Blessed Angela Truszkowska

[gardenmoma]

FYI

October 11, 2006
Blessed Angela Truszkowska - Co-Foundress of the Felician Sisters
(1825-1899)

Today we honor a woman who submitted to God's will throughout her life—a life filled with pain and suffering.

Born in 1825 in central Poland and baptized Sophia, she contracted tuberculosis as a young girl. The forced period of convalescence gave her ample time for reflection. Sophia felt called to serve God by working with the poor, including street children and the elderly homeless in Warsaw's slums. In time, her cousin joined her in the work.

In 1855, the two women made private vows and consecrated themselves to the Blessed Mother. New followers joined them. Within two years they formed a new congregation, which came to be known as the Felician Sisters. As their numbers grew, so did their work, and so did the pressures on Mother Angela (the new name Sophia took in religious life).

Mother Angela served as superior for many years until ill health forced her to resign at the age of 44. She watched the order grow and expand, including missions to the United States among the sons and daughters of Polish immigrants.

Pope John Paul II beatified her in 1993.

copied from St. Anthony Messenger "Saint of the Day"
www.AmericanCatholic.org

[jeanne]

Very interesting. Thank you for that info. I'm always interested in learning about Polish saints!

[gardenmoma]

10/13

Jeanne and others,

I have a poster...can not remember where I bought it...of Our Lady of Czech... surrounded by "Polish Saints."

When husband and I taught 7th grade CCD (Sunday school / relgious ed) we would display it for All Saints Day, and then I would talk a little about the Polish saints. I always figured that since most of the students were of Polish descent and our parish is nominally a Polish one (with a pastor of French descent), it would be nice for the students to learn a little about saints other than the "typical" ones.

GM

[jeanne]

Gardenmoma,

The poster sounds interesting, do you remember who some of the "Saints" were? I don't know how long ago that was that you had it, but it is also interesting to think who would have been added since then, Sister Faustina, Maximillian Kolbe, JP II (though not official yet)? Quite alot for one small country like Poland!

[gardenmoma]

Jeanne and all,

I will do some digging over the weekend to see if I still have the poster...I gave away a lot of my CCD stuff when we had to quit teaching due to husband's illness.

The poster would have been made within the last 5-10 years as we stopped teaching only two years back.

GM

[jeanne]

Gardenmoma,

I'm surprised that the poster is only 5 to 10 years old. I thought it would be much older - it sounds like something that would have hung in the Polish church in Boston where I made my first Communion in the late 50's!

[bujno]

jeanne said:

Gardenmoma,

The poster sounds interesting, do you remember who some of the "Saints" were? I don't know how long ago that was that you had it, but it is also interesting to think who would have been added since then, Sister Faustina, Maximillian Kolbe, JP II (though not official yet)? Quite alot for one small country like Poland!

Today, the 17th October, is an especially good day to remind Maximillian Kolbe since he was canonized on this day in 1982.



Maximilian Kolbe was a Polish Franciscan friar. During World War II he was arrested by the German Gestapo and imprisoned in the infamous Pawiak in Warsaw and sen to Auschwitz afterwards.

In July 1941, a man from Kolbe's bunker had vanished, prompting Karl Fritzsch, the Lagerführer, to pick 10 men from the same bunker to be starved to death in the notorious torture block, Block 11, in order to deter further escape attempts. The man who had disappeared was later found drowned in the camp latrine. One of the selected men, Franciszek Gajowniczek, cried out, lamenting his family, and Kolbe volunteered to take his place.

After two weeks of starvation, only four of the ten men were still alive, including Kolbe. The cells were needed, and Kolbe and the other three were executed with an injection of carbolic acid in the left arm

[jeanne]

Bujno,

Thanks for that reminder. Also, wasn't yesterday a special day in Poland dedicated to JP II, it being the anniversary of his election to the Papacy?

[bujno]

jeanne said:

Bujno,

Thanks for that reminder. Also, wasn't yesterday a special day in Poland dedicated to JP II, it being the anniversary of his election to the Papacy?

Yes very much. And it was a good day, almost no politics in the media, just a peacful and reflective memories. We have also had the Polish premiere of the film about John Paul II, featuring Piotr Adamczyk - "Karol- papie¿, który pozosta³ cz³owiekiem" (Karol- the pope who was always a man")
Here's a trailer

film.onet.pl/11729,39414,1,0,1,zwiastuny.html

Sorry about the corrupt link, it should be pasted...

[jeanne]

Bujno,

Unfortunately, I could not get that link to come up. I'm pretty bad with the computer. I wonder if this is a film which will make it to the U.S.?

[bujno]

Jeanne, try this link to the trailer, please:

tinyurl.com/y2rkth

I hope it should work correctly now, just click on the above link and wait for a shorter or longer while depending on the computer you use.

[gardenmoma]

Bujno,

Thank you for the reminder about M. Kolbe...I visited Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II (Birkenau) for an afternoon this last summer. I have a picture of the cell which I will try to post later tonight.

GM

[jeanne]

Bujno,

The second link worked fine. Thanks!

[gardenmoma]

Here is the photo of the The Cell of Maximilan Kolbe at Auschwitz - August, 2006



I am sorry it is so small...I'll try to load it to another site and see if that is any better.

GM

[bujno]

gardenmoma said:

I'll try to load it to another site and see if that is any better.

GM

Please do