Father Casimir Wyszynski

fruit. Sadly however, Father Casimir did not live to see that day. He died on October 21, 1755. Father Casimir was a truly faithful spiritual son of Father Stanislaus Papczyński. He constantly spoke about himwith great love and fervently strove for his elevation to the altars. For the Marians of the present day he stands as an example of someone who, imitating Father Founder, fulfills the ideal of religious per- fection and striving for holiness. The Servant of God Casimir followed in the footsteps of Father Stanislaus Papczynski as a great venerator of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s Immaculate Conception. His devotion found its expression primarily in his endeavor to live faithfully and zealously the guidelines of the Rule of The Imitation of the Ten Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary as adapted to the Marian by-laws. He also made efforts to ascertain that his confreres and all the faithful would strive for holiness under the protection and guidance of the Immaculate Virgin. He had the highest regard for the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, still dogmatically undefined at that time. He lived out this truth and to promote it he was ready to go to the ends of the earth to tell people about this great privilege with which God endowed the Mother of His Son and our Mother. Elaborating on the sentence from the Apocalypse: “I will give him the Morning Star” (Rev 2: 28—Douay-Rheims), Father Casimir provided in his preface to the work of Francis Arias, SJ, an excellent discourse on devotion to Mary in Poland, indicating itsmanymanifestations and emphasizing the essence of its prac- tice. 263 He writes about the need to ground this devotion in good theology and explain its various forms so as to draw attention to themost important aspect of devotion toMary— imitation of the Holy Mother, which he calls the “best part" of this devotion. 264 In letters addressed to his confreres during his tenure as Su- perior General, Father Wyszyński frequently returned to the im- 263 Stróż duchowego dziedzictwa marianów …, 24. 264 Ibid, 26. 175 Faithful Venerator of the Marian Founder