XXIII General Synod of the Polish National Catholic Church

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Since occasional mention has been made here of the Polish National Catholic Church, I add this announcement. If it does not belong in this topic or on this forum, I apologize.

The XXIII General Synod of the Polish National Catholic Church will be held from Monday, October 4th to Friday, October 8th, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 5685 Falls Ave., Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. The XXIII General Synod is being hosted by the Canadian Diocese of the Polish National Catholic Church.

The Synod registration fee is C$750. Hotel reservations may be made directly with the hotel by calling 1-800-519-9911. Guests should request the special convention rate for the Polish National Catholic Church which is separate from the Synod registration fee.

Synod Registration will take place Sunday, October 3rd from 5-9pm and Monday, October 4th from 8am to noon. Opening Holy Mass will take place on Monday, October 4th at 1pm. Synod banquets will be held on Monday and Thursday evening. Dining vouchers will be provided to cover Tuesday and Wednesday evening. The Synod will close with lunch on Friday, October 8th.

Elections will be held for the Office of the Prime Bishop of the Polish National Catholic Church. Two candidates for the Office of Bishop will also be elected.

Additional information may also be obtained from the Pre-Synod Committee, Holy Trinity Parish, 880 Barton Street East, Hamilton, Ontario, L8L 3B7, Canada. Telephone the Parish at 905-549-0470 or contact Mr. Anthony Jasinski at 416-543-8910 or by E-mail.
 
Shouldn’t such a discussion include minor details like the canonical status of this organization?

Last I heard, the PNCC is a schismatic church that exists in defiance of the papacy. Not to be confused with the Catholic Church in the nation of Poland that has full canonical standing with Rome. Still true?
 
My understanding of the Polish National Catholic Church is that it is a spin-off of the so-called “Old Catholics” who bolted Rome after the First Vatican Council following upon the formal definition of the doctrine of papal infallibility. These were Catholics who simply could not bring themselves to believe in the doctrine, were, in fact, scandalized by it, and lost faith in the papacy, altogether.

Where the Polish came into things, however, I cannot say. On that I am unclear. My sense, however, is that it was a matter of Polish American Catholics wanting their own liturgy in the vernacular, and then breaking with Rome to join the Old Catholics for the sake of independence. I may be wrong about that, however.

Time to hit “Wikipedia”!
 
Yes, Bishop Hodur was an early leader and they “bolted” not because they wanted to be independent, but because they felt they were going to be culturally smothered by the RC Church of their day.

They regard Baptism and Confirmation as one Sacrament and Sacred Scripture as the seventh Sacrament. Their priests are married prior to ordination, as in the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

Their sacraments are perfectly valid and there is at least one PNCC parish I’ve heard of that came into union with Rome up here some time ago and in the time of Pope John Paul II.

Other items of interest include their celebration of Mother’s Day as the “Festival of the Christian Family” and they include in their calendar Peter Waldo, Jerome Savonarola and Jan Hus.

Otherwise, they are like any other Latin Catholic community save for the Pope.

There is an intercommunion agreement between them and the RC Church, I believe.

Alex
 
You are both correct - which is why I put this under “Non-Catholic Religions”. However,
it is of interest to us as Roman Catholics because:

1.) There has been a Polish National Catholic-Roman Catholic Dialogue in the United
States since 1984. Official reports of these talks are issued by and located on the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Office of Media Relations website. OUR SUNDAY
VISITOR has published two paperbacks on these discussions as JOURNEYING
TOGETHER IN CHRIST (1990) and JOURNEYING TOGETHER IN CHRIST - THE
JOURNEY CONTINUES (2003). Agreements have been reached on some issues,
but other religious and theological concerns remain. Nevertheless, the talks continue
on an occasional basis.

2.) In view of this progress, concrete steps have been taken. In response to an inquiry from the Archbishop of Baltimore, His Excellency William Keeler, then President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, His Eminence Edward Cardinal Cassidy, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, stated in 1993 that members of the Polish National Catholic Church in the United States and Canada may receive the sacraments of Penance, Holy Communion and Anointing of the Sick from Roman Catholic priests if they ask for them on their own, are properly disposed and not otherwise excluded from the sacraments in line with the provisions of canon 844 �3 of The Code of Canon Law. This was followed in 1996 by a letter by Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb, the Chairman of the Bishops’ Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, to the bishops of the United States spelling out in more detail the conditions under which Polish National Catholics may receive the aforementioned sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. In 1998 the Polish National Catholic Church issued Guidelines for the Reception by Polish National Catholics of Sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. Canon 844 �2 of The Code of Canon Law also specifies conditions under which Roman Catholics may receive the sacraments in the Polish National Catholic Church. These provisions are frequently printed in the Roman Catholic Sunday Mass missalettes.
 
