52 the youth as he had.’” (Fr. Jan Bukowicz, MIC, Wprowadzenie do Dziennika Duchowego, in: George Matulewicz, Journal, Marian Fathers Publishing House, 1988, p. 17.) Meditation What does the date of August 29, 1909 mean to us? It marks the meeting in Warsaw of Bishop Kazimierz Ruszkiewicz, the representative of the Holy See for clandestine Orders, and Fr. George Matulaitis-Matulewicz, making his religious vows before the last General of the Order, Father Vincent Sękowski, while Fr. Francis Buczys, also present at this meeting, is being admitted to the novitiate, all with the consent of Pope Pius X. We consider this date as the moment of the renewal of the Congregation of Marian Fathers. Less than two years later, in April 1911, Fr. V. Sękowski dies, and in July, Fr. G. Matulewicz is elected in his place as the Superior General of the Order. What vision of the Church, and especially of the renewed religious community, does the new General of the Order share with his companions and later his confreres in the Marian vocation? What elements of this vision represent a return to Fr. Stanislaus Papczyński’s founding charism, and what elements show its creative development? How do we recognize God’s presence in this vision, and what practical challenge does it present to us today, in the subsequent year of our reflection on the four-century-long tradition of our Congregation? The purpose of this conference is not a historical study of the decline and renewal of our religious community. We are much more interested in God’s constant new actions in the Congregation’s current times, as was once experienced by Blessed G. Matulaitis-Matulewicz. Let us try to outline a few elements of God’s presence in our present day. The above excerpts from Blessed George’s Journal first show an outline of some of his spiritual and natural struggles. We know that his sufferings caused by his tuberculosis of the bone, which was never-cured, were increased by the burden of his episcopal duties. In fulfilling them during the difficult process of the Republic of Poland’s regaining its independence, he had to face fierce struggles between the political par-
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