Lumen 2018

77 Stanislaus Papczynski’s Childhood and Youth welcomed her son returning home from school. She was proud of him and rejoiced in his accomplishments. The good son shared this joy with her, but he did not stay home long. He was seriously think- ing of dedicating himself completely to God and His Most Holy Mother. 153 Therefore, as Sydry 154 wrote, when his family found “a richly dowered girl” for him to marry and thus to settle in Pode- grodzie, he made a decision to leave the family nest. Then, towards the end of June of 1654, he made his way to Podoliniec in order to begin religious life at the Piarist Fathers. 155 It may seem that he took this step somewhat hastily, but the grace that is sent by the Holy Spirit does not like procrastination in important matters. He wanted to be faithful to this grace. He loved God and had already attained such a level of spiritual maturity that he was not afraid to make a final decision. A Calling from God We do not know all the motives which guided Papczynski as he chose to enter the order of the Piarist Fathers. We know that he came in touch with them when he studied syntax at their college in Podoliniec 156 from 1649 to 1650. It may have already been at that time that he decided to follow the path of religious life as a member of that very order. He was strongly influenced by a seminarian named Wenceslaus Opatowski of the Blessed Sacrament who hailed from Moravia. 157 At any rate, Papczynski called him later the author of his vocation. 158 When Papczynski studied in Podoliniec, he had an opportunity to meet this young teacher of poetics there. Opatowski impressed Papczynski with his proficiency in the art of rhetoric, that later be- came so dear to him. 159 He may have also been influenced by other Piarist Fathers in Podoliniec, as, for example, the saintly Fr. John Franco or Fr. Casimir Bogatko. 160 In any case, John Papczynski had a really good opportunity at that time to get to know the Piarists more intimately and to establish a spiritual bond with them. At that