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Monastery 'downsizing'

By Kent Jackson
(Standard-Speaker, Hazleton, Pa., 4 April 2002)

The four Franciscan friars remaining at Holy Dormition Monastery in Sybertsville are moving out of their quarters, which are expensive to maintain, and into a farmhouse on the grounds.

"We're downsizing," Brother Carmen Scuderi, who has been at Holy Dormition for six years, said.

The friars still will keep open a chapel and grounds with duck ponds, outdoor shrines, Stations of the Cross and woods.

Clare House, which opened as a retreat center last year, will remain in use.

"People are welcome to come as they have in the past," Scuderi said.

The farmhouse that the friars will move into was built before 1946 when the order purchased the site from Eva May Beck.

"That was the original house, it was a farmhouse, over 100 years old. It was really the first residence of the friars," Scuderi said.

Friars call the farmhouse the Francis House after the founder of their order.

It has eight rooms on the second floor where they can live and a kitchen and great room downstairs that the friars will decide how to use. They also will move most of their library into the Francis House.

The Francis House will be cheaper to maintain than their quarters that were built 52 years ago in the style of a Spanish mission.

"The foundation of this place is in very bad shape. One wing has cracked and is beginning to sag. There would have to be a lot of repairs," Scuderi said
Heating the mission-style building costs $30,000 annually, plus the roof needs replacing and the pipes are old, he said.

Eventually, the friars will raze the building, which they hope to vacate before September when they would have to turn up the heat again.

In the mid-1960s, the Franciscans had as many as 60 brothers in Sybertsville, but ranks dwindled after a split. Roughly half the members formed a community called New Skete in Upstate New York.

From 1946 until 1998, the brothers and volunteers from the community hosted an annual pilgrimage for world peace, a two-day event that drew up to 1,500 visitors.

The pilgrimage ceased as attendance dropped and the brothers and volunteers aged.

Friars, who call themselves brothers, follow their own orders or rules of living, but also in liturgical matters follow the dictates of Bishop Andrew Pataki of Passaic, N.J.

The name of their monastery refers to the dormition or sleep of St. Mary, whom Byzantine Catholics believe ascended into heaven after being placed in a tomb.

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Dear RichC,

The secular press never ceases to amaze . . .

The reference to the Dormition as a specifically "Byzantine Catholic" belief would come as a surprise, as we know, to Orthodox, Roman Catholics and many other Christians, including Lutherans.

One Lutheran theologian participating in a conference of the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary said that "we believe that the Mother of God was the first to experience the resurrection of the body after Christ."

Alex

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Makes a great deal of sense. The current facility is this great rambling thing which was great for 60 friars, and insane for 6, as well as being structurally in bad shape. The chapel is lovely though - and luckily it should be quite possible to bulldoze what needs to be bulldozed, with no harm to the chapel.

Cheers,

Sharon

Sharon Mech, SFO
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sharon@cmhc.com

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Dear Cantorka Sharon,

As we're on the topic, you are a Secular Franciscan, are you not?

Could you share some ways in which you are unlike a Franciscan Tertiary of the Latin Rite?

As Christ told His Apostles when He appeared to them after His Resurrection -

Shalom!

Alex

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Alex,

My problem is that I don't know what Latin Rite SFO's do!

I do know their Fraternities tend to be far larger, and less geographically scattered.

Cheers,

Sharon


Sharon Mech, SFO
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Dear Sharon,

How does one become a secular Franciscan, say if I wanted to become one?

Does one have to be attached to a monastery? What is the preparation?

Sorry for putting you to the bother, but I am looking for that icon for you smile !

Alex

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"In the mid-1960s, the Franciscans had as many as 60 brothers in Sybertsville, but ranks dwindled after a split. Roughly half the members formed a community called New Skete in Upstate New York."


I heard it happened around 1966 and that they went to the OCA about ten years later. Am I correct? I tried finding more history of New Skete but only got info about raising dogs. Any good URLs on their history? Never heard about these folks (and our Franciscan monks at Sybertsville) until only a few years ago. Maybe that is why their numbers dwindled ... lack of promotion.


Joe

[ 04-04-2002: Message edited by: J Thur ]

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Joe,

I think they dwindled for the same reasons that lots of Orders dwindled after Vatican II, plus they had the issue of being a Byzantinized branch of a Latin Order. The Byzantine Benedictines are in much of the same situation.

Alex,

"joining" the SFOs is a process of acquaintance, inquiry, candidacy and profession. At any step along the way, either the candidate or the Fraternity can say "no thanks." Each Fraternity has someone in charge of formation. That person meets on a regular basis with the candidate(s) and they probably use some Franciscan curriculum. My Fraternity used "Catch Me a Rainbow." The whole process can take a year or two or more.Once you are professed, there is ongoing formation, 'cause ain't none of us "done" yet.

I expect that some of the RC Fraternities are large enough to have formation classes instead of it being an entirely one-on-one thing, but that's just speculation on my part.

You don't need a monastery, but the "Spiritual Assistants" to Fraternities should be Franciscan Friars. I dunno how you would find Canadian Fraternities - I found mine by writing to the Byzantine Poor Clares in N. Royalton Ohio and asking - they passed my note on to one of the local SFOs.

