Wed. Nov.7 – 7 p.m. “Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin,” Lecture by Dr. Timothy Snyder of Yale.
Mon. Nov. 12 – 7 p.m. Path to Glory (2011), Documentary film showing the epic story of the Polish Arabian Horse.
Thurs. Nov. 15 through Sat. Nov. 17, 1 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. and Sun. Nov. 18, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. – Book Fair – Thurs.-Sat. at Canisius. & Sun. Nov. 18 at Market Arcade Theatre. Books, DVDs & art on Polish topics for sale.
Thurs. Nov.15 – 1 p.m. – Andy Bienkowski & Mary Akers, talk about their book “One Life to Give…,” based on the experiences of Bienkowski as a child in Siberia.
Thurs. Nov.15 – 2 p.m. – Workshop by Bienkowski & Akers: “Writing Together: The Many Sides of Co-Authorship.”
Thurs. Nov.15 – 3:30 p.m. – Workshop by Wes Adamczyk, survivor of Soviet camps & author-“Writing From the Heart.”
Thurs. Nov.15 – 7 p.m. – Festival reception. Books, DVDs & art for sale.
Thurs. Nov.15 – 7:30 p.m. – Argentinian Lesson (2011), a film about an 8 year-old who moves to Argentina and learns about the world around him through 11 year-old Marcia.
Thurs. Nov.15 – 9 p.m. – Decrescendo (2011) Film showing the world of a nursing home through the eyes of a young therapist, who tries to find the meaning of his own life.
Fri. Nov. 16 – 6 p.m. – Wes Adamczyk presents “Living in the Shadows of Katyń,” about a family’s 10-year odyssey through multiple continents, and the Katyń Massacre.
Fri. Nov. 16 – 7:30 p.m. – Battle of Warsaw 1920 (2011) Film which tells the story of Poland’s battle vs. the Soviets through the eyes of two young people.
Sat. Nov. 17 – 4:30 p.m. – Workshop-Krysia Jopek: “Getting Your Work Published…”
Sat. Nov. 17 – 6 p.m. – Jopek, daughter of Polish WWII survivors, discusses her novel “Maps and Shadows”
Sat. Nov. 17 – 7:30 p.m. – Control Sample-Film about young Poles who live in four cities of Western Europe. Meet the Director.
Sat. Nov. 17 – 8:30 p.m. – 80 Million (2011) Film which portrays events of ten days before martial law.
Sun. Nov. 18 – 6:00 p.m. – Control Sample-Film
Sun. Nov. 18 – 6:30 p.m. – At the Market Arcade Theatre – In Darkness (2011) Film about one Catholic’s rescue of Jews.
Mon. Nov. 19 – 3:00 p.m. – Workshop-Poet John Guzlowski: “The Art of Listening: Writing Poems & Stories on Family.”
Mon. Nov. 19 – 7:00 p.m. – Siege-film by an American who documented Warsaw just before the Nazi invasion.
Mon. Nov. 19 – 7:15 p.m. – Guzlowski presents “Two Lives Shaped by World War II,”, the story of his parents’ lives as slave laborers in Germany.
“Solidarity and Martial Law in Poland” will be presented at Elms College (Alumnae Library Theater) in Chicopee, MA on Saturday, November 17th from 10 am to 5:30 pm. The program is free and open to the public. There is an optional luncheon (12-1 pm) available for $7.
This program will have several original activists in the Solidarity union movement speaking, as well as others:
Jersy Polak, official photographer for Solidarity 1980-1981
Andre Blaszcsynski, Moderator of the Conference of Solidarity Support Organizations 1983-1990
Neil Walsh, United States Information Agency in Warsaw 1972-76 and in Krakow 1978-1980
Wieslaw Olszak, Martial Law political prisoner
Workers and union activists should find this program especially important for its lesson that workers’ efforts can transform national and global history.
Father Walter A. Placek, PhD, will have a 20 minute presentation titled “God and Science in our Church” on Nov. 17 at noon, at the Sermon, Soup and Sandwich event in Holy Mother of Sorrows hall, 212 Wyoming Ave., Dupont.
All are invited for this event free of charge.
