Young Polish immigrants are at centre of a split between the traditional church and a reformist priest.IT WAS established as a haven where Polish war veterans could worship and in recent years became a place where young migrants could discuss their worries and share their faith.
But now a row has erupted over the future of a Catholic mission which exposes a split between the traditional church back in Poland and the new generation of economic migrants.
At its heart is a reformist priest who tried to support the influx of devout young Poles, struggling to balance independence with the values of old Poland, where the church exerts a great deal of influence.
Now Father Edward Hodurek has been ordered back to Poland by the Vatican and a hall used by the Polish community in Falkirk has been closed and put up for sale.
Members of the congregation have been told to attend masses conducted by 30 traditional priests recently brought over from Poland and whose upkeep is to be paid for by the sale of the United Polish Mission.
The migrants, led by Joanna Creslik, the chairwoman of a support group for the town's 2,000 recently arrived Poles, have launched a campaign to prevent the sale. They have been joined by a number of Polish ex-combatants who arrived in Scotland during and after the Second World War and their families, who collected hundreds of signatures against the closure.
"The mission was a place to gather, a place where ordinary Poles could seek help," said Ms Creslik.
"Father Edward treated everyone equally – not something all priests do. He understood that we were new here and some of us were having problems with debt, relationships and the language.
"He wanted to make things better and understood the pressures of finding a job and getting used to freedom.
"In Poland, people live with their parents sometimes until they are in their thirties because they can't afford to move out. We work long hours and don't have much money left over to go out.
"Here, people can be independent – live together, go to the pub, the cinema, parties and have relationships, meaning we have new problems even with this freedom. The old priests just stay with the mass and don't seem to want us to have this lifestyle.
"The Catholic Church is very strong in Poland and involved in politics, but here I admire the way the Church keeps out of things."
Among Father Hodurek's innovations were the establishment of a crèche and after-school club in the Polish Catholic Mission, freeing mothers to work. But these seemingly innocent plans, as well as other activities at the hall, including climbing, have attracted unwanted attention from the church hierarchy.
A letter of protest sent to the Vatican received a reply from Fr Friedrich Kretz, Rector General in Rome, saying he hoped things could be "solved in a really Christian attitude of common trust and in an honest process of discernment".
Furthermore, he said, any future complaints were to be dealt with by Fr Marian Lekawa, the head of the Polish Catholic Mission in Scotland – the person the new migrants say is organising the sale.
The move to sell the mission has infuriated the older generation of Poles in Falkirk who say it belongs "morally" to them because it was paid for by subscription by ex-combatants in 1957 and not by the Polish Catholic Church.
Staniowski Wladyseaw, 89, who was in the navy during the war and arrived in Scotland in 1946, said: "I am against the hall being sold. It belongs to all of us. I know there is some work needing to be done in repairing it, but we have Polish tradesmen who have offered their services free to help us."
Another campaigner, Maria Berni, 67, whose Polish father lived in Denny camp during the war, said: "I am the older generation and we invested time and money in the mission. That old generation is dying out, but new young people have arrived and the hall is important to them.
"It is terrible the way things are happening, with people not being allowed to have their say. I have such beautiful memories of this place, of the Polish dances we had on Sundays, the celebrations, concerts and special meals.
"The new people want a place to get to know each other, but are being so cruelly pushed away and rejected. It was a joy to see the hall full of noise from the children when Father Edward was here, but now the Church won't give us the keys.
"I am a staunch Catholic and I don't like to speak against my religion. But we need justice and I am really shocked, especially with Fr Lekawa."
Pat Reid, Provost of Falkirk, has given the campaign his support. He said: "I would hope the mission would stay open to serve the local Polish community. We feel it has been a very worthwhile, ideal place for them to meet for religious and social gatherings."
Fr Lekawa has not responded to telephone calls or e-mails from The Scotsman asking for an update on the situation regarding the Polish Catholic Mission.
How the two sides have lined up in battle over hall
THERE are two camps involved in the dispute over the sale of the Polish Catholic Mission in Falkirk.
• On one side are the new Polish migrants who want a "modern-style" priest to serve the mission.
Their leader is Joanna Creslik, 30, the chairwoman of United Polish Falkirk, a support group for the town's 2,000 recent migrants. The mother of one, who works as a cleaner, has enlisted the support of Poles who fought in the Second World War, their families and many local people.
They were dismayed when the Vatican ordered Father Edward Hodurek, a "new-style" priest, back to Poland.
One of the oldest campaigners is 89-year-old Staniowski Wladyseaw, who served in the Polish navy and who arrived in Scotland in 1946.
This group says the building was paid for through public subscription by Polish ex-combatants in 1957 and belongs to them.
Maria Berni, 67, whose Polish father was held in the prisoner-of-war camp at Castlerankine, near Denny, said the younger generation of Poles were bringing life back to the hall and needed somewhere to meet.
Pat Reid, the Provost of Falkirk, says he, too, wants the mission to be used by the Poles.
• On the opposing side of the argument are the Vatican and the Polish Catholic Church, who want the new migrants to attend services conducted by traditional priests.
Fr Friedrich Kretz, the Rector General at the Vatican, has nominated Fr Marian Lekawa, the head of the Polish Catholic Mission in Scotland, as the person to whom all complaints should be addressed.
However, campaigners say he has refused to answer their letters or return their telephone calls.
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