The Polish-Catholic Church in Great Britain was initiated by the faithful from the Polish-Catholic Parish of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Glasgow in April 2018, who wanting to avoid disputes between the authorities of the Old Catholic Church in the Republic of Poland to which they belonged, decided to establish a church in Great Britain. The church currently has only one parish, two chapels and a group of believers of the Belarusian language. Bishop Andrew Hall was chosen as the church's superior in April 12, 2018. He embraced this position until July 31, 2018. The initial assumption of the Church is to establish cooperation with other Polish-Catholic Churches operating in Poland, Germany and the United States.
Theology
According to the church law which is currently in force, the Polish-Catholic Church professes Catholic faith, morality and principles as set forth in the Bible, formulated in common symbols of faith and decisions of the First seven Ecumenical Councils. The Polish-Catholic Church has many similarities to the Roman Catholic liturgy in that it expresses Trinitarian doctrine, Marian devotion and reverence for the saints. The church also employs the traditional Catholic liturgical calendar. The central point of spiritual life within the church is the Eucharist, which is understood as the re-presentation of the redeeming sacrifice of Christ. The church also pays reverence to the angels, apostles, martyrs and saints, keeping among them a special place for the Virgin Mary. According to the church, a sin is an intentional and voluntary breaking of God’s or the church’s commandments. The seven deadly sins are pride, envy, lust, anger, greed, sloth, and gluttony. Penitents gain the absolution of sins by participating in the sacrament confession, where sins are confessed in the presence of a priest in order to gain absolution. The conditions of a good confession are:
There are one form of confession exercised in Polish-Catholic Church in United Kingdom: individual. Individual confession takes place privately with a priest, while corporate confession is exercised as a separate public ceremony in front of the altar, or as a part of Mass during the Act of Penitence. Individual confession is obligatory for all faithful. It is believed that proper and frequent reception of the sacrament of confession will allow an individual to grow in the spiritual life.
Clergy
A priest can only be a man who has completed the relevant theological studies. Candidates also need approval from Church authorities. Clergy of the Polish-Catholic Church are not bound to celibacy.
