Old Catholic Church in Poland
The Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland - a Polish-Catholic legally operating in Poland, entered under 110 on 1 April 1996 to a register of churches and other religious associations in Poland run by the Ministry of Interior and Administration. The Superior of the Church is bishop-elect Waldemar Maj. In 2016, there were 535 believers in Poland.
| Old Catholic Church in Poland | |
|---|---|
| Polish: Kościół Starokatolicki w Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej | |
 | |
| Type | Independent Catholicism |
| Classification | Polish Catholicism |
| Orientation | Western Christianity |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Prime Bishop | Waldemar Maj |
| Language | Polish |
| Liturgy | Latin liturgical rites |
| Headquarters | Lodz, Poland |
| Origin | 1931 |
| Members | 535 (2016) |
| Official website | |
History
Polish Old Catholic Church
The Old Catholic Church in Poland is a continuation of the mission of the Polish Old Catholic Church, which was established in 1933 as a result of the split in the Polish diocese of the Polish Catholic Church.
The first bishop of the Polish Old Catholic Church was Wladyslaw Faron, who left the PNCC structure in 1931. In the interwar Poland, the Old Catholic Church operated as an informal union with the parish priest of Father Józef Kostorz from the Old Catholic Church in Germany. After World War II in Poland, the Old Catholic Church entered the ecclesial union with the Polish Old Catholic Churches: the Old Catholic Church of Mariavite and the mission diocese of the Polish National Catholic Church. However, in 1948 it broke up after Bishop Faron and a few priests joined the Roman Catholic Church. Bishop Zygmunt Szypold became the superior of the Polish Old Catholic Church. After his death, the authorities of the Polish People's Republic suspended the activities of the Church (1965), citing a lack of authority. The faithful of the Polish Old Catholic Church either went to other churches or practiced underground faith until the resumption of the official activity of the Church, made through the entry into the Register of Churches and Religious Unions in the Ministry of Interior and Administration by Fr. Bishop Wojciech Kolm in 1996. In Hamburg, despite the suspension of the Church's activity, father Klaudiusz Perendyk, who later joined the Orthodox Church. The consequence of the suspension of the activities of the Old Catholic Church was very acute, because the Church lost many sacred objects, which were often illegally acquired by the Catholic Church and Roman Catholic Church.
The Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland
In 1996, Father Wojciech Kolm community has made an entry under the name of Old Catholic Church in the Polish Register of churches and other religious organizations Ministry of Interior, and the decision of the Synod of the Church in 1999, he was elected bishop and he was consecrated bishop at the hands of the Superior of the Order of Mariavite in Germany - Nobert Udo Szuwart. His church activity was linked to a number of abuses, both religious and legal. His leadership of the Church practically ended in 2000, when he was sent to jail for a crime against the customs. It was not until 2006 that the church court removed him from office and excommunicated him.
Since 2000, the acting supervisor was Bishop Marek Kordzik, but in the register of churches and other religious figures as the head of the church from July 25, 2006, because it was necessary to his election to the National Synod in accordance with the requirements of the then-current church law.
In 2009 Bishop Marek Kordzik has reformed the administration of the Church and ordered pastoral matters. On Holy Thursday of the same year the parish of Sts. Padre Pio and the Christ the King, the Eternal High Priest in Chorzow - now in Bytom (from the transfer of the parish community from Grudziadz), and a month later erected parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Dzially Czarnowskie, operating at a retirement home. At the same time, the parish of the Church in Kamienna Góra was erected. In November 2011, there were also pastoral posts in Biala Wielka and Warsaw.
On the decision of the Church authorities, on Wednesday, 27 June 2012 in Czarnowskie Dzialy took place 4th Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland. During the vote, Bishop Marek Jan Kordzik (term 2012-2018) was re-elected by the Superior of the Old Catholic Church. During the discussion the current issues were discussed, and the direction of the development of the parish and missionary communities in the coming years was discussed.
In 2013 under the jurisdiction of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland has been accepted the parish of St. Stanislav, Marcin of Tours in Nowogrodek in Belarus, and in 2015 the Parish of Black Madonna of Czestochowa from Glasgow, Scotland, which on June 1, 2016 under the jurisdiction of the National Catholic Church in Poland, and on June 12, 2017 returned to the jurisdiction of the Old Catholic Church in Poland.
On August 15, 2016 the Old Catholic Church in Poland under the agreement with the Ecumenical Center for the Dialogue of Religions and Cultures started a pastoral ministry in the Church of Sts. Stanislaw Kostka in Aleksandrów Łódzki. On 18 September 2016 the clergy of the Church together with the bishops Marek Kordzik and Wojciech Kolm took part in the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the city of Aleksandrów Łódzki.
August 18, 2016 Archbishop Willian Dorea signed on behalf of the Old Catholic Apostolic Church in Brazil, an intercom with the Old Catholic Church in Poland. Both churches see the source of their apostolic succession with Bishop Jan Perkowski, who belonged to Bishop Wladyslaw Faron's political sympathizers, and joined him in the organization of the Polish Old Catholic Church. Bishop Marek Kordzik was the Primate of the Diocese of the Old Catholic Apostolic Church. In Brazil, Cameroon, Congo, Spain or Italy.
