Posted on 12/28/2004 2:00:22 PM PST by CatherineSiena
At the church founded by the late Rev. Paul Wickens, Mass is always said in Latin. Women still cover their heads, and people receive the host in their mouths from a priest, never touching it with their own hands.
To say that St. Anthony of Padua, the church Wickens started nine years ago, is a haven for traditionalists is an understatement. And with his death this year, the search for just the right successor to the old founder has split the parishioners of this unusual West Orange church.
At a time when they would rather rally around a new priest, hundreds have boycotted the chapel for makeshift Masses at a Ramada Inn in East Hanover and a VFW Post and the Wellesley Inn in Fairfield.
The schism opened soon after the July death of Wickens, whose opposition to the historic 1960s reforms of the Second Vatican Council attracted hundreds of other "traditionalist" Catholics who like him felt the changes sullied ancient Catholic traditions and practices.
Modern Catholics would find some practices at St. Anthony's obscure. But when Wickens died, parishioners wanted a replacement who shared their views. They also wanted the chapel kept separate from the Newark Archdiocese, which accepted the 1960s reforms and suspended Wickens after a 1980s dispute stemming from his opposition to Catholic sex education.
Wickens remained a vocal critic of the archdiocese, calling Archbishop John J. Myers too liberal even though Myers is generally known nationwide as a staunch conservative.
The current boycotters say they have nothing personal against Wickens' replacement, the Rev. John Perricone, a conservative Catholic in his own right who in many ways seems a perfect fit for St. Anthony's.
Perricone, who started at St. Anthony's Dec. 1, is founder of the group "Christifidelis," which is dedicated to the Latin Mass.
Still, many longtime St. Anthony's parishioners reject him because he is an archdiocese priest, officially placed on loan to the chapel by the archdiocese.
At his last archdiocese post, Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Orange, Perricone celebrated Mass in the modern way that traditionalists deplore, in English, facing the pews, and letting lay people touch the host.
"This Perricone, he's on both waters, he offers both Masses -- the Latin Mass and the modern Mass. And we do not accept that," said Elvira Valdez, who joined St. Anthony's in 1998 and has attended motel Masses.
"We only accept the ancient Mass, the old Mass, the Latin Mass. That's why Father Wickens stayed clear cut away from the archdiocese, because they would make him accept the modern Mass as equal to the old Mass."
Valdez and others say they fear that Perricone's hiring will lead to a full-scale takeover by the archdiocese, and that Mass in English may eventually be allowed there.
While reforms stemming from the Second Vatican Council are widely regarded as more inclusive of lay people, the members of St. Anthony's think they watered down the faith, and that translations from Latin are inadequate.
Since Perricone started, some longtime St. Anthony's churchgoers have traveled long distances to attend other traditionalist churches, such as St. Jude's in Eddystone, Pa.
Locally, the latest alternative Masses were at the VFW Post in Fairfield Saturday, for Christmas, and Sunday, drawing about 200.
DUELING SERMONS
A similar crowd attended a motel Mass in Fairfield earlier this month, where people knelt on the green patterned carpet of a kneeler-less conference room and received Communion from the Rev. John Fullerton, flown in for the occasion from Missouri.
Fullerton is with the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X, which was founded by French Bishop Marcel Lefebvre, who was excommunicated after refusing to the accept the 1960s reforms.
Attendance at St. Anthony's, meanwhile, has been lighter than before Wickens died, and Perricone's supporters hope he can draw back those who left.
"If the diocese leaves us alone, there'll be no problems here," said Bill Brooks of Pompton Plains. "And the people will hopefully come back. Father Perricone is a good priest."
In his first sermon at St. Anthony's, the Rev. Perricone left no doubt about his beliefs, praising Wickens, whose archdiocese suspension lasted until he died.
"I am privileged," Perricone said, "to be able to bring forward the sacred traditions that Father Wickens has ... preserved."
