[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 93 (Thursday, June 8, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S8052]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          GREEK FOLK FESTIVAL
 Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I would like to call to the 
attention of our colleagues the Greek Folk Festival sponsored by St. 
Nicholas' Greek Orthodox Church this upcoming weekend. While this 
celebration is obviously enjoyed by parishioners of St. Nicholas, the 
entire community also relishes this wonderful festival. St. Nicholas is 
led by Father Manuel J. Burdusi, a man whom many applaud as a pastor 
who has developed a strong community within St. Nicholas, including a 
dynamic youth fellowship.
  I would also like to bring to the attention of my colleagues that 
this festival contributes greatly to the preservation and enhancement 
of the historic culture of the Greek-American community. The Greek Folk 
Festival includes educational and cultural activities, live music and 
dancing, authentic Greek food and pastries, and most importantly, 
wholesome family entertainment. I would like to highlight an excellent 
article in today's Evening Sun newspaper by Jacques Kelly, highlighting 
the magnificent people that make this festival a superb event that is 
acclaimed year after year. Mr. President, I ask that the article be 
printed in the Record.
  The article follows:

             [From the Baltimore Evening Sun, June 8, 1995]

                Priest helps Highlandtown keep the faith

                           (By Jacques Kelly)

       It seems that everybody in this part of East Baltimore 
     knows ``the priest.''
       He is the Rev. Manual J. Burdusi, the 33-year-old pastor of 
     St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox church, the spiritual home of 
     many Highlandtown families.
       Father Manual, as he is called, is the former altar boy who 
     came back to his home parish wearing a cleric's black robes. 
     He grew, up on Bonsal Street near Francis Scott Key Medical 
     Center. His church is in the 500 block of S. Ponca St. He is 
     one of the pivotal personalities here.
       Part of the reason so many East Baltimore Greeks know 
     Father Manual is that they watched him grow up.
       As a 10-year-old, he assisted at the Divine Liturgy. Then 
     he joined the choir. After his studies at Hellenic College 
     and the Holy Cross School of Theology in Brookline, Mass., he 
     returned to Baltimore. He was ordained in 1989 and named the 
     church's pastor four years ago.
       ``I have always felt comfortable on the path that led me to 
     the priesthood. It felt like home'' Father Manuel said.
       He also kept things in the family by marrying a woman named 
     Malama (Molly), who also sang in the choir. They have a son 
     named Nicholas, the saint's name commemorated in the church.
       One of the hardest things is to bury a person you've known 
     so well in this neighborhood,'' he said one day this week.
       The loss of a family member in this close-knit community is 
     strictly observed. Many widows wear black after a husband 
     dies. Families have memorial prayer services in the church 40 
     days after a death. This is often repeated six months later, 
     then after a year, and on the third anniversary.
       At funerals, the custom is to have the deceased in an open 
     casket. Close family members kiss the corpse on the cheek. 
     Others may kiss the hand or forehead or a religious icon.
       ``The formal process of mourning is therapeutic. It helps 
     with dealing with grief. It forces the family back into the 
     life of the church,'' Father Manuel said.
       The life of the church is often the life of this 
     neighborhood. Witness the tremendous activity for this 
     weekend's Greek Folk Festival sponsored by the church. From 
     tomorrow through Sunday, Ponca Street will explode with 
     people, music, food and dancing. It has become one of the 
     city's most popular summer events.
       Family ties, church and tradition all mix within this tight 
     community.
       Blocks of rowhouses branch off Eastern Avenue in this part 
     of Highlandtown known to some as The Hill, to others Greek 
     Town. Many immigrants from the Greek islands settled here in 
     the 1960s and 1970s. With them came their own grocery stores, 
     bakeries, places to sip strong coffee and talk, and 
     restaurants.
       Father Manuel's family, for example, came from an island 
     that was controlled by Italy for some years. His surname, 
     Burdusi, reflects this.
       His parish has its origins in a little school established 
     here in the late 1940s. It was torn down and the present 
     church built in 1956. Today, it has 1,200 families on its 
     mailing list. Of these, some 700 are active.
       ``At times it is so busy, it feels like more,'' the pastor 
     said. ``When it gets very rushed I have to ask my wife, ``Did 
     we pay the bills this month?''
       Father Manuel wears a beeper and is on call at all times.
       ``I don't want anybody to say they couldn't get a call into 
     a priest,'' he said.
       It is not uncommon for his parishioners to walk to Sunday 
     services. Some 575 of his families reside in the 21224 Zip 
     Code. Another 120 live in Rosedale and 100 more in Dundalk. 
     The parish has a large and vigorous youth organization that 
     its pastor feels is the cornerstone of the community.
       Throughout the festival, Father Manuel will be giving 
     church tours--4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. 
     on Saturday and Sunday--during which he will explain the rich 
     collection of Christian art here. Just this past Easter, the 
     church unveiled a vibrant mural of Mary, the mother of Jesus, 
     the Christ child and saints Basil, Gregory, Nicholas and John 
     Chrysostom.
       Father Manuel also answers questions about the elaborate 
     religious ceremonies here.
       When recently asked, for example, how much incense is used 
     on a typical Sunday, the priest thought for a moment and 
     quietly replied, ``Ten tablespoons.''
     

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