Former Springfield Priest Excommunicated Bozek First Learns of Vaticans Decision from Reporters Call, by Linda Leicht, News-Leader, May 29, 2008

Background

The congregation at St. Stanislaus Kostka has been at odds with Archbishop Raymond Burke since he became archbishop of St. Louis in 2003. Burke, and now-Cardinal Justin Rigali before him, insisted that the parish turn over ownership of its property to him, but the members feared that the archbishop would close the church. The six-member St. Stanislaus board of trustees is made up of lay members only. The archbishop has no role on the board of the parish, which is organized as a civil corporation. The board's refusal to comply led to the archdiocese creating a separate Polish parish and refused to allow priests to provide the parish with the sacraments, but the members who chose to stay at St. Stanislaus began planning how to continue under those restrictions. While Roman Catholic law requires that a priest be appointed to the parish by the archbishop, the parish passed new bylaws that allow the board to appoint a priest. The parish formed a search committee, and Marek Bozek, a priest in the Springfield-Cape Girardeau diocese serving at St. Agnes Cathedral, agreed to serve as their priest. Bozek, who came to Springfield from Poland in 2000 and was ordained in the diocese in 2002, took the position in defiance of then-Bishop John Leibrecht of Springfield and Burke. On Dec. 2, 2005, Leibrecht suspended Bozek after the priest told his bishop he had made his decision to go to St. Stanislaus. On Dec. 15, Burke excommunicated Bozek and the board of the parish, saying they were in schism. In January 2006, Burke removed St. Stanislaus parish from the Roman Catholic Church through a "decree of suppression." Two years later, Bozek received a letter from Burke threatening him with laicization -- removing his status as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. Two weeks later, Bozek met with the archbishop for the first time, when the priest offered to leave St. Stanislaus if the archbishop would welcome the Polish parish back into the archdiocese, revoke any penalties -- including excommunication of board members -- and guarantee the parish continue to operate with a Polish-speaker priest as its pastor. Burke called the proposal "offensive to God himself" by suggesting that repentance have strings attached.

BishopAccountability.org

	Former Springfield Priest Excommunicated Bozek First Learns of Vatican's Decision from Reporter's Call. By Linda Leicht News-Leader May 29, 2008 http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080529/NEWS01/805290372 The Vatican has ruled that the six members of the board of directors of St. Stanislaus Catholic church in St. Louis and their priest committed the act of schism two and a half years ago and are excommunicated, the Archdiocese of St. Louis Web site announced Wednesday. The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith had considered an appeal of a Dec. 15, 2005, declaration of excommunication by St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke after the board refused to turn over ownership of its property to the archdiocese and then independently hired a priest. That priest, Marek Bozek, was assigned to the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau in 2005, when he left his position at St. Agnes Cathedral in Springfield to take the job as priest of the historically Polish parish. Bozek is a native of Poland. "It's not something new. We all expected this to happen," said Bozek, who added Wednesday that he had not received any communication from the Vatican or from the archbishop. Just as he learned of his excommunication in December, Bozek learned about the Vatican's ruling when he received a call from a reporter asking for comment on Wednesday. He said he then discovered that the board had received a letter from the archbishop on Tuesday, and said there may have been an attempt to deliver a letter to him, as well. "That is a consistent method in this diocese," he said. "There isn't the slightest effort to be personal or pastoral." Background The congregation at St. Stanislaus Kostka has been at odds with Archbishop Raymond Burke since he became archbishop of St. Louis in 2003. Burke, and now-Cardinal Justin Rigali before him, insisted that the parish turn over ownership of its property to him, but the members feared that the archbishop would close the church. The six-member St. Stanislaus board of trustees is made up of lay members only. The archbishop has no role on the board of the parish, which is organized as a civil corporation. The board's refusal to comply led to the archdiocese creating a separate Polish parish and refused to allow priests to provide the parish with the sacraments, but the members who chose to stay at St. Stanislaus began planning how to continue under those restrictions. While Roman Catholic law requires that a priest be appointed to the parish by the archbishop, the parish passed new bylaws that allow the board to appoint a priest. The parish formed a search committee, and Marek Bozek, a priest in the Springfield-Cape Girardeau diocese serving at St. Agnes Cathedral, agreed to serve as their priest. Bozek, who came to Springfield from Poland in 2000 and was ordained in the diocese in 2002, took the position in defiance of then-Bishop John Leibrecht of Springfield and Burke. On Dec. 2, 2005, Leibrecht suspended Bozek after the priest told his bishop he had made his decision to go to St. Stanislaus. On Dec. 15, Burke excommunicated Bozek and the board of the parish, saying they were in schism. In January 2006, Burke removed St. Stanislaus parish from the Roman Catholic Church through a "decree of suppression." Two years later, Bozek received a letter from Burke threatening him with laicization -- removing his status as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. Two weeks later, Bozek met with the archbishop for the first time, when the priest offered to leave St. Stanislaus if the archbishop would welcome the Polish parish back into the archdiocese, revoke any penalties -- including excommunication of board members -- and guarantee the parish continue to operate with a Polish-speaker priest as its pastor. Burke called the proposal "offensive to God himself" by suggesting that repentance have strings attached. Requests by the News-Leader for an interview with Burke were not answered Wednesday. Schism The reasons for the ruling, according to a column written by Burke on the archdiocese's Web site, is the board's failure to "observe the time limits" and follow the formal requirements of an appeal, and their continued "delict (or willful act) of schism." Schism is defined as the "willful separation from the unity" of the church. Two letters with the Vatican's ruling were dated May 15, the column said. The letter regarding Bozek instructed Burke to "impose a penal precept" on the priest, ordering him to discontinue serving St. Stanislaus. If he does not, the column said, Bozek's case would be brought to Pope Benedict XVI for laicization -- removing his license to serve as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. Bozek said he has been in communication with other bishops, including two retired Roman Catholic bishops, about working under them. The 33-year-old priest pointed out that, while the church can remove his license to serve, it cannot remove his status as a priest. "That is the consequence of Catholic theology," he said. "Once a priest always a priest." Burke has been instructed to give Bozek 30 "useful days" to comply. If he does not, a petition for laicization will be sent to the pope. For Bozek, that month may provide an opportunity for him to negotiate with the church, he said. Bozek's church lawyer, the Rev. Thomas Doyle -- Burke has refused to allow Doyle to officially represent Bozek in the archdiocese -- was not available Wednesday, Bozek said. Legal process Bozek said he will speak to the St. Stanislaus congregation about the action Sunday, when he will attempt to explain "in everyman's language" the text of Burke's column and quotes from the Vatican's letters. "It takes a lawyer to decipher it," he said. To Bozek, that legalistic language and the legal process represent a failing in the Catholic church. "The many actions of the Vatican congregation and the local bishop are clearly legalistic actions and not the actions of a good father, a good shepherd," he said. "This is sad for me. I want my church to be a mother ... but it has become a lawyer ... trying to intimidate those who are supposed to be her children." The congregation at St. Stanislaus held a special meeting in March to discuss the issues facing the church and its priest. At the meeting, about 95 percent of the congregation expressed its support for Bozek and the board. The parish has grown to more than 500 families since Bozek arrived in December 2005. "What St. Stanislaus has become for many Catholics is a place of healing and reconciliation," he said. "I have talked to many, many people who have come to this church and said, 'Father, for the first time I have found a home in your church...' People have found a place of healing, reconciliation and compassion. I believe this is what Jesus wants us to do."

Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.