Archbishop excommunicates leaders of Polish parish

ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis' Roman Catholic archbishop said Friday that a priest and the six-member board of directors at a traditionally Polish parish have been excommunicated.

The severe penalty excludes the seven from taking part in church sacraments and functions and from holding positions within the church.

For nearly two years, St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke and St. Stanislaus Kostka's lay board of directors have been feuding over control of the parish's property and assets.

Unlike other Catholic parishes around the country, the board -- rather than the archbishop -- has governed St. Stanislaus Kostka and its finances, according to an arrangement dating to the late 19th century.

The parish recently brought in a priest, the Rev. Marek Bozek, who plans to celebrate Mass on Christmas Eve.

In an archdiocesan newspaper published Friday, Burke wrote about the excommunication, saying "my heart is heavy in writing to you about the break of communion with the Church by our brothers and sisters at Saint Stanislaus Kostka Parish, most especially at the Holy Seasons of Advent and Christmas."

He said the conflict is not a personal one and that several of his predecessors tried to address the situation. Burke said the matter is not about money, which he said belongs to the parish, but about the board's refusal to accept governance by the Catholic church.

"That is just hokum," said Roger Krasnicki, spokesman for the St. Stanislaus board. He said the parish believes the archbishop is seeking control over its assets.

'It's a gross error'

Krasnicki said avenues of appeal are available to St. Stanislaus but in the past they had proved to be "an exercise in futility."

"I think it's a gross error of judgment on his part," said Krasnicki of Burke's decision. "It's a sad day in the Catholic church."

Bozek was assistant pastor of St. Agnes Cathedral in Springfield until recently. Burke said Bozek left that office against the wishes of his bishop.

Springfield-Cape Girardeau Bishop John Leibrecht said Bozek has not kept his promise to give his life to the people of southern Missouri in cooperation with the bishop. "Instead, division and schism in the Church has taken place," Leibrecht said in a written statement.

Krasnicki said Bozek was traveling in Peru, and the priest's cellular phone was not accepting calls Friday.

Since Burke began serving as archbishop in January 2004, he has increased pressure on the parish to conform to current church structure and hand over control of its assets. St. Stanislaus' lay leaders have refused, accusing Burke of wanting control for the parish's assets, estimated at more than $9 million.

The growing conflict has seen the Vatican weigh in on Burke's behalf, the 2004 removal of the parish's priests, and an interdict denying Holy Communion and other Catholic sacraments to the parish's board of directors.

In July, a small number of St. Stanislaus families -- most of them newer Polish immigrants -- moved permanently to St. Agatha parish, which Burke named the Polish "apostolate," or official home to Polish Roman Catholics in St. Louis.

Krasnicki said St. Stanislaus has about 450 parishioners who continue to worship as Catholics.

He said St. Stanislaus still plans to hold Christmas Eve Mass, the first to be held there since Easter when the parish brought in a priest, who has not been identified.

In his column, Burke also said he "will be obliged to suppress St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish. It is not possible for St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish to remain a parish of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and, at the same time, to operate completely independently of the Apostolic See and the Archdiocese of St. Louis."

Sister Eva-Maria Ackerman, spokeswoman for the archdiocese, said that meant St. Stanislaus would no longer be Roman Catholic. She did not know if Burke had signed the decree to officially suppress the parish.