When Professor Placek retired from Wilkes University after 40 years of teaching, he was ordained to the priesthood of the Polish National Catholic Church.
The Most Rev. John F. Swantek, Prime Bishop of the Polish National Catholic Church ordained him on May 25, 2002 at Holy Mother of Sorrows Church, Dupont, his home parish.
Dr. Placek celebrated his first Mass at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 26, 2002 in Holy Mother of Sorrows.
Dr. Placek received his theological training at the Savonarola Theological Seminary in Scranton.
He was appointed pastor at Providence of God PNCC Parish in North Scranton in October 2002 and continues to serve that parish. He is also on the faculty of Savonarola Theological Seminary.
Placek has served the PNCC as a member of its Supreme Council, Diocesan Council and currently as a member of the Supreme Council. He continues to teach Physics as a part-time professor at Wilkes University and an adjunct professor at King’s College and Misericordia Universaity.
Placek graduated from West Pittston High School, Class of 1957, received his BS from Wilkes College, M.S. from Penn State University, a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania and has done postgraduate work at the University of Vermont, University of Maryland, Colby College and the University of Puerto Rico.
In 1992, while on sabbatical leave, he was a visiting professor at Cornell University.
He was a high school physics teacher for seven years and a professor in the Physics department at Wilkes University for 33 years, retiring in 2002 to become a priest in the PNCC.
Wilkes University Board of Trustees honored Placek with the title of Professor of Physics, Emeritus and he continues to teach part time.
Placek held membership in many academic and scholarly societies, presented numerous papers over the years at state, national and international meetings and has served on the executive boards of several state and national science societies and served on the editorial boards of several state and national science journals.
He was president of the Pennsylvania Science Teachers Association in 1992 and received national recognition for his contributions to science education.
He was elected to the Wyoming Area School Board for two terms, serving from 1975 to 1985 and served as board president of the West Side Area Vocational-Technical School in 1981.
He was appointed by the county commissioners as a trustee of the Luzerne County Community College and served for 1- years on many academic and executive committees.
Rev. Dr. Placek is the son of the late Walter Placek Sr. and Mary Bushinski Placek, of Dupont. He is married to the former Barbara Swantkowski, of Duryea, and they reside in the Mount Zion section of Exeter Township.
They have been married since 1961 and will celebrated their 51st. wedding anniversary this year.
The couple has three children, Allison Knick BSN, a Registered Nurse at Wilkes- Barre General Hospital; David, a chemistry and science teacher at Wyoming Valley West High School; and Adrienne Royster, Director of Human Resources at Oxy Chemical in Houston, Texas.
Dr. and Mrs. Placek have six grandchildren, Katelynn and Rebecca Knick, Amanda and Erin McCamey, Nikolas and Benjamin Placek, and one great-grandchild, Athens Ware.
Bishop Tawadros has been chosen as the new pope of Egypt’s Coptic Christians, becoming leader of the largest Christian minority in the Middle East.
His name was selected from a glass bowl by a blindfolded boy at a ceremony in Cairo’s St Mark’s Cathedral. Three candidates had been shortlisted.
The 60-year-old succeeds Pope Shenouda III, who died in March aged 88.
He succeeds as attacks on Copts are on the increase, and many say they fear the country’s new Islamist leaders.
The other two candidates were Bishop Raphael and Father Raphael Ava Mina. They were chosen in a ballot by a council of some 2,400 Church and community officials in October.
‘In God’s hands’
Their names were written on pieces of paper and put in crystal balls sealed with wax on the church altar.
A blindfolded boy – one of 12 shortlisted children – then drew out the name of Bishop Tawadros, who until now was an aide to the acting leader, Bishop Pachomius.
Bishop Pachomius then took the ballot from the boy’s hand and showed it to all those gathered in the cathedral.
Strict measures were in place to make sure there was no foul play during the televised ceremony: the three pieces of paper with candidates’ names were all the same size and tied the same way.
Copts say this process ensures the selection is in God’s hands.
Bishop Tawadros will be enthroned in a ceremony on 18 November.
The new pope has studied in Britain, and has also run a medicine factory, the BBC’s Jon Leyne in Cairo reports.
