MARIANS IN 1670-1788 60 The Marians received holdings in swampy, muddy areas; as a result, the local church building was so severely flooded year after year that it could be reached only by boat in springtime. Fr. Papczyński, whose whole life was holy, evangelical, and poor, paid no heed to the site’s drawbacks. Led by the idea that he was working for the glory of God, he hoped to do everything with help from Heaven. Their firm belief in Divine Providence gave them the energy to carry on. Fr. Papczyński engaged in arduous physical labor to drain the swamps alongside his brethren. They dug ponds and ditches and, through immense effort, improved the marshes and wastelands. The land became more accessible, but soon, the local peasants began to assert claims to the organized land. Harassment and persecution of the Marian Fathers started, including several incidents of Fr. Papczyński being physically assaulted. Then Bishop Wierzbowski issued a decree in defense of the Marians, stating that “this swamp is drained through the hard work of the aforesaid Congregation, established at the Cenacle, and therefore no one can claim any right to those grounds except for the said Congregation.” Then he added with a certain amount of admiration: “Everything, including the lake and the ponds, was put in order through the strenuous manual labor of the religious as mentioned above, Cleric Recollects.”17 Although the Cenacle in New Jerusalem was a modest foundation, it was like a wide window to the world for the Marian Fathers in the early years of their existence. Numerous religious orders, influential benefactors, and the renowned Passion Sanctuary attracted ordinary pilgrims and many significant figures of the Commonwealth. King John III Sobieski and bishops, senators, and writers were among them.18 This allowed the Marian Fathers to meet with these individuals, promote their Order, and gain benefactors. Witnesses in the beatification process testified that Fr. Papczyński had heard the confessions of King John Sobieski and some bishops and senators. Bishop Wierzbowski, when erecting the Marian Order canonically in 1679, released the institution in Góra from provisions that characterized it as penitential-eremitic, ordering as follows: “We believe and decide that the regulations con17 S. Sydry, O. Stanisław, p. 154; Navikevicius, Appendix, 26, pp. 41-42. 18 APS 10 f. 165v. Evidence of Father Cyprian Fijałkowski; f. 251v. Evidence of Father Dionysius Kisieliński.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjI2Mw==