January 27, 2007
IMPORTING REDS:
Devout Poles show Britain how to keep the faith (Stephen Bates, December 23, 2006, Guardian)
One little-noticed side effect of the influx of young Poles to Britain since their country's accession to the European Union in 2004 has been an extraordinary boost to Catholic worship. Congregations that were formerly waning have been restored and expanded by the arrival of devout young Poles from the land of Pope John Paul II and they may yet change English Catholicism for ever.A church which was amalgamating parishes, having difficulty recruiting priests - even from traditional sources of supply such as Ireland - and was seeing declining attendances has suddenly experienced a dramatic infusion of new blood. Most English parishes experience such huge congregations rarely, perhaps only for the Christmas Eve midnight mass, where revellers from the pubs on their annual visit to church boost the numbers in the pews for one night only. In English churches where separate monthly masses are held for local Poles they are often better attended than ordinary Sunday services.
"It is the Catholic community's biggest opportunity and biggest challenge," said Francis Davis, director of the Von Hugel Institute at Cambridge who is carrying out a study of the new arrivals for Cardinal Cormac Murphy- O'Connor, leader of the Catholic church in England and Wales, and Archbishop Vincent Nichols, who heads the Birmingham diocese.
"In terms of its own life this is a huge opportunity. They are bringing new energy, new life and new resources and networks into the Catholic community. They are bringing a faith of their own that is so vibrant you can chew it. And they will have an unquantifiable effect on the whole debate about the future of faith schools.
"The challenge is in the mutual lack of understanding, not only between the local population and the new arrivals, but within the Polish community, between those who came because of Communism and the young economic migrants. There are 35,000 in the Southampton area alone - more than was expected for the whole country. "
Funny thing is, if they were coming here Tom Tancredo, Lou Dobbs,m and Pat Buchanan would be greeting them at the docks with bouquets. Posted by Orrin Judd at January 27, 2007 8:20 AM
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Poles entering Britain did it....how do you Americans say it?.........legally.
Posted by: John J. Coupal at January 27, 2007 9:12 AMTouche, John!
Posted by: obc at January 27, 2007 9:36 AMGood point, but we have such a vast number wanting in that it would impossible to document them all.
Posted by: erp at January 27, 2007 12:15 PMThey are coming here. I don't know about numbers, but here on the NW side, and in the NW suburbs, there are vast numbers of Polish immigrants, young especially.
My local parish of St. Thecla has a Polish mass at 12:30 Sundays that is packed. And yes, they're much more devout even than American church-going Catholics, and therefore have a thing or two to teach us.
At the consecration everyone's on their knees, even those w/o seats standing in the back. Likewise, again in contrast with American lax practice in this regard, large numbers don't receive communion, unable to get to confession before Mass, and aware that their souls are not in the necessary state of grace to receive the sacrament.
If I'm unable to get to the Tridentine Mass downtown at St. John Cantius, I actually prefer to attend the Polish Mass rather than the typical American Novus Ordo, despite my ignorance of the language, b/c of the devotion of the people, and the beauty of the music -- none of the St. Louis Jesuit garbage for the Poles.
Posted by: Jim in Chicago at January 27, 2007 12:28 PMSame situation at St. Mary of the Angels in Bucktown. Masses in Polish, English and Spanish. Have always attended the English mass when we visit my son. Maybe I'll give the Polish a try.
Their sausage is sure good :)
As few as 1 in 3 are there legally.
Posted by: oj at January 27, 2007 3:14 PMThose are the plumbers......
Not only Poles, but Chi-Town's been seeing an influx of Eastern Europeans for the past few years.
Was I surprised to see white people (jobs that Americans won't do) cleaning toilets at O'Hare a few years ago.
Posted by: Sandy P at January 27, 2007 8:04 PM