Metropolitan Basil (Schott) has died

(post-gazette.com) - Metropolitan Basil Schott, the Byzantine Catholic archbishop of Pittsburgh, mobilized the Eastern Catholic bishops in the United States for more unified leadership, but never forgot that their goal was to save souls.

Metropolitan Basil, 70, died of cancer at 3:45 a.m. Thursday in UPMC Passavant. He had led the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh since 2002.

"He was a very spiritual man, whose prayer life affected the whole church in the United States. That will be the greatest loss to us," said Bishop John Kudrick of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Parma, Ohio. (Eparchy is the Eastern Catholic term for diocese.)

With 60,000 members from Erie to El Paso, Texas, his flock was less than one-tenth that of the Latin Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh. But he outranked his Latin colleagues.

He led the only self-governing Eastern Church in the United States. Eastern Catholic Churches, with roots in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, are in full communion with the pope, but closely resemble Orthodox churches.

Metropolitan Basil mobilized his brother Eastern bishops to be an effective voice within the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

"He really brought us together. There had been an organization for many years, but he was instrumental in our being recognized as a group within the bishops' conference," Bishop Kudrick said.

He helped the Eastern bishops address difficult internal issues, Bishop Kudrick said. Some hadn't conducted the annual sexual abuse audits required by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops because they were prohibitively expensive for their tiny eparchies.

Metropolitan Basil insisted that they must conduct the audits. But he negotiated with the bishops' conference to allow cost-saving measures, such as sharing an abuse-prevention coordinator.

His success wasn't due to bureaucratic prowess. "As an administrator he did a very good job. But it was his personality that drew people in," Bishop Kudrick said.

The native of Freeland, Luzerne County, entered the Byzantine Franciscan novitiate at 19 and was ordained in 1965.

He rose swiftly in the Franciscans, holding important posts while working at parishes. His talks on spiritual renewal made him a popular retreat leader nationwide. In 1996 he became bishop of Parma.

"He was very much a people person," said the Rev. John Kachuba, archpriest of the Eparchy of Parma. He loathed quarrels, whether in a parish or among the hierarchy.

"He wanted for there to be unity in the church and for everyone to get along," Father Kachuba said. "He encouraged the people to work for the glory of God."

He was installed as archbishop of Pittsburgh on a sweltering July day in 2002. With self-effacing humor, he interrupted his own homily to say, "I have been reading rather quickly because, like you, I'm hot."

But he used the heat to speak of what it means to have a burning love for Jesus Christ. He challenged his 1,200 listeners "to allow the Holy Spirit to set us afire." He wanted them to reach beyond their ethnic roots and tell everyone about Jesus.

"His greatest gift was his compassion," said the Rev. John Petro, rector of SS. Cyril & Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary on the North Side.

"He was tireless in visiting the sick in the hospital. And after he had visited the person he came to see, he would go down the hallways and stop in other rooms, not so much as a bishop but as a priest. They'd say, 'Hi, Father.' He never corrected them."

He faced difficult issues in a territory that stretched to Texas. He had shrinking parishes clustered tightly around Pittsburgh, and growing parishes hours apart in the South. He laid the groundwork for a reorganization of parishes, but it hadn't taken place when he fell ill.

He put six years of grueling effort into seeing that SS. Cyril & Methodius Seminary obtained accreditation from the Association of Theological Schools in 2008.

He was active in Christian Associates of Southwestern Pennsylvania and in Christian Leaders Fellowship, a monthly gathering of bishops and their counterparts for prayer and mutual support.

"He had a teasing sense of humor that can break the tension in a conversation and bring a little levity to a heavy subject," said the Rev. Donald Green, executive director of Christian Associates.

"He has been one of the most faithful leaders in terms of providing people to be the foot soldiers for the work of Christian unity. Because of living in that tension between Eastern and Western Christianity, he had a deep appreciation for the ecumenical journey."

Historically there has been bitter animosity between the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox churches. But he had an excellent relationship with his Orthodox colleagues.

"He was a good friend of mine and a good friend of the faith," said Metropolitan Maximos of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Pittsburgh. "He was a good Christian and one of our finest Christian leaders."

Within the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops he promoted evangelization and monasticism. He routinely attended gatherings of global bishops in Rome. Pope Benedixt XVI named him to the office that handles the pope's relationship with Eastern Churches.

Bishop David Zubik of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh called Metropolitan Basil "a Christ-like leader. He was always there as a gentle, supportive voice to all that make up our beautiful mosaic of faith, Christian, Jewish and Muslim."

In November 2009 Metropolitan Basil told his priests he had lymphoma. He seemed to be doing well May 16, when he joyfully ordained a priest. Then he relapsed.

His last project was the first gathering of all Byzantine Catholic priests in the United States. About 150 came to Pittsburgh Tuesday and Wednesday.

"One of the blessings was that so many priests who were friends and acquaintances of his were able to go to the hospital and say their goodbyes," Father Petro said.

Visitation will be at St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Munhall, 1 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. Rites for a priest will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. The Funeral Liturgy will be at 10 a.m. next Friday, with interment at Mount St. Macrina Cemetery, Uniontown.