I became aware of this distinction only when I once mentioned to my parish priest that my inlaws were going to what they refer to as the “Polish church” (Our lady of the Bright Mount, West Adams St., L.A. in link above) for blessing of Easter baskets. He was concerned because he interpreted that to mean that they might be going to a PNCC church. It turned out that this was otherwise, and that the parish operates as part of the Archdiocese of L.A., but otherwise everything (signs on the restrooms) is in Polish, and the experience is very much like going to mass in Poland, to include, in the eucharistic prayer, the priest remembered the Pope, Roger (Mahony) our Bishop AND the Prymas (Poliski) Jozef (then Glemp).

By the way, if you ever do visit that parish for blessing of Easter baskets, do stay after for paczki (polish doughnuts). They might cause you to re-think your attitudes towards doughnuts after mass!
 
My grandmother and mother were Polish, may our Lord bless you. You seem to have struggles with the Church, and may you find your home. I think our Mother desired a XXX church,……don’t you think? 🙂
 
Wildkit said:
…You seem to have struggles with the Church, and may you find your home. I think our Mother desired a XXX church,……don’t you think? 🙂
Click to expand...
What do you mean by “XXX” church (triple-extra large, I hope)? 🙂
 
thomon16 said:
In 1998 the Polish National Catholic Church issued Guidelines for the Reception by Polish National Catholics of Sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. Canon 844 �2 of The Code of Canon Law also specifies conditions under which Roman Catholics may receive the sacraments in the Polish National Catholic Church.
Click to expand...
Yep, the PNCC is officially non-Catholic. But limited sharing of the sacraments is permitted without getting advance permission.
forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=52570&highlight=polish

So the PNCC seems to a status closer to the Catholic Church that is not shared by other non-Catholic Christian churches.
 
The PNCC is “Catholic” but not “Roman Catholic” or in union with Rome. Everything about it, save for a few things, is RC.

Our PNCC cathedral here even has a sign on the door indicating how Catholic they are (so does a very high Anglo-Catholic Church).

So for them “Catholic” is “all but the Pope.” Hopefully, they will be fully reconciled with Rome in the near future.

Buffalo has a great Polish Catholic community with a number of city churches built by the Poles (and their Polish Market downtown is wonderful too!) 🙂

On Holy Thursday, they organize an evening procession to seven of these Churches built by their ancestors . . . very beautiful.

Alex
 
thetimes-tribune.com/news/regional-pncc-head-elected-church-s-seventh-prime-bishop-1.1043971

Regional PNCC head elected church’s seventh prime bishop
BY LAURA LEGERE (STAFF WRITER)
Published: October 6, 2010

Bishop Anthony Mikovsky, the leader of the Scranton-based Central Diocese of the Polish National Catholic Church, was elected on Tuesday to the denomination’s highest post.

The New Jersey-native, who has spent his 13-year priesthood serving in the city, was elected prime bishop during the 23rd General Synod in Niagara Falls, Ontario, by a two-thirds majority of the ordained and lay delegates, including the prime bishop-elect’s father.

Bishop Mikovsky has been bishop of the Central Diocese and pastor of St. Stanislaus Cathedral since 2006. Before becoming bishop, he served as the assistant pastor at St. Stanislaus, the mother church of the denomination, beginning in 1997.

For his new post, he will move less than two blocks from the East Locust Street cathedral to the seat of the Polish National Catholic Church on Pittston Avenue.

“I’m overwhelmed,” he said by phone Tuesday, not long after the vote. “When people put trust in you to lead them in God’s field, and in going forward to build up the church, it’s a very humbling experience.”

The Rev. Jason Soltysiak, assistant pastor at St. Stanislaus, learned the news of the vote on Tuesday from “about 150 text messages” from church members, but he spread the word in the traditional way - by ringing the cathedral bells.

“That’s, I guess, our version of the white smoke,” he said, referring to the signal that indicates the selection of a new pope in the Roman Catholic church.

Current Prime Bishop Robert M. Nemkovich must retire from the position because of age limits set by church law. He was elected in 2002.

Two other bishops, the Right Revs. Sylvester T. Bigaj, of the Canadian Diocese, and John E. Mack, auxiliary of the Buffalo Pittsburgh Diocese, also accepted nominations for the prime bishop position before the voting on Tuesday.

A successor for Bishop Mikovsky as head of the Central Diocese will be selected after the synod closes on Friday. The new prime bishop will assume his role at the end of the week, but he will be formally installed during a ceremony in Scranton this fall.

