Dorfen
- The dictation machine is running, the first question has been asked.
But first of all, Father Szczepan Matula doesn't have time for the interview.
An engine roars outside, and the new pastor from Dorfen throws open the window of the conference room in the rectory.
“And is it running again?
Very good! ”He calls out.
Caretaker Josef Oswald repaired the brushcutter.
For the Father's next assignment in the Dorfen vineyard, a small garden with vines on the southern slope in front of the rectory.
There the clergyman works to compensate.
He has been here since the beginning of the month and has a lot to do as the successor to Pastor Janusz Gadek.
The 39-year-old Father of the Order of the Resurrectionists comes from the small Polish town of Grybow.
After studying in Krakow, he worked there as a chaplain from 2007.
Two years followed in the Archdiocese of Paderborn and another two in Vienna.
Before Dorfen, he had been the parish administrator in Bayreuth since 2015.
In the interview, Father Szeczepan (in Dorfen they say Stefan) reports on his understanding of ministry and his goals.
You have come a long way as a clergyman. After Castrop Rauxel, Vienna and Bayreuth you are now in the smaller village. What's the attraction about it?
I also come from a smaller town.
And I like the nature, the festivals and the customs that are still lived in the villages and small towns.
I just feel good in the country.
You work on the Dorfen vineyard. Are these activities that you know and love from before?
I always did gardening at home.
I had to drive a tractor when I was six.
My family has a small farm and of course I had to help.
That's why I like to do that.
I now have a small garden by the rectory.
I want to grow some vegetables there.
Were you able to do the same at previous pastoral care stations?
In Castrop Rauxel, yes.
I had a large piece of land there.
In the Ruhr area it is common for old, retired miners to help the church.
Every Monday five or six men came to take care of the property on a voluntary basis.
I was always there.
And then at the end there was a snack.
We also celebrated birthdays and everything together.
A great group.
Is that a compensation for your work as a pastor?
Yes, that's a wonderful balance for me.
And I'm a sports fan too.
I like cycling and have done two tours around the area.
I'm currently on a mountain bike, but I dream of a racing bike.
On Sunday I did 72 kilometers on my mountain bike, so longer distances are certainly possible with a racing bike.
I also like swimming and jogging.
You start now in Corona times. What are the special challenges there?
I suffer a lot because I can't do everything I want.
A year ago I would not have thought that people would have to register for a service.
I regret that very much.
I see people longing for church services and devotions.
We are now trying to offer more step by step.
Are you thinking about online offers?
Yes, yes.
There are many offers.
But when you see that a mass has only ten calls, the question is whether it makes sense to make such a live stream out of the church and to buy all the equipment for it.
But I would be quite ready for it.
For example, two confreres in Taufkirchen are already very active.
What role do the internet and social media play in your life?
A very important role in work.
You actually have to do everything via email or on the Internet.
But I'm not on Facebook or anything.
I do not need that.
Corona from the pastoral side: Do you feel greater uncertainty among believers?
People worry about their future and that of their children.
So the need for conversation is there.
Even in the hospital.
I was also a hospital chaplain in Bayreuth.
I had a lot of calls during the Corona period - for conversation, prayer and anointing the sick.
How about the Marienstift and the hospital, will you be very involved?
Services in the Marienstift will not take place again until the next few weeks.
I want to talk to management next week about what the need is here.
I've already been to the hospital.
I just got a call.
Three patients are waiting for me.
Your religious community wants to give orientation to people who long for meaningfulness because of their distance from God. How do you encounter distance from God today?
I do believe that this is an important topic today.
You can already see that in the exits.
Maybe that's a little different in Upper Bavaria than in the Diaspora.
In big cities, people often do not know where the parish church is and at most seek contact for a baptism - if at all.
Is it nicer then to work in a place like Dorfen, where the church plays an even bigger role?
Yes of course.
But that's not about my importance as a pastor.
As a pastor, I want to be seen as a normal person.
How do you intend to get more people into church again?
I'm not a magician (laughs).
I'll just preach the good news of the gospel.
I am also interested in the pastoral care of young people in Dorfen and the new evangelization, perhaps celebrating church services in a different way or with modern songs.
That people rediscover God in new ways.
Marian piety is close to your heart, and you have said that it would be a dream of yours to revive the Dorfen Marian pilgrimage. How big is this project?
That is sure to be in the long term.
Of course, in Corona times it is difficult to plan services and prayer.
I would then perhaps like to invite different groups to the pilgrimage to celebrate the patronage in August a little more.
It is of course difficult to get new groups from different places if there is no pastor there because the pastors have six or seven parishes.
You address the shortage of priests. How is the pastoral care team set up in Dorfen?
I am here alone with the two retired pastors Johann Wieser and Konrad Mühlbauer as well as pastoral advisor Renate Emehrer with half a job.
I want a deacon, I have to address that in the ordinariate.
I have many baptisms for example.
But otherwise I have a great team in the parish office and great church musicians.
Then you will certainly go into strenuous work now. When will you find a few hours to work in the Dorfen vineyard again?
Tonight I wanted to keep going when it wasn't raining.
I want the vineyard ready this week, so mowed and weeded the slope.
Introductory service:
The introductory service of Father Szczepan Matula is to take place on Sunday, October 25th, at 3 p.m. in the parish church of Dorfen.
The number of participants is of course limited, afterwards an open-air reception is planned.
