In the mountainous region of Carpatho-Rus, known also as Carpatho-Ruthenia, situated between present day Slovakia and Ukraine, there is a group of Eastern Christians. Evangelized in the ninth century by those equals-to-the-apostles, Saints Cyril and Methodius, this group received the Holy Gospel and Sacred Mysteries (Sacraments) from the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. Although Cyril and his brother, Methodius, were Greek (from Thessalonika), they promoted the use of the ancient Slavonic language in worship. This language, later known as Old Church Slavonic, would become the liturgical language of the Carpatho-Rusyns and all Slavonic Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. In time, Cyril and Methodius brought their liturgical books to Rome to receive the blessings of Pope Hadrian, and he in turn blessed their mission of establishing the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic religion in the Carpathian mountains of Central Europe.
Over time, a rift grew between East and West; and, in 1054, estrangement was realized with the Great Schism of Constantinople and Rome. Being an Eastern Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns were eventually drawn into by this unfortunate break and became members of the Orthodox Church. This ecclesia sui iuris (self-governing church) of Mukachevo-Uzhorod in time sought reunion with the Church of Rome, re-establishing its Catholic faith while maintaining the spirituality, ceremonies, and discipline of the Eastern Church. On April 24, 1646, in Saint George Castle Garden in Uzhorod, a number of priests and faithful proclaimed vocally their reunion with the Catholic Church, re-establishing the unity that Christ so ardently prayed for. From this nucleus would grow a reborn church which the Empress Maria Theresa of Austro-Hungary would later call "The Greek Catholic Church" -- "Greek" in its ritual, theology and art; "Catholic" in union with the Bishop of Rome. In time, the reunion would spread to other areas of Europe, and new eparchies (dioceses) would be created in such places as Presov (Slovakia), Krizevci (Croatia), Hajdudorog and Miskolc (Hungary).
In the 1870’s, the first wave of Carpatho-Rusyn immigration brought significant numbers of Greek Catholics to the United States of America. The first parish they founded on these shores was Saint Michael's in Shannandoa, PA followed by an establishment in Freeland, PA. Others were established in places like Wilkes-barre and Kingston, PA, and in Jersey City and Passaic, NJ. Unfortunately, the ignorance of most American Catholics of the Latin Church regarding Greek Catholic practices promised by Rome at Uzhorod -- such as a married priesthood and other privileges and traditions -- led the immigrant church into conflict with the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Minneapolis/St. Paul, John Ireland, which prompted one Greek Catholic priest, Father Alexis Toth, to take his small flock out of union with Rome and seek union with the Russian Orthodox Church, creating the nucleous of what would become known as the Orthodox Church of America. To this day, the OCA venerates Father Toth as the father of Orthodoxy in America.
But despite such idealogical struggles, the Greek Catholic Church in America continued to grow, and there was seen a growing need for hierarchial leadership. In 1905, Father Andrew Hodobay was sent by Rome as Apostolic Visitor to care for the immigrant church; but, being a Hungarian, he was not the proper leader for a predominantly Slavic church. Rome, then, in turn, sent two men to care for what would become two separate administrations for the American Greek Catholics: Father Peter Poniatishyn for the Ukrainians, and Father Gabriel Martyak for the Carpatho-Rusyns (Ruthenians). By this time parishes were springing up all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio and the Northeast. In 1924 Rome raised the status of the American Greek Catholic Ruthenian community to that of an Exarchate (Apostolic Vicariate) with Bishop Basil Takach as its first exarch, establishing Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Pittsburgh’s Homestead/Munhall neighborhood as its seat. Meanwhile, Greek Catholic immigration continued from Carpathia as well as Hungary and Croatia. Not only were parishes and priests being established and assigned, but the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great received a call from Bishop Takach to minister to the immigrant church, and they eventually settled in Uniontown, PA, after a number of temporary locations.
