The President's Corner

View Image Gallery

This month I continue exploring Parma’s places of worship in my continuing series that spotlights our community’s rich religious diversity and heritage. The church I visited recently for this column was St. Mary’s Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC) located at 5375 Broadview Road, just south of Brookpark Road. The young Pastor, Jason Soltysiak, was gracious enough to take time during a very busy week at his Parish to provide me with the information for this writing.

Fr. Jason grew up in New England and attended the University of Hartford. He holds the javelin throwing record for his high school and college, as well as a degree writing. His father, Rev. Joseph Soltysiak is also a priest and serves in New England. Fr. Jason was ordained to the priesthood in 2007, came to St. Mary’s in November, 2013 and was installed as pastor on February 1, 2014. He and his wife Natalie reside in the Parish rectory on Wexford Avenue with their three cats, Frankie, Batman and Calbert.

Having been baptized myself at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Sandusky, I assumed that St. Mary’s PNCC in Parma was also affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church (RCC). I soon learned that I was not correct. The PNCC was formed in Scranton, Pennsylvania in the late 19th century specifically for new Polish immigrants who, according to their website, experienced “frustrations over cultural, linguistic and ethnic disputes” with the RCC. With 125 parishes in the United States, Canada and Europe, the faith boasts about 26,000 members in the U.S.A.

St. Mary’s Parish was founded in 1915, in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood.  In 1952, the parishioners voted to purchase a city block of land at the corner of Broadview Road and Wexford Avenue in the City of Parma. In 1955, the Parish moved to their current location into the church which was built with the help of many parishioners. Like many other religious communities in Parma, the Parish experienced incredible growth as the city’s population proliferated. By the 1970s, a Parish hall was added, as well as a Sunday school wing.

The Polish National Catholic Church broke with the Roman Catholic Church tradition of saying the Mass in Latin, providing first and second generation Poles the ability to worship in their vernacular. Today the PNCC worships in English and “welcome[s] people of all ethnic, racial and social backgrounds.” For instance, Fr. Jason stated that about two-thirds of St. Marys’ congregants self-identify as Polish, while the other third are a mixture of various ethnic groups. 

Confession is central to the PNCC faith. However, unlike the RCC, confession is generally public in which congregants are asked to privately confess to God, the entire congregation then recites the Prayer of Confession in unison, followed by penance and absolution assigned by the priest. “This form of confessional is very popular among the members of our faith,” Fr. Jason explained. Private confession to the priest is also permitted and is provided on an as requested basis. The PNCC holds that the use of birth control is a person choice, allows divorced people to participate in Mass and allows priests to marry.

The PNCC is very democratic in nature. That is, each parish holds parish meetings in which the entire congregation meets to vote on major decisions. Further, each parish has a parish committee whose job it is to run the day-to-day operations of the community. The pastor is a member of the committee and has one vote as the other members do. “The pastor is the authority when it comes to faith and doctrine, while church operations are a group decision,” according to Fr. Jason. 

As the founder of the Parma Peanut Butter Drive, I was very happy and impressed to find out about St. Marys’ Food Ministry. On the first Wednesday of each month, the Parish provides a meal to anyone who wishes to stop by. “We do not check folk’s finances at the door, anyone is welcome,” Fr. Jason explained. The Parish also holds a Sunday school, hosts two Alcoholics Anonymous groups, holds a fun carnival each July and has groups and activities for parishioners of every age.

For more information about St. Mary’s visit them online at www.stmaryspnccorg.wix.com, by e-mail at stmaryspncc.org@gmail.com or call the parish office at 216-661-9246. In closing, I wish to thank Fr. Jason and his congregation for their kindness and hospitality.