George Matulaitis Journal

Poor of the Immaculate Conception; and a few years later, in Druja, Belarus, he founded another women’s Congregation – the Sister Handmaids of Jesus in Eucharist. For the seven years after 1918, he served as Bishop of Vilnius. The trials and difficulties he experienced as the bishop of Vilnius, notably the animosity of some Polish politicians towards him personally, led him to resign from the office. He went to Rome where he planned to totally dedi- cate himself to the work of the renewed Congregation of Marians. However, he left Rome shortly after his arrival, because the Pope named him arch- bishop and Apostolic Visitator to Lithuania. His difficult mission was to mend the rift between the Church and the government in Lithuania. After numerous negotiations with the new Lithuanian government, George pre- pared a draft of a Concordat. He sent it to Rome in early 1927. The Concordat was signed, however, after Archbishop George’s unexpected death on January 27, 1927. George was considered a saintly man. Even those who tried to remove him from Vilnius acknowledged his irreproachable behavior. On June 28, 1987, John Paul II beatified Archbishop George. The Journal’s entries cover the period from 1910 through his episcopal service in Vilnius. They were made in St. Petersburg, Rome and Fribourg, during his years of intense work to renew the Congregation of Marians, and in Vilnius during the trials of his years as bishop. His Journal reveals the heart of a man of faith, of a priest deeply loving Christ and the Church. Of all his writings, the Journal shows most clearly the spirituality of Blessed George and provides a window on his soul. It allows us to know this man of God, whose eyes were fixed on God. He was both a servant of the Church enkindled with an apostolic zeal, and a sensitive pastor, who with a caring eye saw the needs of his people, particularly the poor. But foremost, we dis- cover in the Journal a man consecrated to God, a religious who wished to spell out a road to holiness, both for himself and his confreres. Thus anyone, religious or lay, wishing to learn more about Blessed George, and more importantly, discover a spiritual director, will undoubted- ly reach this goal through reading his Journal . Blessed George’s journal notes can rightfully be called a short textbook for those striving for holiness. Rev. Wojciech Skóra, MIC 12