Lumen 2018

devastation that it left behind. About 2,000 people died then in the neighboring villages, out of which 165 people were in Podegrodzie alone. More than 1,600 people in Nowy Sacz fell victim to the epi- demic, while in Stary Sacz that number exceeded 2,300. 20 Cultural and religious life flourished in Podegrodzie and the area. A school existed at the parish in Podegrodzie, but the date of its es- tablishment is unknown. Throughout the ages, it continued to grow and develop; it had 174 students in 1890. In 1909, a theater and a folk choir were established at the school. It was even earlier, already in 1892, that a School of Country Housewives was also established. In 1929, its name was changed to the School of Agriculture and it still exists today. Religious fraternities like, for example, the Fraternity of St. Anne, the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Fraternity, the Perpetual Adoration of the Eucharist Fraternity, the Holy Rosary Fraternity, Our Lady of Perpetual Help Fraternity, played an important role in the life of the parish. There were also two religious associations: Catholic Action and the Eucharistic Crusade. 21 A hospital adjacent to the church 22 operated here since 1586. Podegrodzie Today The Gospel, which has been proclaimed here almost since the be- ginning of the existence of the Polish state, permeated the souls of the local folk, which found an expression in the numerous wayside chapels scattered about the surrounding hills. In Podegrodzie itself there still exists a small stone church under the invocation of St. Anne, built in 1631. A tablet with an inscription: To commemorate the 500 th anniversary of the victory at Grunwald 1410-1910 was af- fixed onto the front wall of the sanctuary on the right side. Above the entrance, there is a picture of Our Lady of Czestochowa. Linden and acacia trees grow around the little church and everything is en- circled by a stone wall. A picture of St. Anne, together with the Blessed Mother and Infant Jesus, adorns the baroque altar. Mary in a crown is holding a scepter, Jesus is holding an orb, and St. Anne is S TANISLAUS P APCZYNSKI 46