The storm that had erupted over a married priesthood back in the 1890’s would continue to erupt sporadically during this period of growth, exasperated by a Vatican proclamation, Ea Semper, issued in 1905, which severely mitigated the rights of Greek Catholics in the United States; and, certain members of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in America sought both to prohibit the immigration of married Greek Catholic priests and to forbid their ordination in North America. Appeals to Rome from the American Greek Catholic community were futile; and, In 1929, another proclamation, Cum Data Fuerit, was issued by Pope Pius XI, forbidding the service of married Greek Catholic priests in the United States, requiring them to return to Europe. This decree became the rallying cry for another segment of American Greek Catholics, dedicated to safeguarding the Eastern heritage of their church, to once again fall into schism. A pastor in Bridgeport, CT, Father Orestes Chornock, was elected Bishop of a new Independent Greek Catholic Church, and was consecrated a bishop by the Patriarch of Constantinople, eventually setting his See in Johnstown, PA. This would, in time, be known as The American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Diocese. Despite this sad turn of events, the American Greek Catholics in union with Rome continued to grow and establish new parishes; and, in 1950, Saints Cyril and Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary was established by the second Bishop of Pittsburgh, Daniel Ivancho, for the spiritual and educational formation of a native clergy.
As the decades of the twentieth century progressed, missionary efforts led to the establishment of parishes in California, Florida and even in Alaska. The term "Greek Catholic" would change to "Byzantine Catholic," stressing that the church was not Hellenic (Greek) in nationality, and that the spirituality and liturgical services were of the Byzantine Rite; also, English, now the vernacular, became the dominant liturgical language. The church was then honored in its growth and permanence by the elevation of Pittsburgh as an Eparchy (diocese) in 1963, with Bishop Nicholas T. Elko as first Eparch, after serving as Exarch since 1955. In addition, the East Coast was given their own Eparchy, Passaic, NJ, with Bishop Stephen J. Kocisko as first Eparch, and with the church of Saint Michael the Archangel designated as the Cathedral. The Eparchy of Passaic would encompass the entire eastern sea coast of the United States, from Maine to Florida. In 1968, Bishop Stephen Kocisko was transferred to the Eparchy of Pittsburgh, and subsequently Bishop Michael Dudick was consecrated and enthroned as the second Eparch of Passaic. The crowning achievement of this near century of ecclesiastical growth would be the creation, in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, of a Metropolian Church ecclesia sui uris based in Pittsburgh. This Metropolia would have as its suffragan sees the Eparchy of Passaic (covering the East) and the newly-created Eparchy of Parma, OH, (in the Midwest) governed by Bishop Emil Mihalik as its first eparch. The church of Saint John the Baptist in Parma, OH, would serve as Cathedral for the new eparchy. Bishop Mihalik endeavored to establish more churches in the outer-most parts of his eparchy in places such as Las Vegas, NV, Albuquerque, NM, and Denver, CO. The growth of these Western missions and churches was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II through the erection of a fourth jurisdiction for Byzantine Catholics: the Eparchy of Van Nuys, CA; and, through the selection of Bishop Thomas V. Dolinay (then Auxiliary Eparch of Passaic) as its first eparch. He shepherded the eparchy from his seat at Holy Protection of the Mother of God Cathedral in Van Nuys until he was chosen, in 1991, to be Metropolitan of Pittsburgh, succeeding the ailing former shepherd, Archbishop Stephen J. Kocisko. Consequently, the auxiliary eparch of Passaic, Bishop George Kuzma, was enthroned as the second Eparch of Van Nuys, and, in 1997, moved his seat of administration to Saint Stephen Protomartyr Pro-Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ. In 1996, Bishop Michael J. Dudick retired after a long and pastorally beneficial ministry in the Eparchy of Passaic. Upon his retirement, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Andrew Pataki (formerly Eparch of Parma), as the third Eparch of Passaic.
The spiritual life of the Byzantine Catholic Church was and continues to grow with assistance not only from the Basilians of Uniontown, but also from Monasteries for men and women, such as The Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch, Matawan, NJ, as well as from Holy Dormition Franciscan Monastery, Sybertsville, PA.
