Father Casimir Wyszynski

Upon obtaining the information, the Nuncio sent news to the Vatican, confirming that in some dioceses, especially in places dis- tant from the episcopal see, there were indeed incidents of mal- practice that corroborated the facts of the deplorable situation mentioned in the petition. In viewof the approaching Easter holy day, he decided to write to the Bishops on behalf of the Holy Fa- ther, calling them to put an end to these practices. If this did not help, then more effective measures would need to be applied ac- cording to the instructions of the Holy Father. The idea of sending such a letter to all the bishops in Poland was considered. How- ever, in the end it was decided against this motion, since such a letter could unduly hurt those bishops in whose dioceses there were no such abuses. Amonth later, onMarch 8, 1753, the Nuncio wrote to the Sec- retary of State, givingmore detailed information about misdeeds. They took place mainly in the dioceses of Gniezno, Krakow, Ku- jawy, Poznan, Płock and Łuck. Apart from the Bishop of Poznan, who had aspirations for extraordinary titles and who for a year did not reply to the Nuncio’s letters, other Bishops responded about the matter of those abuses. Special edicts were issued in print and made public in individual dioceses. Copies of these edicts were sent to Rome. The Bishops of Kujawy and Płock, who had taken over dioceses only recently, did not manage to collect information on the matter. The Nuncio promised to gather fur- ther information through trusted people, especially in regard to misdeeds that happened during Easter the year before. The Nuncio’s letter of May 28, 1753, was read to the Holy Fa- ther in Castel Gandolfo in June of the same year. Benedict XIV stated that he would write a special letter to the Nuncio on the matter of the misdeeds in Poland. We failed to uncover in the archives the Holy Father’s letter to the Nuncio. But another of the Pope’s letters to theNuncio datedMay 5, 1753, was found. By this letter the Pope encouraged his representative in Poland to write case concerning proper administration of the sacrament of penance before Easter on the basis of Vatican documents. See Czcigodny Sługa Boży Kazimierz Wyszyński … , 163-164. 62 Z YGMUNT P ROCZEK , MIC, P H D