Lumen 2018

limited the expenses of the papal court. 219 Because of all this, he earned the name of the father of the poor, an unselfish steward of the Church’s property, and a pious and just priest. 220 Perhaps Fr. Papczynski, too, exerted a beneficial influence on Pignatelli as his confessor, for the spiritual attributes of this famous penitent were also close to his own heart. The Role of a Confidant If, as Leporini claims, there were some bishops among Fr. Pa- pczynski’s penitents, it would be interesting to find out which one of those successors of the Apostles took advantage of his pastoral service in the confessional. One of them was John Gembicki, Bishop of Plock (1655-1674), 221 to whom Fr. Papczynski dedicated his pan- egyric written in 1666 and entitled Panegyris Lyrica . 222 It was Gem- bicki who invited Papczynski, residing in Cracow at that time, to come to Warsaw in 1670 to become his personal confessor. 223 He had already been Papczynski’s penitent and enjoyed his spiritual di- rection in the years 1663-1667 and 1668-1669. 224 The name of King John III Sobieski is also mentioned among Fr. Papczynski’s penitents. Initially, as a senator, he would go to confes- sion to Fr. Stanislaus during his stay in Warsaw. Later, when he be- came king, he saw Fr. Papczynski at every available opportunity and took advantage of his ministry as a confessor. One such opportunity were the king’s frequent visits at Nowa Jerozolima, where Sobieski would go for consultations with Bishop Wierzbowski. 225 Tradition maintains that John III Sobieski chose Fr. Papczynski to be his theologian, but this was not an official nomination, for it would have been officially confirmed in the documents. Such a choice would have meant that Fr. Stanislaus was the king’s confessor, advisor, and spiritual director at the same time. 226 S TANISLAUS P APCZYNSKI 132