Album of the Deceased Marian Fathers and Brothers

† A LBUM OF THE D ECEASED F ATHERS AND B ROTHERS † This can be said particularly about the latest editions, namely of the Album elaborated in Polish in Warsaw in the years 1988-1989 by Fr. John Bukowicz, MIC, and the Album that Fr. Casimir Krzyżanowski, MIC, composed in Italian in Rome in the years 1990-1991 (since then it has been updated with mementos of the deceased in 1992 and 1993). The reasons for the said differences are various. Although the authors had access to the same sources, they had sometimes different views in ascribing more credibility either to the Album of Skórzec or to that of Marijampolė, and thus adopted the textual differences existing in them. Often there are also differences in the length of the mementos. Under- standably, the Polish Album frequently presents more extensive text for promi- nent members of the Polish Province. The Roman Album dwells more on the particulars connected with the studies done by the deceased Marians in Rome or with their work in the Roman house, all the while trying to give appropriate attention to the Marians of the whole Congregation. And while, generally speak- ing, in both Albums there is clear effort to avoid creating lengthy texts (either in composing new mementos or revising existing texts), there seem to be different views as to what should be retained in them. Obviously, in many cases regarding the deceased “White Marians,” the mementos are very brief and cannot be enriched, because we simply do not know anything more about the deceased in question. But for the more recently deceased usually we know much more about their lives, merits and virtues, and in the case of some personages that lived long and accomplished many things in different countries and fields of endeavor, it is sometimes very difficult to omit some elements of their curriculum vitae and to make their mementos concise enough, that the reading of the Album in the refectory or in the chapel would not last too long. It is difficult to determine the origin and the language of the “Album of the Deceased Marians” used in our Province of St. Stanislaus Kostka (or in the Vice- Province that preceded it). It appears that at the beginning it was read in Latin, perhaps from a copy of the Roman Album. Later, the language employed was Polish, presumably from a copy of the Polish Album. Finally, in the 1950s, when our Province began to attract candidates lacking the knowledge of the Polish lan- guage, the Album started to be read in English translation. Recently, however, the need to have our English Album updated with more recent mementos and to have the previous ones abbreviated due to the growing volume of the Album, began to be more and more felt. Hence the idea of elabo- rating a new edition of this Album was conceived, gained universal approval, and the way to have it realized was found. 6