Hope that's responsive!

Best,

Sharon

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Dear Cantorka Sharon,

Thank you very much!

Your point about the religious Orders is most interesting.

Western Orders that developed an Eastern branch have often had converts to Orthodoxy for many reasons, including the Byzantine Benedictines and Fr. Lev Gillet.

Something similar occurred with Anglicans who organized themselves into High Church monastic orders and then became so "Catholic" that they eventually felt alienated from Anglicanism and are now Catholic orders (the Caldey Fathers for example).

This is also one reason why some of our religious Orders insist on Latinizations - they believe that if we become too "Orthodox" in our ways, we will eventually want to become formally Orthodox, or, as one of our priests once put it, "get infected with schism . . ."

Shalom,

Alex

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The Franciscans have in their heritage the icon The Cross of San Damiano. Communities under the patronage of that title celebrate the feast day of Saint Damian. I would have hoped that that revered icon would have it's own feast day celebration.

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Dear Orientalia,

Yes, you've brought up an excellent point!

The Franciscan Cross of San Damiano is actually an Eastern, Serbian-style Orthodox Cross, adapted to the locality in which St Francis lived, as the patron saints of the locality are included at the Foot of the Icon-Cross.

It is also a Miraculous Cross, as you know.

There are numerous Miraculous Crosses and Crucifixes, and they are often celebrated on Holy Cross Day.

In the Christian East, the Cross is additionally honoured on the 3rd Sunday of Lent (which is this Sunday for those following the true, er, Eastern Orthodox Paschalion . . .).

The Cross is also honoured in August, and on every Wednesday and Friday.

The only feast of the Cross that is a "stand alone" that I am aware of (in the Eastern Church) is the commemoration of the appearance of the Cross of Our Lord over Athens.

For me, the really meaningful part of the Cross of St Francis is the figure of Christ, that is larger than anyone else's depicted there, especially of the soldiers. This is meant to convey that Christ, although crucified, is Lord and Master of the situation and is in control!

The Gospel of John states that Christ bowed His Head before expiring on the Cross.

And St John Chrysostom remarked that even here, Christ-God shows that He voluntarily dies since we first die before our bodies become limp.

A number of Western Orders have, as their particular treasure, Eastern icons, the Franciscan, as we know, and the Redemptorists, the Mother of Perpetual Help and others.

Alex

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This is also one reason why some of our religious Orders insist on Latinizations - they believe that if we become too "Orthodox" in our ways, we will eventually want to become formally Orthodox, or, as one of our priests once put it, "get infected with schism . . ."


Alex,

If we only kept our traditions in the first place, would it have ever been a problem? I think you already know the answer.

Would Fr. Alexis Toth have gone to a Russian Orthodox bishop? Would Fr. Chornak(sp?) have gone to the Ecumenical Patriarch? Would the Franciscans at Sybertsville have gone to the OCA?

Would we still be having this identity crisis? Would we have to be re-learning our chant? Would we still be asking 'How do you do Vespers?'

It seems to me that this 'fear' was self-inflicted. Am I right? It is one thing for these pro-Latinizers to discuss ecclesial schism, but another thing to discuss the self-infliction of liturgical, theological, and disciplinary schism (a.k.a. 'inorganic developments' per Vatican II or what I would call theological dysfunctionality). We are still cleaning up the food-fights from former wishy-washy generations.

Please enlighten me with your wisdom on this current crisis.

Joe

[ 04-04-2002: Message edited by: J Thur ]

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Dear Cantor Joe,

Yes, you are absolutely right!

Yesterday when I was visiting my mother, she showed me a newly published Ukrainian prayerbook her parish put out.

I was amazed at the number of Latinizations and inorganic developments you mention that it contained, and this in a new publication!

It was like Vatican II was something that happened to other people . . .

I have always admired your defence of our true traditions.

So when are you going to celebrate Easter according to the Orthodox Paschalion? smile

God bless, Servant of Christ, God bless!

Alex

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Quote
Originally posted by Orthodox Catholic:
The Cross is also honoured in August, and on every Wednesday and Friday.

The only feast of the Cross that is a "stand alone" that I am aware of (in the Eastern Church) is the commemoration of the appearance of the Cross of Our Lord over Athens.

Dear Alex,

Could you please tell me about how the Cross is honoured in August, and speak a little more about this appearance of the Cross over Athens? Thanks!

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Dear Catholicos,

Yes, the feast of the Cross on August 1/14 was actually established way back when by the Prince of Rus' St Andrew Boholiubsky after he won a decisive battle over the Volga Bulgars.

The feast was a procession of the Holy Cross together with a feast to the All-Merciful Saviour and the Mother of God.

It was from this feast that the idea developed of portraying the Cross over a Crescent and that whole issue.

This feast also marks the historic Baptism of Rus' by St Volodymyr in 988 and the feast of the Maccabean Brothers, their mother Salomea and their elder St Eliezar.

The apparition of the Cross over Athens occurred in 1925. There are actual depictions and photographs of it and the Cross that appeared actually has a foot-rest "subpedalion" on it as Byzantine Crosses often do.

The apparition was accepted by the Church as valid and there is a feast for it, although I'd have to look in my Calendar to get a precise date.

God bless,

Alex

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