Bishop Marek Kordzik, Superior of the Old Catholic Church in Poland, died on December 10, 2016 in Lodz as a result of cardiovascular failure. By the time of the Synod of the Church in urgent matters, according to § 58 par. 2 The law of the Inner Church is decided jointly by the clergy, who ex officio form part of the council of the Church. On January 14, 2017 during the Extraordinary Synod of Lodz in the Republic of Poland, Rev. Arthur Wiecinski.
The teaching of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
The teaching of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland does not diverge from the faith and tradition of the Holy Universal and Apostolic Church. The highest church honors God in the one and only Holy Trinity. The Church honors the angels, the apostles, the martyrs and the saints, and among them in a special way the Virgin Mary. The Church recognizes the traditional 7 sacraments, according to the teachings of the Western Catholic Church. Holy Communion is given in two forms: the Body and Blood of the Lord. In the Old Catholic Church there is a traditional personal confession and the universal confession of her. The liturgy of the Church is in accordance with the principles and liturgical guidelines of the Roman Catholic Church, although in some parishes there is a tradition of celebrating the Mass. In a pre-baptismal rite, but always in Polish.
Celebrations and festivals of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
In liturgical activities, the Church uses the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church year, the Gregorian calendar. Celebrations and celebrations of the Church are celebrated in accordance with the tradition of Polish Catholicism, and the following holidays are celebrated only in the Old Catholic Church in Poland:
- 25 January - The patron saint of the Church of St. Paul the Apostle
- IV Easter Sunday - Good Shepherd's Day
- I Sunday after the Feast of Corpus Christi - Feast of Christ the High Priest
- I Sunday June - The Feast of the Founding of the Church
- I Sunday October - Feast of the Christian Family
- 11 November - Independence Day of the Homeland
- I Sunday after Christmas - the Feast of the Poor Shepherds.
Social and charitable activities
The Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland fulfills its statutory tasks by conducting extensive social and charitable actions in local communities. In the cathedral parish of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Lodz, thanks to the cooperation with the Ecumenical Good Shepherd Foundation, free legal and administrative advice is provided free of charge, as well as financial assistance, regardless of confessional status. The Lodz ministry is also involved in the historical reconstruction of the Iron Star Ore Collection Group in Lodz. In Bytom there is also a deacon's activity among the poorest families of the Upper Silesian agglomeration.
Bishops of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
Superiors of the Old Catholic Church over the years:
- bishop Wojciech Zdzisław Kolm (b. 1959)
- bishop Marek Jan Kordzik (1955-2016)
- archbishop Arthur Wiecinski (b. 1991)
- bishop Dariusz Majewski (b. 1969)
- fr. Waldemar Maj (b. 1975)
Currently, in the Church of the Old Catholic Church in Poland, the bishop's office holds:
- Bishop - Henryk Tymoteusz Marciniak (d. 2018)
Clergy
A priest of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland may be a man who completed the Seminary of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland and who has received the approval of church authorities and at least ordained a deacon. Clergy are also received from other Churches, where celibacy issues are an obstacle to their canonical work. A bishop in the Old Catholic Church in Poland is a priest elected by the Polish Synod. Priests do not have celibacy. In the Church, liturgical dresses similar to those in the Roman Catholic Church or in the case of the pre-Vatican II rite apply. The clergy of the church give religious services to everyone, regardless of their confession affiliation, i.e. the sacraments, to every faithful who recognizes the Catholic teaching of the sacraments, and the sacramentals to all Christians. The Bishop of the Church elected by the Synod of the Church to represent the Church outside the community is entitled to the title of Prime Bishop.
The Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland adopts the Old Catholic principle of the three-tier Apostolic Office, which consists of:
- deacon - a deacon in the Old Catholic Church can be a man who has the appropriate substantive and spiritual preparation for the ministry. Deacons perform such activities as: administering the sacraments: baptism of St. and Holy Communion, the deacon may also conduct a funeral, bless the faithful and marriages, as well as consecrate religious objects, have the right to preach.
- priests - the priest of the Old Catholic Church may be a man who is over 24 years old and the Seminary of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland, who has obtained the approval of the Church Council and has at least ordained a diaconate.
- bishops - a bishop in the Old Catholic Church may be a priest who has 5 years of pastoral work experience, completed 35 years of age and has a relevant theological and philosophical education and was: elected by the National Synod and consecrated by at least one validly consecrated bishop - a member of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland.
Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
The highest legislative authority in the Old Catholic Church is the Synod (it is made up of all the clergy and one secular representative of each parish), which manages the entire Church as well as its material goods, agencies and clergy. The synod is convened every 7 years (to the 5th National Synod every 6 years). In the inter-synodal period, limited executive and legislative power is exercised by the Council of the Old Catholic Church, consisting of the Head of the Church, Rector of the Seminary, Church Economist and Chancellor of the Church Curia.