Yet many who stopped attending St. Anthony's feel the church's three board members, who approached the archdiocese about Perricone, disregarded Wickens' wishes by bringing in an archdiocese priest.
A week ago, a group of them filed suit in Essex County Chancery Court, saying the statute under which the church was incorporated lets all members, not just trustees, pick the priest.
On both sides of the St. Anthony's dispute, parishioners say the church should honor Wickens' wishes. But they relate different versions of what he wanted.
Some, allowing that Wickens praised Perricone, said he also thought Perricone's archdiocese ties tainted him. Others say Wickens wanted the church turned over to the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X.
DISPUTED TAPE
At a church meeting on Nov. 14, St. Anthony's board members -- Andrew Flock, Larry Small and Bob Ciuffreda, elected the day Wickens died in a previously scheduled election -- played a tape of Wickens praising Perricone shortly before his death.
But some who heard the tape at the meeting have complained it had only excerpts of the conversation. In what was played, Wickens did not address Perricone's archdiocese ties, a subject that surely was of interest to him, board critics said.
Asked about that, Al Wickens, the priest's brother, said that Paul Wickens never spoke about the archdiocese or the Society of Saint Pius X on June 24, the day he was taped.
"From that conversation, which was seven or eight minutes ... was a clear indication that if Father Perricone could possibly come, it would be a perfect fit for the chapel," said Al Wickens, who said he was present when the taping occurred.
While the arrangement with the archdiocese strikes many longtime St. Anthony's members as improper, to others it straddles the right side of a thin line. Archdiocese spokesman James Goodness said that while Perricone is considered "on loan" from the archdiocese, St. Anthony's is responsible for his salary, and the archdiocese does not receive a percentage of weekly collections.
Despite last-minute efforts to reconcile, the archdiocese never lifted its suspension of Wickens. It wanted him to sign a letter of obedience to Newark Archbishop Myers, which all pastors do when starting a new assignment, Goodness said. Wickens refused to do so, Goodness said.
Whether they attend a Latin Mass at St. Anthony's or elsewhere, the people drawn to it say they go for reasons other than merely hearing the words in Latin, though that is important.
"It's not just the Mass said in Latin. It's about the traditional faith. It requires the reverence that's there, the respect for the way the sacraments are done," said William Denk, who stopped attending St. Anthony's and now travels elsewhere for Mass.
"Many people have seen family members lose their faith. They've seen the breakdown in our culture and society. Now, when you've had Catholic bishops who have to debate whether a candidate who is pro-choice can remain Catholic, it shows exactly where (society) has gone to now."
Jeff Diamant covers religion. Reach him at jdiamant@starledger.com or (973) 392-1547.
NOTE. TRADITIO has been inundated with messages about the goings-on at St. Anthony of Padua. It is a matter of great interest to the traditional Catholic community. Most messages are expressions of concern that Fr. Wickens' work be honestly carried out in the way that he himself did. We have received phone calls and messages from traditional priests around the world (several of them SSPX priests), from local members of the congregation on all sides of the issue seeking our counsel, and from other concerned observers of the goings-on, including a private investigator and an attorney who are monitoring whether what is going on is legal.
The concern of this varied group of traditional Catholics is moving. However, a few messages were received of rather vile nature, whose content is not to try to understand and resolve the situation in a fair way, but to vilify individuals by name, among which vilified individuals are traditional priests. (***H1 Note...Like they did to Fr.Murphy.)
In every case, the vile messages have come from those who identify themselves as associated with or favoring the Society of St. Pius X. If he were alive today, Abp. Lefebvre, a most gentlemanly and saintly man, would disown them!
These messages only confirm exactly the warning that has been raised about the SSPX organization. It is not that the Society is "schismatic" or theologically off base. TRADITIO has consistently defended the Society upon those points. It is, rather, that the Society has appointed too many unqualified and, yes, nasty people to its leadership. They do not hold a candle to the standards that the Archbishop set for them. Some new visitors to SSPX chapels report receiving this chilling attitude (although it is only fair to say that there are many fine SSPX priests, who do not exhibit such an attitude).
