MARIANS IN 1670-1788 122 the Cieciszowski family decided — with great sadness — to entrust the crucifix to the care of the Marian Fathers at their new little church in Skórzec. The crucifix was delivered in a solemn procession, attended by a large group of the faithful. In the two-day celebration that followed, a paralyzed teenage boy203 was healed during the Holy Mass. The Marians carefully recorded this event and others in the Book of Miracles. Only the third volume of that book has survived because the first two were burned along with the church and monastery during two great fires. Skórzec was located in the Liw area, in the parish of Niwiska, one of the largest in the Poznań diocese, in the sparsely populated Mazovia region. Amidst the forests, new settlements were emerging far from churches, thus lacking constant religious care. The Marian priests, with the title of “Order providing assistance to the deceased and supporting parish priests,” having established themselves in an area devoid of other monasteries, seamlessly integrated into the local environment and the his advice on finding a painter. The monk declared that he himself would gladly undertake the restoration of the Crucifix. Although there was no sign that he had paints or any other necessary tools for the restoration, he told the castellan that he needed nothing except for the castellan to go to his palace. The castellan left, leaving the monk alone in the chapel for prayer. As the dinner hour approached, the castellan sent a servant to invite the guest to the table. When the servant entered the chapel, he found the Crucifix already restored, but the monk was nowhere to be found. When he reported this to the castellan, all the household members gathered to admire the meticulously and perfectly restored Crucifix. They searched everywhere for the monk to invite him to the meal and reward him appropriately, but there was no trace of him. From that moment on, a growing reverence and devotion towards the Cross emerged, and as a result, miracles began to happen, more than one. After a priest [J. Przygodzki], the canon of the Kamieniec cathedral, built a monastery and a church for us in Skórzec, not far away, perhaps a mile from the castellan’s manor and when the foundation was completely finished in 1718 [a mistake: it should be 1713], the crucifix in the castellan’s chapel began to cry. Everyone, disturbed by this miracle, asked various priests and our religious brothers to pray fervently for God’s Mercy, lest this crying foretell some misfortune. When this strange sign repeated itself from time to time, and the tears flowed one after another, our and other important personalities convinced the castellan that perhaps Christ the Lord wanted His image to be transferred to the Marian church [in Skórzec]. Indeed, these tears continued until the castellan, urged by Christ, decided to transfer very solemnly the Crucifix to our church. When the cross was placed in our specially prepared church, it began to be renowned for great miracles and continues to be renowned, attracting a large number of people. It is now venerated not through tears but by for wiping away the tears of all tormented people. Evidently, Christ has chosen to dwell with the religious of His dearest Mother, Mary.” Positio, Papczyński, p. 714, [transl. from Latin by Father Cz. Fajkowski]; see Wyszyński, Stróż, pp. 139-140. 203 ASD, Description of miracles of Our Lord Jesus Christ Crucified at the church of Marian Fathers in Skórzec, 1791; cf. Wyszyński, Stróż, pp. 138-140.
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