William Penn Life, 2010 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2010-03-01 / 3. szám
Tibor s Take Many of the younger generation continued to be part of the parish family, unfortunately the number of parishioners was never close to the church's numbers during the prime era of the 1950s and 1960s. The church continued to thrive but only on a smaller scale. The quality was still there, just the quantity was smaller. St. Margaret of Hungary, continued to serve Catholic Hungarians for the next 15 years. I am proud to say, my family appreciated the close-knit religious environment that only a smaller church community can offer. There are at least 10 Catholic churches closer to our home than St. Margaret, but because we were experiencing our religion Hungarian style, we chose to drive the 40-mile round trip excursion. Only for the appearance of winter's slippery ice and snow did we ever think about our family's safety when going to St. Margaret. The drive to get there is some of the most picturesque and scenic in all of Cuyahoga County. In 2006, The Most Rev. Richard Lennon (formerly of the Archdiocese of Boston) became the Diocese of Cleveland's new religious leader. Not long into his tenure, Bishop Lennon began to hint that there were far too many churches in the diocese and too few Catholics to support them. By early 2007, plans were revealed that a total of 52 churches in the diocese were to closed by 2010. At the time of the announcement, the Cleveland diocese had 224 parishes. The master plan called for closing some inner city parishes, but many more parishes were to be closed outside of Cleveland proper. FIVE of the SIX Hungarian Catholic churches in the Cleveland diocese were to be closed by 2010. First it was Holy Trinity in Barberton in 2007. Then, St. Ladislas in Lorain and St. Margaret in Orange closed in 2009. On Jan. 24, 2010, Sacred Heart of Jesus in Akron closed. Soon, St. Emeric of Cleveland will be shuttered. The only diocesan Hungarian Catholic church to remain will be St. Elizabeth on Buckeye Road, America's oldest Hungarian Catholic Church, founded in 1892. All of the churches closed were alive and well. The churches served as gathering points for Hungarians of all religious beliefs. That cultural void will be hard to fill. Did you know they're Hungarian? Did you know the father of actress Rachel Weisz is noted Hungarian engineer and inventor George Weisz? Her mother hails from Austria and is a respected teacher and psychotherapist. Ms. Weisz was born in England in 1970. She co-starred as a librarian in the movies “The Mummy” and “The Mummy Returns!” Both St. Emeric and St. Margaret are located on prime real estate. St. Elizabeth is a fine church, but it is hard to get to; no interstate is close for easy access. St. Elizabeth is on the National Register of Historic Places. It cannot be tom down or even changed slightly without the federal government's approval. The site is the property of the diocese, and no developer or business wants it. The old adage is: "The value of real estate is in it's location!" The Catholic church preaches the sanctity of life. The Catholic church protects the unborn, the sick and the downtrodden, and provides for a dignified and comforting natural passing. All the churches closed were selfsufficient. They held no liabilities to the diocese, except for the shortage of clergy. As mentioned before, the churches did not have the huge congregations of 50 years ago, but nonetheless, they were all vibrant examples of Hungarian and Catholic fellowship. Eventually, some of the churches may have closed due to declining numbers. So, just as with the church's stand on abortion and death, why not let us die a dignified death as a parish? The congregation will know when to end it's existence. For an outsider looking in, I would say the Hungarians of the Cleveland diocese were targeted. No other nationality suffered in the number of church closings as we, the Hungarians. As a community of so many, how could we be so decimated? Were we singled out for who we are? I do not know. Did we protest? Yes! Did we stand up and shout? Yes! I feel especially sorry for Father Rosko. He was the person who had the vision and foresight to rally his parishioners to move a parish and start again. What was the thanks he got from the diocese for a job well done? St. Margaret closes and he retires. I can only imagine what our dearly departed church pioneers—such as Fathers Boehm, Biro and Mészáros, to name a few—are saying up in Heaven right now. In 1960, a monument was erected behind what would eventually become the new church. The granite tribute honored parish members that were killed in World War II. A few weeks after the closing of St. Margaret on Nov. 1, 2009, family members learned that the entire structure was removed without informing even one parish member. Where was the respect for those 11 heros or the compassion for their families? The very people I learned to trust and follow have led me to rethink the very core of my religious convictions. (Note: A three-part video of the final mass at Sacred Heart in Akron is available on YouTube.com. Search for: "Sacred Heart closing Akron Ohio.") / Éljen a Magyar! Tibor Tibor Check Jr. is a member of Branch 28 Youngstown, Ohio, and a freshman at Cleveland State University. He also serves as host of the “Souvenirs of Hungary" weekly radio show broadcast on WKTL-90.7 FAI in Struthers, Ohio. William Penn Life, March 2010 9
