Hymns, carols and 'echoes of a Polish Christmas' planned at Boswell church

Jan. 4—BOSWELL, Pa. — For generations, Polish people with little to call their own kept their culture alive through song.

Their Christian "koledy" hymns filled their churches long after their homeland's borders were erased by outside empires.

Even after many of them settled in America, their folklore-rich "pastoralki" carols lived on in their new homes at Christmastime, the Rev. Aron Maghsoudi said.

Those "echoes of a Polish Christmas" will be heard again on Sunday at Boswell's All Saints Parish, said Maghsoudi, the parish's priest.

"These are songs that began here with the Polish who settled in northern Somerset County," he said, adding that most of them hailed from southeastern Poland.

For the people who fled Europe during those difficult days, these songs were more than music, Maghsoudi said.

"They left almost everything behind but their faith — and in the Polish hearts and minds, singing is very important," Maghsoudi said.

Their joyous hymns, called "koledy," date back to at least the 15th century. The songs were traditions in churches during the Christmas season that extends through January.

The "pastoralki" are carols that were more likely to be sung from house to house or among family on Christmas Eve — the night of the custom-rich holy meal, Wigilia, pronounced "ve-gheel-ya."

"People forget that for more than a century, Poland didn't exist," Maghsoudi said. "It was divided by its conquerers and its people were belittled."

Still, the songs are warm and celebratory, a testament to better times and their faith in God, he said.

"I could talk about (famed Polish astronomer Nicolaus) Copernicus, Marie Curie, or Poland's high intellectual culture, but probably none of that is as connected to the lived-in experience of the Polish nation — the common people — as this music," he said.

The hymns were staples in Boswell's former St. Stanislaus Church that has since been merged into All Saints Parish.

Generations ago, Polish-language services were common during Christmastime — including in places such as Johnstown, Windber and Pittsburgh. Few remain today.

All Saints appears to be the last parish in the Altoona-Johnstown Roman Catholic Diocese to continue the custom, according to the diocese's communications director, Tony DeGol, who praised Maghsoudi's dedication to keeping traditions such as this one alive locally.

"So many wonderful ethnic traditions are rooted in the Church," DeGol said.

And Maghsoudi "understands that these customs bring back cherished memories for most Catholics and hopefully inspires them" to keep them thriving within their own families or faith communities, he said.

Maghsoudi credits All Saints' nearly 20-member Polish choir for keeping the tradition alive.

He said the Sunday event will feature more than 15 hymns and carols, all of them in Polish, and attendees can sing along from their pews.

Maghsoudi said older generations may still have warm memories of attending these services as children. The event will offer them an opportunity to enable their grandchildren or great-grandchildren to experience the tradition, he said.

The annual event is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.

It will conclude with a benediction, Maghsoudi said.

"For people interested in ethnic culture or their ancestry, this is a chance to experience something deeply linked to the Polish heritage — and in a setting where the tradition grew organically," he said.