Do not hide the truth
(L. D.)
Referring to the beatification of John Paul II Archbishop Glodz said that the participants of this event wondered what they had preserved from this legacy and what they had forgotten. 'We thank for this tireless apostle of Christ who carried the message of peace, good, truth, justice and beauty to the world,' Archbishop Glodz said.
On the anniversary of the Third of May Constitution
On the 220th anniversary of the Third of May Constitution Archbishop Glodz encouraged us to reflect on the functioning of the present constitution, adopted on 2 April 1997, in the Polish life. 'It took a long time to pass this constitution; there were disputes, tensions and a specific atrophy of the will of the nation's representatives: MPs and Senators,' he said. It was a peculiar paradox that for almost eight years of free Poland the abiding constitution - the highest act in the system of sources of law in the state - was the one that had been imposed on Poland during Stalin's times and which was alien to the Polish spirit in many of its elements. 'Eight years of discussions and disputes, including the dispute concerning 'invocatio Dei' that was for us, Christians, especially painful. It was a dispute about the reference to God's order that constituted the highest value and foundation of life for millions of people living in this land,' he explained.
From the treasure of thoughts of John Paul II
Archbishop Glodz quoted the words of John Paul II addressed to the nation's elite: the MPs and senators who were to decide about the shape and contents of the new constitution, on 3rd May 1991, 'The law established by man, by the human legislative authority, reflected the eternal Truth and eternal Justice that He himself is - God of Infinite Majesty: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.' Then Archbishop Glodz asked, 'How is this constitution functioning in our lives? What value does it constitute for us? Did its articles preserve any vivid contents? Do they reflect the reality? Are they not dead letter sometimes? The preamble to the constitution states that it was established 'as the basic law for the State, based on respect for freedom and justice…' The right to respect freedom. How do we define this right? How do we understand it and how do we apply it? Don't we too often forget that the right to freedom must not be separated from the laws of conscience, from the laws of the truth?' Archbishop Glodz encouraged the faithful to reflect whether they remembered this principle and preserved it in our homeland. He also referred to the famous words uttered by John Paul II in Skoczow in 1995, 'Poland needs people of conscience.' 'Then the Holy Father posed a concrete condition of Poland's better tomorrow: he called for people of conscience, indispensible and necessary, so that we would not waste the gift of freedom. He called to be watchful, not to yield to the currents of moral permissivism, to discover the liberating directions of Christ's Gospel and God's commandments. He warned us that 'using the mottoes of tolerance in public life and mass media much bigger intolerance is often spread' and its addressees were believers. That what is the biggest sanctity for them is mocked, and they are pushed to the margin of social life.
Follow the way of the truth
The Metropolitan of Gdansk encouraged people to return to the words spoken in Skoczow, 'Those whom the democratic system entrusted with responsibility for the fate of the state must follow the way of the truth. The truth should not be hidden; truth should not be manipulated and one cannot run away from the truth fearing that the opinion polls will be negative, that their positive image in the media will change. We already experienced - very painfully - the years of propaganda of success. We remember the dissonance between the created illusions and real life. Citizens' confidence is not won by impressive promises but by honesty even when one must admit failures and say to those who warn them that they were right. It is comfortable to accuse the opposition of all evil or negligence and to blame it for one's own failures. It leads to nowhere,' Archbishop Glodz said. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye? Jesus asks (Matthew 7:3).
Heritage
The Metropolitan of Gdansk criticised the present system of education for limiting the number of history lessons. 'The Constitution includes the obligation to pass to future generations all that is valuable in our over one thousand year old heritage.' Has this task been realised? Has the Polish school got a chance to fulfil it when the number of history lessons is limited?' he asked. The programme of sports stadiums will not make pupils love Poland. Perhaps a programme of young white eagles suggesting various attractive ways to discover, know and consolidate the Polish historical and cultural heritage will be helpful. Let us not console ourselves; let us not justify ourselves saying that the young generation of Poles is diametrically different from their predecessors, that their world is hermetic, built according to other vectors. Recollecting the words that Poland would be like the education of its young people Archbishop Glodz explained that schools and educational systems would be first of all guilty if we neglected patriotic education, if we did not care for the education of young people so that they would get to know the history and worth of places and communities they lived in, if they did not get to know the sense of being rooted in the tradition, culture and the signs of the past.
Archbishop Slawoj Leszek Glodz concluded with an appeal to the Polish Pope, 'Blessed John Paul II, you taught us what it meant to be Poles, how to connect our love of Homeland with our love of Christ and his Mother. Keep the Polish nation under your protection and bless us!'
"Niedziela" 20/2011