He is a man of broad experience and with managerial skills, our correspondent says, adding that he will need all those talents to lead the Copts as they face an uncertain future in a country now debating the role of Islam following last year’s revolution…
May God bless Bishop Tawadros in his new ministry and may He watch over, protect, and grant increase to the Coptic Church.
“One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, ‘Which is the first of all the commandments?’”
It is Sunday – God first, but of course football.
Let’s think about football math. We all know that when our favorite team gets the ball they start their march down the field with a first and ten – first down and ten yards to go to get another first down. Going from first down to first down, the successful team works its way down the field until (if all goes well) thy score.
It can seem daunting, especially if you are starting at the far end of the field, with almost 100 yards to go against very strong opposition.
Now imagine if your team could get to that touchdown in two yards, in just two steps? It is first and ten, two to go.
Before the scribe came to Jesus the Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, chief priests, and elders had been hammering Jesus with questions. Jesus’ answers didn’t matter to them at all. All that mattered was their ends – trapping Jesus and shutting Him down.
Scribes were a class of experts in the Mosaic Law, all 613 laws. This scribe seems sincere in coming to Jesus. He wants to hear how Jesus interprets the 613 laws, and which one He finds to be the greatest one.
Jesus shows the scribe that love of God and love of our brothers and sisters are the two most important commandments. He tells him that these two key commandments are the two yards He needs to go.
These two commandments depend on each other. We are to give our whole hearts to God who is love, and love Him completely. By loving God, and experiencing His love, we learn to love better, stronger, more completely. Eventually we learn to love like God loves. We must take our learning and apply it. Our love for God and His love for us cannot exist in a vacuum. It has to grow, toward others, drawing them into this relationship of love.
Sometimes people separate these two commandments, saying one or the other is what we really need to do. Jesus responded to the question: Which is the first, with two commandments. Jesus indicates an order – one comes first. But He also teaches us that the two are inseparable. Our lives and our faith must be based on love: on a relationship of love to God, and on the sharing of God’s love with others. Having only one misses the touchdown.
Love breaks down all opposition. Our touchdown is heaven – and it only takes two steps to get there, two steps and one theme – love.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. — Hebrews 12:1-2
Let us consider the great cloud of witnesses of old and among in this day and age. Their heroism, endurance, holiness, love of their brothers and sisters, the crosses they bore, the example they provide are not accomplished on their own. Rather, through the grace of God they have been strengthened to do what Jesus asks of all of us. Let us heed their example, knowing that for every failing in our lives, God picks us up, renews us, and enables us to be saints.
Let us also recall that our brothers and sisters who have preceded us in Holy Death are a hopeful sign. Jesus overcame death; so shall we because of our faith in Him. He told us that we who weep and mourn will be comforted. Be comforted in His promise of eternal life. With that confidence, offer up prayers for our friends, family, neighbors, and parishioners who have died. With our prayer, their journey to the heavenly kingdom is eased and their souls are made strong. With our help, they will attain the new and heavenly Jerusalem. There we will stand with them, also among the multitude of angels, saints, elders, and faithful worshiping before the throne of God and the Lamb. The family of faith is eternal, we are all joined together, here and now and forever with God.
“Jesus told him, ‘Go your way; your faith has saved you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
Bartimeus literally means Bar-Timeus – the son of Timeus. People saw the son of Timeus as a man without hope. He sat along the road, a blind beggar.
Bartimeus had heard of Jesus and his miracles, and learned that He was passing by. He was filled with hope – he knew that through Jesus, the Messiah, he might recover his eyesight.
Bartimeus came to Jesus for help. As we face the week, and the months ahead, with storms, anxieties, the pressures of holidays (imposed by the world’s view of what the holidays are – not the Church’s view), and other stresses, we must know that we may come to Jesus with the same hope that Bartimeus had – hope for help.
Like Bartimeus, we have heard of Jesus, and we know His miracles. We know that He isn’t just passing by, but is with us at every moment. Like Bartimeus we have every right to call out to Him in hope. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
God truly delivers help and healing. He delivered Israel from bondage and brought them back. They left in tears and sinfulness and returned on level roads rejoicing. Likewise He gathers us in, protects us, and delivers us when we call out to Him.
