Father Casimir Wyszynski

Father Wyszyński recognizes this Marian aspect of Polish piety and characterizes it thus: “The Polish nation was endowed by Godwith a great love and devotion to the Blessed VirginMary. This great love and devotion is regarded by Poles as a gift from God and is one of the most characteristic and noble among the manymerits of the Kingdomof Poland. This fact is recognized by the whole world and accepted by almost all the neighboring na- tions. Our nation’s extraordinary love for Mary brought it about that she was declared the Queen of Poland. “In defense of Mary’s honor, Polish knights repeatedly fought the enemies of her holy Name, copiously spilling their blood on the battlefield with no regard for their lives and often arose tri- umphant. “All the men and women of faith proclaimed her glory in prayers, hymns, and songs, and in calling upon her intercession in their needs, trusting in her most efficacious help and protec- tion.” 158 In the first half of the 18 th century the level of theological works declined, because conditions during the Saxon era were not con- ducive to the development of theology. Devotional literature be- came dominant. Most often theMarian topicswere delivered from the pulpit in the form of panegyrics. References were extensively made toMariological bookswritten by foreign authors. 159 Among the Polish authors who delivered some original thinking, we should mention primarily Rev. Adrian Miaskowski (1657-1737) and Father Antoni Węgrzynowicz, OFM (1658-1721). 160 During the time of Venerable Casimir, “Bondage to Mary” or the practice of dedicating oneself as a slave toMary, was the dom- inant form of Marian devotion. It consisted in acknowledging Sprawa zasięgu społecznego , in: Z zagadnień kultury chrześcijańskiej , Lublin 1973, 447-454. 158 C. Wyszyński, Foreword to Morning Star , 15. 159 F. Bracha, Historia mariologii polskiej … , 475-477. 160 Cf. D. Mastalska, Teologiczny obraz Maryi Antoniego Węgrzynowicza OFM (1658-1721) , Niepokalanów 1994. 147 Apostle of the Immaculate Mary