In addition, Very Rev. Paul Sobiechowski of St. Joseph’s Parish in Davie, Florida, was elected candidate to the Office of Bishop on the first ballot.
 
JHow said:
I became aware of this distinction only when I once mentioned to my parish priest that my inlaws were going to what they refer to as the “Polish church” (Our lady of the Bright Mount, West Adams St., L.A. in link above) for blessing of Easter baskets. He was concerned because he interpreted that to mean that they might be going to a PNCC church. It turned out that this was otherwise, and that the parish operates as part of the Archdiocese of L.A., but otherwise everything (signs on the restrooms) is in Polish, and the experience is very much like going to mass in Poland, to include, in the eucharistic prayer, the priest remembered the Pope, Roger (Mahony) our Bishop AND the Prymas (Poliski) Jozef (then Glemp).

By the way, if you ever do visit that parish for blessing of Easter baskets, do stay after for paczki (polish doughnuts). They might cause you to re-think your attitudes towards doughnuts after mass!
Click to expand...
Oh my, you dont know how right you are!! I grew up in a Polish Catholic neighborhood of Detroit, MI & to this day, I still crave paczki for Fat Tuesday. I have actually looked into making them but they are too labor intensive for my lazy cooking skills. We keep saying that one day, one day we will be back home for Lent! We were stationed in MI for awhile and gained lbs every Lent lol.
I am not Polish but married a Pole, we made a habit of celebrating Wigilia (spelling is wrong Im sure) on Christmas Eve with our kids. I have a great love for our Polish brethren due to my formative years. I 1st started exploring the Church because of the examples I had in my neighborhood.
 
manualman said:
Shouldn’t such a discussion include minor details like the canonical status of this organization?

Last I heard, the PNCC is a schismatic church that exists in defiance of the papacy. Not to be confused with the Catholic Church in the nation of Poland that has full canonical standing with Rome. Still true?
Click to expand...
But as has been pointed out there is limited intercommunion with the RCC. In fact, as I recall the missal notes they and the Orthodox can receive communion at an RC Church. This was thanks largely to the efforts of Pope JPII.

We used to have a priest that posted here from the PNCC. I could not find his blog (appeared shut down). He was seemed rather discontented with them (politics anyway). But when I searched a priest came up in the Episcopal Church with the same name. I would hope it is not the same guy. It would be hard to be critical of the PNCC and then join the TEC.
 
More information on the new Prime Bishop elect of the Polish National Catholic Church.

Rt. Rev. Anthony Mikovsky currently holds the rank of Pastor of St. Stanislaus Cathedral and Bishop Ordinary of the Central Diocese of the PNCC. Bishop Anthony graduated from the University of Rochester with a BA in Mathematics and Physics in 1988, received his Masters Degree in Mathematics in 1995 and received his Doctorate in Mathematics in 1997 both from the esteemed University of Pennsylvania. He attended Savonarola Theological Seminary of the PNCC and was ordained to the Holy Priesthood in April of 1997. He served as Assistant Pastor of St. Stanislaus and served on a multitude of commissions, including: National Liturgical, PNCC-RC Dialogue, Church Doctrine, National History and Archives, Diocesan History and Archives, Diocesan Sacred Vocations, Diocesan School of Christian Living, was the Ecumenical Officer of the PNCC as well as the Central Diocese, taught at Savonarola Theological Seminary, and wrote a number of papers for the betterment and use of the PNCC. He was elected Bishop at the 21st General Synod of the PNCC in October of 2006, assigned as Bishop of the Central Diocese, and was Consecrated on November 30, 2006, where he began his journey as the Pastor of St. Stanislaus Cathedral. He was elected Prime Bishop of the PNCC at the XXIII General Synod in Niagara Falls, ON, Canada, in October of 2010 and will be formally installed during a ceremony in Scranton this Fall.
 
Scranton Bishop to be installed as new Prime Bishop this Sunday

The installation ceremony starts at 3 p.m. Sunday at Saint Stanislaus in south Scranton and is open to the public. Since the new Prime Bishop has always been a Polish National Catholic, the local Roman Catholic diocese may send official representatives. In the past, if a newly consecrated bishop was a former Roman Catholic clergyman, the Diocese of Scranton did not send any observers to the ceremony.

wnep.com/wnep-scr-polish-natl-catholic-church-bishop-mikovsky,0,7480863.story
 
The PNCC doesn’t canonize saints, but they have put Savonarola, Peter Waldo and John Hus in their calendar . . .

One of their parishes up here came into union with Rome some years ago, married priests and all. They are really hospitable to Catholics visiting their Cathedral here (don’t know if they are as hospitable as the Mormons though 😉 )

Alex
 
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