On November 11th a special, joint parish council meeting of the Assumption BVM Parish (Oil City, PA) and St. Venantius Parish (Rouseville, PA) Parish Councils was held at 7:00 PM at the ABVM Social Center. Guest speaker was Msgr. Michael Gaines, Espiscopal Vicar for the Diocese of Erie. Msgr. Gaines was invited by Fr. John Neff to address the parish councils as to the function of a parish council in parish life. During his explanation, Msgr. Gaines stated the function of the parish council is only advisory to the pastor. To back up the Church's position, Msgr. Gaines quoted references from his Canon Law Reference Book. Evidently, even though the people who bought the parish; pay for its upkeep; and maintain the facility actually have no "real say" in the decisions of the parish. They are only advisory. (In fact all parish accounts, including the deed to the parish, are in the bishop's name.)

Msgr. Gaines addressed some other questions when the floor was opened to those in attendance. One of the questions asked was regarding the Church's position on ethnic parishes. Msgr. Gaines was quite direct when he stated that the Church was not in the business of promoting ethnicity. He restated his position when asked if he understood how intertwined ethnic heritage and faith are? He used St. Patrick's Day Celebration as an example of an ethnic heritage overtaking faith. It was quite evident that Msgr. Gaines did not understand the helix between faith and heritage. Nor was he able to understand the difference between "promoting" heritage and "supporting heritage".

Perhaps one of the most striking comments from Msgr. Gaines was his historical view of ethnic parishes. He said that ethnic parishes initially were established to serve the many immigrants who came to the United States from Europe. However, with time the Church helped to integrate the people into the mainstream of American society and the value of an ethnic enclave diminished. That leaves one to wonder why the Church will promote "integration" but not "support" ethnicity?

However, on a positive note, Msgr. Gaines did say that as long as the parish is active and alive, it is viable and would not be closed. So, if parishioners want their ethnic parish to survive, therein lies the challenge.

-Joseph C. Brozeski