The Byzantine Catholic Church is an Eastern Church in union with Rome; Carpatho-Rusyn in background and flavor, but indeed an American Eastern Church celebrating the Gospel in words, symbols, and action. We are unique in our mystical theology, blending the colors of our many ikons with the congregational acapella chants; raising up our hands and our fragrant incense in prayer and inviting you to come and see who we are and what we are all about as part of the Eastern half of the Universal Church.
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Historiebloggen: The Catholic Eastern Churches
The split between the Latin and Byzantine churches, which had been symbolized by the mutual excommunications of Patriarch Michael Cerularius and Cardinal Ugo da Silva Candida in 1054, became definitive in the minds of the common people in the east after the Crusades and the sacking of Constantinople by the Latins in 1204. Attempts at reunion took place at the Second Council of Lyons in 1274 and at the Council of Ferrara-Florence in 1438-1439, but neither was successful.
Subsequently, a Roman Catholic theology of the Church continued to develop which vigorously emphasized the necessity of the direct jurisdiction of the Pope over all the local churches. This implied that churches not under the Pope’s jurisdiction could be considered objects of missionary activity for the purpose of bringing them into communion with the Catholic Church. At the same time, the notion of “rite” developed, according to which groups of eastern Christians who came into union with Rome would be absorbed into the single Church, but allowed to maintain their own liturgical tradition and canonical discipline.
This missionary activity, which was sometimes carried out with the support of Catholic governments of countries with Orthodox minorities, was directed towards all the eastern churches. Eventually segments of virtually all of these churches came into union with Rome. It should be recognized, however, that not all these unions were the result of the activity of Catholic missionaries. The Bulgarian Byzantine Catholic Church, for example, was the direct result of a spontaneous movement of Orthodox towards Rome. And the Maronites in Lebanon claim never to have been out of communion with the Roman Church.
Inevitably, these unions resulted in a process of latinization, or the adoption of certain practices and attitudes proper to the Latin Church, to a certain degree, depending on the circumstances of the group. As a result, these churches sometimes lost contact with their spiritual roots. The monastic tradition, so central to Orthodox spirituality, died out in most of the Eastern Catholic churches, although religious life often continued in the form of congregations modeled on Latin apostolic communities. Since the Second Vatican Council, efforts have been made to reverse this process.
All of these churches come under the jurisdiction of the Pope through the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, one of the offices of the Roman Curia. It was created in 1862 as part of the Propaganda Fide (which oversaw the church’s missionary activity), and was made an autonomous Congregation by Benedict XV in 1917. It has the same role with regard to bishops, clergy, religious, and the faithful in the Eastern Catholic churches that other offices of the Curia have in relation to the Latin church.
The Oriental Congregation also oversees the prestigious Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, which is under the direction of the Jesuits and has one of the best libraries for eastern Christian studies in the world.
It should be mentioned that in the past the Eastern Catholic churches were often referred to as “Uniate” churches. Since the term is now considered derogatory, it is no longer used.
Most Orthodox view these churches as an obstacle in the way of reconciliation between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. They feel that their very existence constitutes a denial by Catholics of the ecclesial reality of the Orthodox Church, and that these unions grew from efforts to split local Orthodox communities. They tend to consider Eastern Catholics either as Orthodox whose presence in the Catholic Church is an abnormal situation brought about by coercive measures, or even as Roman Catholics pretending to be Orthodox for the purpose of proselytism.
One of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, dealt with the Eastern Catholic churches. It affirmed their equality with the Latin church and called upon Eastern Catholics to rediscover their authentic traditions. It also affirmed that Eastern Catholics have a special vocation to foster ecumenical relations with the Orthodox.
The ecclesial life of the Eastern Catholic churches is governed in accordance with the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, which was promulgated by Pope John Paul II on October 18, 1990, and had the force of law as of October 1, 1991. According to the new Eastern Code, the Eastern Catholic churches fall into four categories: (1) Patriarchal (the Chaldean, Armenian, Coptic, Syrian, Maronite, and Melkite churches), (2) Major Archepiscopal (Ukrainian, Syro-Malabar, Romanian and Syro-Malankara churches), (3) Metropolitan sui iuris (the Ethiopian, American Ruthenian, Hungarian, Eritrean and Slovak churches), and (4) other churches sui iuris (Bulgarian, Greek, Italo-Albanian, Russian, Belarusan, and Albanian churches, as well as the Ruthennian eparchy of Mukačevo and apostolic exarchate in Prague, and the three Greek Catholic jurisdictions in former Yugoslavia).
