The people at my Byzantine Catholic church wanted statues back in the church, like in their old, pre-merger church, and they're back; angels holding candelabra. And there are flat-screen TVs on either side of the iconostasis. Makes it look like a sports bar. I've complained, for naught.

This is not what the Catholic Church wants for this rite.

They're sweet statues, very Tridentine Roman. They belong in the church hall as a cultural display.

"pre-merger"?

Guessing that a Latin Rite and a Byzantine Catholic parish were merged into one using the Byzantine physical structure?

No. Sorry; I should have been clearer. My Byzantine Catholic parish is a merger of three such. Such have gotten very latinized over the generations. The main church in the merger had the statues, which some of the people wanted in the new location. The priest then rightly said no, but the present priest gave them their way. To be fair, the wonderful iconostasis also comes from the main church in the merger.

Not much one person can do, I've seen many churches go down the road of adopting things foreign to the Roman rite for example. I suppose your situation could be magnitudes worse.



Ah yes, the great flat screen TVs of the ancient Roman basilicas, definitely should not be at a Byzantine church.



No such thing as "Tridentine" when it comes to liturgy and art.

If the iconostasis came down and the services were versus populum I'd leave. None of that will happen only for ecumenism's sake.


I know that St. Pius V's missal was a slight edit of the late medieval one of the Diocese of Rome.

Most people know what I mean. These large plaster statues would fit in at a nice Roman Rite church from the late 1800s or early 1900s and at a Roman Rite traditionalist chapel.

Thanks for the explanation. I do find that interesting, that the parishioners of a Byzantine parish would not want to fully embrace their own imagery and just run on over to St So and Such Roman Rite when they have a yen for some statues.

Some day I pray that I am able to visit a Byzantine parish. They are non-existent in Arkansas

St John Orthodox Christian Church - Rogers, Arkansas
Facebook (10) · Church/Cathedral
1740 S 9th St, Rogers · (248) 756-5528
Closed · Opens tomorrow 6 PM

Holy Trinity Orthodox Church
Facebook (15) · Church/Cathedral
1812 Watt St, Little Rock · (501) 224-3330

St Nicholas Orthodox Church
Facebook (28) · Church/Cathedral
3171 S 48th St, Springdale · (479) 379-6220
Closed · Opens tomorrow 6 PM

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church
Facebook (51) · Church/Cathedral
1100 Napa Valley Dr, Little Rock · (501) 221-5300
Closed · Opens Mon 9 AM

Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church
Church/Cathedral
292 Co Rd 390, Mountain Home · (815) 258-3668
Closed · Opens tomorrow 7 PM

Those are not Catholic!