It is this chilling attitude that some SSPX leaders and some SSPX priests have, which filters down to the laypeople in association with them, that requires a warning for people who have never dealt with the SSPX on a leadership level. One messenger admitted that he knew nothing of the historical matters mentioned. Then, instead of researching them, he went into a tirade against certain non-SSPX priests.
TRADITIO tries maintain a reasonable balance between all factions of the Traditional Catholic Movement, but based on history and the public record. We have never condemned the Society as a whole. We have always spoken in a praiseworthy fashion of its saintly Archbishop-Founder. Some of the Society's products, such as The Angelus and The Angelus Press, have many praiseworthy features.
What we do remind people of is that some leaders of the SSPX, particularly in the United States (and we're not speaking here of a bishop), have compiled a public record of undermining non-SSPX sites just like Fr. Wickens', even through stealth (here we are thinking of the "Blue Paper" documentation about the money and property of an independent site being converted to SSPX coffers).
It is a pretty fair guess that somewhere along the line it was passed on to him, and It was more than scathing. And Rightfully so.
;-)
10am.
HDO? Don't know what that stands for, sorry.
To my knowledge, the suit was successful. Here's a link to the attorney who represented the woman who sued McMahon:
http://www.lawyers.com/dennisdettmer/
A diocesan affiliation doesn't bother me one way or the other. The Object is to have the Traditional Faith preached and taught. The evidence is fairly clear, that a diocesan affiliation didn't bother Father Wickens all that greatly.
With regards to the SSPX, if he was that enamored of them, he could have joined them, he chose not to, instead praising the good works they did, but remaining at a respectful distance.
I would think that somewhere along the line the calculus involved would take into account ones personal measure of the Priest, rather than a 'diocesan, bad, Not diocesan good' tone.
Holy Day of Obligation....
Thanx!
You're Hobbes the Omniscient. You know EVERYTHING, remember? On the other thread you said you have your "sources" for information and know all about what the hotel group is doing..
You tell US when Mass is.
Sticking your head up for that? Sheesh.
Once again, let me say I am not implying you personally, but a fair reading of any of these St. A's threads reveals a segment of the wandering group, that seems to almost revel in this discord. And once again, that is a fairly one sided deal.
Personally, I find it rather sad, as I am sure many of those that left do.
How many saints have you just condemnded?
What about the background of the priest who runs the "Traditio" site? There's this interesting item:
http://home.earthlink.net/~grossklas/morrison.htm
"Sticking your head up for this?"
Yeah. I can read though the baiting tactics with your cronies to start a flame war.
Also, because this thread is going to devolve into something nasty again. I have held my tongue all this time.... but it's your cocksure attitude that you know every bit of the happenings of our group. There is nothing for us to be embarrassed about.
Why are you so interested in what the group does?? Stay where you are and drink the Koolaid of the Chapel.
And by the way... I had NOTHING to say about Fr. Murphy to Traditio or to any other public posting. Don't even insinuate that I was part of a disgruntled group that made comments about him.
MMJ
The Church is "divided"? What a shocker. "Independence" does that. It sows the seeds of division and helps cultivate a spirit of autonomy.
Reading the thread and associated posts I was struck with how similar it all seemed to some of the situations which my Protestant friends have described to me when their Church picks a new pastor. The factions, the arguments......"we want this guy"....."no, we want somebody like the previous guy"...."no, let's ask the people"......."etc, etc
Paddling your own canoe is not an advisable exercise in the spiritual life, no matter how convincing the excuse may seem to be.
"What about the background of the priest who runs the "Traditio" site?"
So......what about it? Personally it makes no difference to me if the person running that site is a priest or not. It is what is written there, and the veracity of it which is important.
If you strip away some of the excess rhetoric on Traditio, you still have some very interesting and valid observations of things.
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