog, Mexican Catholics of the Byzantine Rite [catolicosmexicanosderitobizantino.blogspot.com] (which is pretty obviously Melkite in its focus) that his fellow Byzantines are aware of him and the mission. (By the way, some great photos on this blog! A very nice series of moments during Liturgy, although they are clearly shot at different times and places. At a quick glance, I'd say the majority were not taken at the Melkite temple in Mexico City.)


The chapel photo that you linked above is, in fact, the interior of Iglesia Catolica Bizantina Natividad de la Theotokos, Father Charles' mission, as best I can deduce.

Here is a shot of the exterior [2.bp.blogspot.com] and an apparently older photo of the interior [3.bp.blogspot.com]. It is located in Puebla at Av. 11 Sur Esquina con Vicente Guerrero Col. Mayorazgo. As regards its status, it's ritually Byzantine, canonically Latin - subject to the Latin Ordinary of Puebla de Los Angeles, since none of the Ruthenian Eparchies presently have canonical jurisdiction outside the territorial boundaries of the US.

The Byzantine Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh has now joined the ranks of Eastern and Oriental Catholic Churches sui iuris which are faced with having a presence in what is - to it - the diaspora.

Many years,

Neil

And, should anyone be planning a visit, the mission now has an entry in our directory, complete with map

The entry is here

Many years,

Neil

Neil,

Thank you for the clarification about the mission chapel and the parish church being one and the same. I was under the initial impression that these were two separate churches.

I first learned of the mission two years ago when a friend of mine was taking a Spanish immersion pastoral experience in Puebla and discovered the chapel. In fact, he sent me pictures of his serving at a Divine Liturgy.

Thanks also for the "Mexican Catholics of the Byzantine Rite" blogsite. What a nice surprise to know such a blog exists. I had been very curious about that lone Melkite Catholic parish in Mexico and it's nice to finally see some photos of it.

I'll be in Mexico in early November visiting family. I am not sure I'll be able to go to Puebla or D.F. and visit these parishes though.

Shlomo Iconodule,

Please contact Fr. (Abuna) Nadim, pastor of St. Sharbel Maronite Church here in Las Vegas at: 10325 Rancho Destino Road Las Vegas Nevada 89183 Phone: (702) 616-6902 Fax: (702) 616-4032. He is in contact with the Maronite Eparch of Mexico, and can help you the best that I can suggest.

Fush BaShlomo,
Yuhannon

It would be nice if we could send them some icons , just like these people :
http://www.stgeorgepantry.org/iconbridges.html

GC,

The pleasure is mine. In case it isn't obvious, I love the challenge of the opportunity to unravel this kind of thing - it helps to be a tad obsessive-compulsive

And, if you liked that blog, you will also probably enjoy IGREJAS ORIENTAIS [igrejasorientais.blogspot.com], which appears to offer info on the Melkite, Maronite, Eastern Orthodox (Antiochian, I believe), Coptic Orthodox, and Syriac Orthodox communities in Mexico. I believe that the principal contributor to it may be one of the main contributors to the Melkite blogsite.

Many years,

Neil

Iconodule,

I have little doubt that any such contributions would be very welcome. As regards the Byzantine chapel/church, they appear to have done very well. The photos certainly suggest that someone has devoted some serious time and energy to the interior decor and that, whomever it was, had some talent at iconography. It's a bit more difficult from the photos to assess the interior of Parroquia de Porta Coeli-Santuario del Senor del Veneno, the Melkite cathedral and church. However, I may be able to obtain some better photos through a priest-friend.

I don't know for certain, but suspect that the Melkites may be somewhat restricted insofar as the extent to which they are able to (or would) make permanent modifications to their temple. The reason being that the temple itself is a place of great veneration, dating back to its Latin history.

The church was provided to the Melkites for use at the time that the Eparchy of Nuestra Senora del Paraiso en Mexico (Our Lady of Paradise in Mexico) was erected back in 1988. After the repose of Bishop Boutros (Rai), of blessed memory, in the early 90s, Father Archimandrite and Patriarchal Exarch Antoine (Mouhanna), also of blessed memory, served as Patriarchal Administrator until his own repose. Two other priests, both Mexicans of Arab descent, had earlier been ordained as Basilian Salvatorian hieromonks to serve in the Eparchy, but had themselves reposed untimely.

There was a period during which the parish was unserved and there was a very real concern that, if something were not done to revive the vacant See and avoid its canonical suppression by Rome, the Archdiocese of Mexico City might seek to reclaim the temple - because of its prominence. With the appointment of Father Archimandrite and Patriarchal Exarch Gabriel (Ghannoum), BSO, that has been averted - albeit no Eparch has yet been approved for the vacant seat.

The Parroquia de Porta Coeli (Parish of the Gate of Heaven) was a Dominican church noted for a 17th century Crucifix on which hung an almost life-size statue of Christ. According to the history of the church, it was the custom of a pious priest to pray before it daily and kiss the feet of the crucified Lord after concluding his prayers. A virulently anti-Catholic individual, who had observed this practice, reportedly daubed the feet with a poisonous liquid, intending to kill the priest. When the priest next visited and finished praying, he approached the Crucifix only to see the Christ figure change from a flesh color to one of jet black. Among those present at the time was the would-be killer, who was overcome and immediately confessed what he had done.

The miracle quickly became known and the Crucified Lord shortly became popularly known as Senor del Veneno, the Lord of the Poison. The church became a place of pilgrimage and continues to be so (thus its other name, Santuario del Senor del Veneno, Shrine of Our Lord of the Poison), although I believe the Crucifix itself is now enshrined in a side chapel of the Metropolitan Cathedral.

There is at least one photo of the Crucifix on the blogsite that I referenced a couple posts back.

Many years,

Neil

I emailed Father Brown about his parish and he told me that 30-45 attend the Divine Liturgy on Sundays.They get up to 80 people during Christmas and easter.

Iconodule,

Thanks for the update. It's great to know that the parish is doing well. It would be a wonderful thing to see a pastoral visit made to it by one of the Ruthenian hierarchs.

Many years,

Neil

The blog in question is Brazilian, from a young Antiochian Orthodox Lector of Campinas - São Paulo, who wants to be a priest.