- I Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
November 11-12, 1996, Jelenia Góra
The Synod adopted a report on the activity of the Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland in 1993-1996. It was confirmed the function of the head of the Church for father Wojciech Kolm.
- II Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
November 11–12, 2000, Łódź
The Synod adopted a report on the activities of the Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland in 1996-2000. The synod adopted the applicable Internal Law of the Old Catholic Church in Poland.
- III Extraordinary Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
January 14, 2017, Łódź
On December 10, 2016, Bishop Marek Kordzik, who represented the Church in the years 2006–2016, died. Pursuant to the Internal Law of the Old Catholic Church in Poland in force in the years 2000–2018 (§ 44 paragraph 2) in the event of the death of the Superior, the Synod is convened by the Vicar General of the Church, or the oldest bishop or clergyman of the Church, if the position of the Vicar General is not planted. The synod should be convened no later than three months after the death of the superior. On December 11, 2016, it was decided that the Synod would be held on January 14, 2017 to elect a new bishop. By the decision of the Synod, the judgment of the Church Court was annulled and Wojciech Zdzisław Kolm, the Head of the Old Catholic Church in Poland, was reinstated.
- IV Extraordinary Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
November 19, 2017, Pruszków
On November 19, 2017, church clergy gathered at the IV Extraordinary Synod. A new church statute was adopted, abolishing, among others celibacy by creating the General Notariat representing the Church before the State. During the meeting of the synod, Fr. bishop Wojciech Kolm resigned as the Superior who was accepted by the synod. In a secret ballot for this post, for a period of seven years, Fr. Dariusz Majewski. The date of episcopal ordination was also set for December 2, 2017 in Łódź.
- V Synod of Old Catholic Church in Poland
March 3, 2018, Gdańsk
I Session of the V Synod of Old Catholic Church in Poland
The synod of the church was held on March 3, 2018 in Gdansk. The meeting was opened by the Head of the Church, Bishop Dariusz Majewski. The chairman of the session was Fr. Artur Miłański. During the session a new church statute was adopted. The function of Church Leader was replaced by the office of the Supreme Bishop and the function of the Vicar General in the Old Catholic Church was abandoned, establishing the possibility for the Synod of the Church to elect the suffragan bishop - to secure apostolic succession. A Church Economist was also appointed, who replaced the current office of the Church Treasurer. Arrangements were also made regarding actions to return the property of the Old Catholic Church plundered in the People's Republic of Poland - both movable and immovable.
March 29, 2018, Kamienna Góra
II Session of the V Synod of Old Catholic Church in Poland
The Second Session of the V Synod took place on Holy Thursday, March 29, 2018, shortly after the end of the ceremony associated with the Paschal Triduum on that day. The synod adopted resolutions regarding amendments to the Church's Statute. Issues related to the further activity of the Church in Poland were also discussed.
14-16 December 2018, Písek u Jablunkova - Czech Republic
III Session of the V Synod of Old Catholic Church in Poland
The third and final session of the Polish Synod took place on December 14-16, 2018 at the Retreat House of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Czech Republic. Issues related to the further activity of the Church in Poland were discussed, proclaiming a resolution based on which it was stated that the Church was a direct continuator of the activity of the pre-war Old Catholic Church in Poland and the plan of inter-synodal activities in the years 2018-2024 was discussed. The Synod of the Church adopted a resolution regarding pedophilia in the Church, thus remaining an advocate of severe punishment of all abuses of minors by clergy of the Old Catholic Church. At the end of the Synod meeting, the clergy of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland, at the invitation of the local priest of the Evangelical parish, Fr. Jiří Kalety took part in an ecumenical service during which Bishop Dariusz Majewski gave a word to the faithful of the parish of the Evangelical Church of Augsburg Church in Písk with Jablunkov.
- VI Extraordinary Synod of the Old Catholic Church in Poland
June 16, 2019, Kamienna Góra
At the request of the Head of the Old Catholic Church in the Commonwealth, an Extraordinary Synod of the Church was convened. During its deliberations, a decision was taken to positively consider the application for incardination of the English community of the Old Catholic Church, which in 2006 chaired by Bishop Christopher Rogerson decided to disconnect from the mother church as a result of a scandal that shook the community in those years. A resolution was also adopted expressing the consent to grant episcopal ordination to the elect of the English community - Fr. John Tasker. During these deliberations, the Head of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland, Bishop Dariusz Majewski, due to his liberal ecclesial policy, which was a clear departure from the principles of the undivided Church, gave the Synod Fathers the resignation from the office of the Superior. In a secret ballot, fr. Waldemar Maj became the new Head of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland
Administration of the Church
The Church is divided into two dioceses in Poland: Southern and Northern, administered by the Superior of the Old Catholic Church. In 2017, the Church had 254 faithful (including 15 priests). The church did not establish a central parish (cathedral). The headquarters of the church is in Gdańsk.