Each Eastern Catholic patriarchal church has the right to choose its own Patriarch. He is elected by the Synod of Bishops and is immediately proclaimed and enthroned. He subsequently requests ecclesiastical communion from the Pope. The synods of patriarchal churches also elect bishops for dioceses within the patriarchal territory from a list of candidates that have been approved by the Holy See. If the one elected has not been previously approved, he must obtain the consent of the Pope before ordination as bishop. A Major Archbishop is elected in the same manner as a Patriarch, but his election must be confirmed by the Roman Pontiff before he can be enthroned. Metropolitans are named by the Pope on the basis of a list of at least three candidates submitted by the church’ council of bishops.
A number of technical terms appear in this section. The term “eparchy” is the word used for “diocese” in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. The two terms are used here interchangeably. An “Apostolic Exarchate” is the eastern equivalent of an Apostolic Vicariate in the Latin Church. It is a group of Eastern Catholic faithful that, because of special circumstances, has not been fully established as an eparchy. It is located in an area outside the territory of an Eastern Catholic Patriarch or Major Archbishop, and is headed by an Exarch (bishop). An “Ordinariate” is an ecclesiastical structure established for small groups of Eastern Catholic faithful, perhaps of more than one church sui iuris, in an area where they do not have a hierarchy of their own. In these cases the Ordinary will often be the bishop of a local Latin diocese. An “Apostolic Administration” is similar to an Ordinariate, but in this case the Apostolic Administrator governs vicariously in the Pope’s name.
In the following presentation, the Eastern Catholic churches are grouped according to their provenance. It begins with those that have no direct non-Catholic counterpart, and then considers the Eastern Catholic churches that correspond to the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox, and, finally, the Orthodox churches.
The Congregation for the Oriental Churches Prefect: Archbishop Leonardo Sandri (born 1943, appointed 2007)
Secretary: Archbishop Cyril Vasil’, SJ
Via della Conciliazione, 34
00120 Vatican City State
Read more on www.Historiebloggen.nu
Subsequently, a Roman Catholic theology of the Church continued to develop which vigorously emphasized the necessity of the direct jurisdiction of the Pope over all the local churches. This implied that churches not under the Pope’s jurisdiction could be considered objects of missionary activity for the purpose of bringing them into communion with the Catholic Church. At the same time, the notion of “rite” developed, according to which groups of eastern Christians who came into union with Rome would be absorbed into the single Church, but allowed to maintain their own liturgical tradition and canonical discipline.
This missionary activity, which was sometimes carried out with the support of Catholic governments of countries with Orthodox minorities, was directed towards all the eastern churches. Eventually segments of virtually all of these churches came into union with Rome. It should be recognized, however, that not all these unions were the result of the activity of Catholic missionaries. The Bulgarian Byzantine Catholic Church, for example, was the direct result of a spontaneous movement of Orthodox towards Rome. And the Maronites in Lebanon claim never to have been out of communion with the Roman Church.
Inevitably, these unions resulted in a process of latinization, or the adoption of certain practices and attitudes proper to the Latin Church, to a certain degree, depending on the circumstances of the group. As a result, these churches sometimes lost contact with their spiritual roots. The monastic tradition, so central to Orthodox spirituality, died out in most of the Eastern Catholic churches, although religious life often continued in the form of congregations modeled on Latin apostolic communities. Since the Second Vatican Council, efforts have been made to reverse this process.
All of these churches come under the jurisdiction of the Pope through the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, one of the offices of the Roman Curia. It was created in 1862 as part of the Propaganda Fide (which oversaw the church’s missionary activity), and was made an autonomous Congregation by Benedict XV in 1917. It has the same role with regard to bishops, clergy, religious, and the faithful in the Eastern Catholic churches that other offices of the Curia have in relation to the Latin church.
