NOVEMBER 2011

GUEST column
Why we must attend the Chaldean Church
“
We are all Catholic
… does it matter
which church I
go to?” This is a question
that I hear from many people
within the Chaldean
community.
I decided to survey a
number of people of all
ages and backgrounds and
asked why they as Chaldeans
go to Roman Catholic
Churches — the Church
more commonly known
as the “American Church.” Many
people stated various reasons in the
survey. Simply stated, Chaldeans
choose to go to Roman Catholic
Churches because the church is
closer to their house, they go to that
particular Catholic school so they go
to Mass there, or there is no traffic
jam in the parking lot at the Roman
Catholic Church.
Although the reasoning may
seem sound, it is not justified. We
need to belong to the Church that
we originated from, the Chaldean
Catholic Church. We are immensely
blessed to have a Church that
holds wonderful traditions, meaning,
spirituality and history. All these
were preserved because of the enormous
efforts and bloodshed given
by our ancestors. In our family trees,
there are many grandparents, great
grandparents and their parents who
fought and struggled to keep our faith
and the Chaldean Church alive.
From the start of the Chaldean
Church, which began immediately
after the death of Christ, until now,
the Chaldean Church has been the
only Church called the Church of
Fr. Anthony
Kathawa
special to the
chaldean news
Martyrs. From the beginning
until now, the faithful
of the Church have been
constantly persecuted and
constantly shedding their
blood to keep our Church
alive. Even today in Iraq,
Chaldeans are in a religious
battle trying to keep their
religion alive for themselves
and the next generations. It
saddens me when Chaldeans
abandon their Church for
the sake of convenience. We
need to honor our family, honor our
ancestors, honor our martyrs, and do
our best to keep our Church alive by
practicing our faith inside our Chaldean
Churches in America. We need
to continue to strive and keep our
Church going by supporting it.
We need to be active in our parishes
and support our Church. We
should not let ourselves stray away
for any reason. Some of the other
reasons for not going to Church
raised by Chaldeans is that they feel
they must dress up because they are
attending a fashion show, the Mass is
too long, it is difficult to understand
the Mass, or other people who attend
Mass attend for the wrong reasons.
These artificial reasons are the
works of the devil. They stand to
keep us away from our home — the
Chaldean Church. As Jesus said in
Matthew 7:15, “beware of false prophets
who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but underneath are ravenous
wolves.” These falsehoods for not attending
Chaldean Mass are the devil’s
way of rationalizing why it is OK to
not attend. However, the reasons are
clothed in sheep’s clothing — seemingly
justifiable yet detrimental to a
Church that has withstood the test of
time. We need to have a stronger focus
on our faith and love for God without
distraction and recognize who we are
as God created us … Chaldeans.
Therefore, Chaldean Church
Law — Eastern Code of Canon Law
approved by Rome — states, “they
[Catholics] are to fulfill with great
diligence the duties which they owe
to the universal Church and to their
own Church of their own Rite.” (Eastern
Code of Canon Law, can.12, par.2)
Notwithstanding what the Chaldean
Church Law states, it is the Roman
Catholic Church that mandates
we must attend Mass at the Chaldean
Church. The Second Vatican
Council, a council of the Roman
Catholic Church states, “each and
every Catholic must retain each his
own Rite wherever he is, and follow
it to the best of his ability.” (Vatican
II Council, par. 4) In other words, attending
Chaldean Mass is not only
prescribed by the Chaldean Church,
it is a mandate of the Roman Catholic
Church. Thus, the Roman Catholic
Church that you may attend
prescribes, through authority of the
Pope, that you attend your own Rite.
Therefore, we must renounce the
traps of the devil that prohibit us from
attending the Chaldean Church. Our
Church is the defining element of who
we are. We are Chaldean not only
because of a language or culture, but
because of the Church! It is the common
thread that unites us together as
one community in Christ. Your participation
in the Chaldean Church
honors, exemplifies and resurrects the
bloodshed and glory of the past and
symbolizes the continuation of a unified
Chaldean Church. We must stand
strong and dedicated to our Church.
Chaldean Church Law — Eastern Code of Canon Law approved by
Rome — states, “they [Catholics] are to fulfill with great diligence the
duties which they owe to the universal Church and to their own Church
of their own Rite.”
As Saint Paul emphasized, “We
should not stay away from our assembly,
as is the custom of some.” (Hebrews
10:25) We should all encourage
one another to remain as one
strong Chaldean Church body with
no division. For God has so constructed
the body (our Church) so as
to not allow division among its parts.
(1 Cor. 12:24-25)
Fr. Anthony Kathawa of Mother of
God Chaldean Catholic Church in
Southfield was ordained in May 2010.
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20 CHALDEAN NEWS NOVEMBER 2011