The Polish bishop in charge of Polish missions in Britain and other countries has warned of continuing problems in co-operating with local dioceses, and urged priests and parishes to ensure they “respect and accept local tradition”.
“In our pastoral service for Poles abroad, what's most important is openness to others and to new challenges”, said Bishop Wieslaw Lechowicz, a Tarnow auxiliary. “We seek to uphold our Polish identity, Polish traditions and patriotic spirit. But we are also in a foreign environment, often alien in culture, and the question of integrating with the milieux in which Poles live and with the local Church is proving difficult.”
The 57-year-old bishop was addressing an online training course for Polish priests preparing for work among Polish migrants and expatriates in Britain and other foreign states.
He said visiting Polish pastors faced a special task in ministering to foreign-based Poles who had a better knowledge of English and other local languages, but still identified with their roots and wished to participate in the Polish community.
He added that the wide dispersal of Polish Catholics had also posed added pastoral difficulties during the coronavirus pandemic, but said Polish priests working abroad should always remember they remained under the jurisdiction of local bishops.
“We must respect and accept local tradition, while simultaneously making sure that traditions linked to Polish religiousness are also upheld and passed on”, said Bishop Lechowicz, who was appointed Bishops Conference delegate for Poles abroad in 2011. “Nor can we imagine working with emigre communities without the co-operation of laypeople.”
The Polish Church has around 2000 clergy working in missions or pastoral networks in 25 countries, catering for around 15 million ethnic Poles living outside their homeland. Its London-based mission, headed by Mgr Stefan Wylezek, celebrated its 125th anniversary last year and has 270 parishes and pastoral centres, served by over 100 Polish priests, with separate missions operating in Scotland and Ireland.
In a March 2019 letter, Bishop Lechowicz warned the approach of Brexit was causing “certain fears” among Poles in Britain, adding that he and other Polish clergy had been in touch with Britain's Catholic bishops about future pastoral arrangements.
In a similar letter this March, he urged Polish priests to be “especially available” during the Covid-19 crisis “in co-operation with local pastors and church authorities” to ensure Poles continued to receive sacraments. He also called on Polish parish councils to offer “psychological, social and legal help” for those worst affected by the pandemic.
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