The Oriental Congregation also oversees the prestigious Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, which is under the direction of the Jesuits and has one of the best libraries for eastern Christian studies in the world.
It should be mentioned that in the past the Eastern Catholic churches were often referred to as “Uniate” churches. Since the term is now considered derogatory, it is no longer used.
Most Orthodox view these churches as an obstacle in the way of reconciliation between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. They feel that their very existence constitutes a denial by Catholics of the ecclesial reality of the Orthodox Church, and that these unions grew from efforts to split local Orthodox communities. They tend to consider Eastern Catholics either as Orthodox whose presence in the Catholic Church is an abnormal situation brought about by coercive measures, or even as Roman Catholics pretending to be Orthodox for the purpose of proselytism.
One of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, dealt with the Eastern Catholic churches. It affirmed their equality with the Latin church and called upon Eastern Catholics to rediscover their authentic traditions. It also affirmed that Eastern Catholics have a special vocation to foster ecumenical relations with the Orthodox.
The ecclesial life of the Eastern Catholic churches is governed in accordance with the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, which was promulgated by Pope John Paul II on October 18, 1990, and had the force of law as of October 1, 1991. According to the new Eastern Code, the Eastern Catholic churches fall into four categories: (1) Patriarchal (the Chaldean, Armenian, Coptic, Syrian, Maronite, and Melkite churches), (2) Major Archepiscopal (Ukrainian, Syro-Malabar, Romanian and Syro-Malankara churches), (3) Metropolitan sui iuris (the Ethiopian, American Ruthenian, Hungarian, Eritrean and Slovak churches), and (4) other churches sui iuris (Bulgarian, Greek, Italo-Albanian, Russian, Belarusan, and Albanian churches, as well as the Ruthennian eparchy of Mukačevo and apostolic exarchate in Prague, and the three Greek Catholic jurisdictions in former Yugoslavia).
Each Eastern Catholic patriarchal church has the right to choose its own Patriarch. He is elected by the Synod of Bishops and is immediately proclaimed and enthroned. He subsequently requests ecclesiastical communion from the Pope. The synods of patriarchal churches also elect bishops for dioceses within the patriarchal territory from a list of candidates that have been approved by the Holy See. If the one elected has not been previously approved, he must obtain the consent of the Pope before ordination as bishop. A Major Archbishop is elected in the same manner as a Patriarch, but his election must be confirmed by the Roman Pontiff before he can be enthroned. Metropolitans are named by the Pope on the basis of a list of at least three candidates submitted by the church’ council of bishops.
A number of technical terms appear in this section. The term “eparchy” is the word used for “diocese” in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. The two terms are used here interchangeably. An “Apostolic Exarchate” is the eastern equivalent of an Apostolic Vicariate in the Latin Church. It is a group of Eastern Catholic faithful that, because of special circumstances, has not been fully established as an eparchy. It is located in an area outside the territory of an Eastern Catholic Patriarch or Major Archbishop, and is headed by an Exarch (bishop). An “Ordinariate” is an ecclesiastical structure established for small groups of Eastern Catholic faithful, perhaps of more than one church sui iuris, in an area where they do not have a hierarchy of their own. In these cases the Ordinary will often be the bishop of a local Latin diocese. An “Apostolic Administration” is similar to an Ordinariate, but in this case the Apostolic Administrator governs vicariously in the Pope’s name.
In the following presentation, the Eastern Catholic churches are grouped according to their provenance. It begins with those that have no direct non-Catholic counterpart, and then considers the Eastern Catholic churches that correspond to the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox, and, finally, the Orthodox churches.
The Congregation for the Oriental Churches Prefect: Archbishop Leonardo Sandri (born 1943, appointed 2007)
Secretary: Archbishop Cyril Vasil’, SJ
Via della Conciliazione, 34
00120 Vatican City State
Read more on www.Historiebloggen.nu
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