THERE IS NO PLACE FOR PASSIVITY
Michał Karnowski
On the day when I returned from the funeral Holy Mass for the late Fr. Prof. Stanisław Warzeszak – a priest engaged in a lot of endeavors, a theologian, an academic lecturer but, first of all, a parish priest of my parish church on Wrzecion under vocation of Immaculate Conception of Blessed Mary the Virgin, I found a fragment of a pronouncement of another priest, Adam Boniecki and his sentence: ‘These slogans about the need of stopping secularism are very sublime, but what will it particularly look like? Are we supposed to chase people towards churches, return to the oppressive model of Christianity from the Middle Ages?’
I thought regretfully that the late Fr. Stansiław Warzeszak had not taken Fr. Boniecki to his parish for a short time. He might have seen what could be used in practice, in the modern world, in the parish struggling with all problems and secularism of the modern world, in order to fight for hearts and souls of people. Firstly, with the Franciscans warm-heartedness, authentic invitation of everybody to Church, including those who have lost their relation with Church somewhere. I know people who accepted this invitation and thank God for the possibility of their return every day. Secondly, with this organization of the parish life which builds an offer for every group: seniors, children, youth. From pilgrimages, through family picnics, to numerous charity actions and everyday help to the poor and people in need. Always in the spirit of deepening faith and community. Thirdly, with proud and open experience about faith outside, in an estate community, at work, in every environment. And for this purpose a promotion of good Catholic media.
Is it a tip solving all problems? Certainly, it is not. Pressure of the outer world is terrible today, omnipresent and uncontrolled. Every parent knows about it. A lot of children, despite their parents’ efforts, having become adults, usually depart somewhere, lose their faith and often their relationship with their relatives. A priest I know once told a mother grieving for this reason: ‘Children are also children of their times. It is not always possible to break this bad spirit of the times’.
And he was right. However, all this does not acquit us from effort, a duty of being faithful, mobilized and self-organized. Therefore, we know, that our Catholic community used to undergo pressure which was much more terrible.
I am not writing it to contrast priests with one another, or bring people to conflict with one another. I am writing it to show that we are not doomed to capitulate towards the world. The bishop of Astana (the capital city of Kazakhstan) Tomasz Peta told me recently: ‘Here there used to be the Soviet Union, and here the Bible used to be prohibited. And today we have churches, we are, we pray and we work’. This perspective is also obliging.
And there is one more tip: the words of Fr. Boniecki are mentioned on the pages of a media which has been as far as possible since Christianity or for respect towards him, but it is chasing people away from churches and is developing extremely progressive offers about euthanasia and abortion.
Because where good and religious people give in, something different appears: the extreme leftist party, Islam – and both the first and the second one in most cases. There is no place for passivity here. Therefore, I would like to thank my Parish Priest who passed away at his very young age and suddenly, for everything what he did for his believers’ salvation. And I ask everybody to pray for His soul.
AA
„Niedziela” 39/2017