As Jesus called to Bartimeus, He calls to us. Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The gracious call of Jesus gives us hope to come to him in our need. If we come to him in hope we shall have what we came for. He will open our eyes to the miracles and wonders guaranteed to His children.
Bartimeus cast aside his garments. We too must cast away the garment of self-sufficiency, and free of the weight of doubt we may go forward with clear eyes. Jesus clears our vision, lifting all the weights that bear down on us.
Now it is up to us. Jesus told Bartimeus – receive your sight, be it unto you as you desire. “Go your way,” that is, to your own house, about your own business.
Bartimeus was given the choice that is in front of all of us. Jesus gives us what we ask for and gives us the opportunity to see clearly. Bartimeus saw clearly and chose to follow Jesus – to Jerusalem and beyond.
Bartimeus saw not just physically, but with the eyes of faith. As we face our anxieties, let us ask Jesus for the help we hope for, the hope He has guaranteed. Then let us respond with eyes of faith to follow Him.
This report examines the antipoverty effects of unemployment insurance benefits during the past recession and the economic recovery. The analysis highlights the impact of the additional and expanded unemployment insurance (UI) benefits available to unemployed workers through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program. In 2011, approximately 56% of all unemployed individuals were receiving UI benefits (down from a high of 66% in 2010). UI benefits appear to have a large poverty-reducing effect among unemployed workers who receive them. Given the extended length of unemployment among jobless workers, the additional weeks of UI benefits beyond the regular program’s 26-week limit appear to have had an especially important effect in poverty reduction.
The report’s analysis shows that UI benefits appear to reduce the prevalance of poverty significantly among the population that receives them. The UI benefits’ poverty reduction effects appear to be especially important during and immediately after recessions. The analysis also finds that there was a markedly higher impact on poverty in the most recent recession than in the previous two recessionary periods. The estimated antipoverty effects of UI benefits in 2011 were about 50% higher than that of two previous peak years of unemployment — 1993 and 2003.
In 2011, over one quarter (26.5%) of unemployed people who received UI benefits would have been considered poor prior to taking UI benefits into account; after counting UI benefits, their poverty rate decreased by just under half, to 13.8%.
NELP Reports on the Value of the Public Re-Employment Services
The paper highlights the value of reemployment services. Their briefing calls for a “renewed focus on reemployment services,” with substantial increases in federal funding for the Employment Service. According to NELP, increased funding for the Employment Services would allow states to provide more services to job seekers such as: job placement services, in-person job search assistance, and pre-training counseling. In addition to increased federal funding, NELP recommends prioritizing those who are receiving unemployment insurance.
Forget that bet over whether this summer’s early drought or late rain will make fall leaves brighter or duller.
Those hues are mostly up to the weather ahead, according to leaf expert Marc Abrams, professor of forest ecology and physiology at Penn State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences. For brilliant leaves, hope for sunny days with cold crisp nights.
The Rev. Mark Swoger, pastor of Holy Trinity Polish National Catholic Church in Washington, walks hand-in-hand with his wife, Miriam, through the Ebenezer covered bridge in Mingo Creek Park in Nottingham on Wednesday afternoon.“This has been a very complicated year,” he said. “The Pittsburgh area had significantly more drought than we had in Central and Eastern Pennsylvania, and I think the drought is going to be a factor against the best fall colors that are possible. But my guess is that most of your trees held up OK.”
What’s most important, from here on out, is dry weather with night temperatures dipping into the 40s and 30s, but not freezing, said Mr. Abrams, who devoted his career to studying how weather affects fall colors.
“Earlier in September we had some nice, cool temperatures that started to bring out the color. I would like that to continue,” he said. “What would be most worrisome would be a continuation of warm weather into the second week in October and not getting the cool-down that we need.”
Dave Jackson, a forest resources educator with Penn State Extension Service, says that the most spectacular foliage in Pennsylvania is north of Interstate 80, in places such as the Allegheny National Forest. That’s because the hardwoods, such as cherry and sugar maple, that thrive there offer a greater variety of spectacular colors than the duller oaks and predominant red maples in the southern part of the state.
Look for the northern hardwoods to start turning in mid-October, the southern oaks in late October, he said.
“The oaks will have more of the oranges and not so much of the brilliant reds,” he said…
