Lumen 2018

Polish forms of worship as, for instance, Gorzkie Zale [Lamenta- tions], the Stations of the Cross and various forms of the cult of the Blessed Mother whose peak manifestation was the coronation of the Jasna Gora icon in 1717. Undoubtedly, these new forms of de- votion helped to support the religious zeal of the wide masses of society; they helped the people to come closer to Christ, to the mys- tery of His birth and Passion. It is in the 17 th century that such Christmas carols as Lulajze Jezuniu, W dzien Bozego Narodzenia [On Christmas Day] or the Passion songs like Jezu Chryste, Panie Mily [O, Jesus Christ, Beloved Lord], Ogrodzie Oliwny [O, Olive Garden] and Stala Matka Bolesciwa [The Sorrowful Mother Stood ...] 21 take their beginning. Father Stanislaus Papczynski’s activity coincided with the period in Polish history when the attitudes of intolerance towards Protes- tants were on the increase. Such attitudes were also evident with re- gard to the followers of the Russian Orthodox Church and Fr. Papczynski recorded it in his writings. The rights of the religious mi- norities became seriously limited, which forced the representatives of the non-Catholic denominations to seek help outside the borders of the Republic of Poland, often among her enemies. Such a situation resulted in some very drastic legal measures as, for instance, the res- olution about the banishment of Arians, the ban on abandoning the Catholic religion (punishable by death), the ban on the conferring of rights or titles of nobility on non-Catholics. In spite of such meas- ures, the persecution of adherents to other faiths in Poland did not assume such large proportions as, for example, in France. In most cases, these people risked losing their estates and being exiled. What was, then, the Republic of Poland during Fr. Stanislaus Pa- pczynski’s lifetime like? It could be splendid and magnanimous, but it could also be reckless and wasteful. George Ossolinski, an envoy of the Republic of Poland, sent by King Ladislaus IV to Rome in 1633, daz- zled the residents of the Eternal City by the splendor of his entourage. In her book about Fr. Papczynski, Mary Starzynska beautifully describes this triumph of the Polish style and pride: Introduction 37