The Marian Martyrs of Rosica

102 The Marian Martyrs of Rosica The sun was setting and we had to return. A small group of people met in front of the house of Miss Helenka — the tertiary and caretaker of the church. It was time to leave when they started to sing: “Don’t abandon us, don’t abandon us, Jesus, don’t abandon us ...” “How could we abandon them?” “No! We won’t abandon them. We’ll come back!” In fact, circumstances would make us come back. We celebrated the main fair in Druja properly on December 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and a few days later we set out for Rosica with my own cart and mare. Two Sisters, Fr. Leszczewicz, and myself went out for unusual missions. Nobody had ever dreamed about this, and now it was real! Everything is possible with God! THE RETURN TO ROSICA In Rosica, the church was thoroughly cleaned so that not a trace was left of the cinema, which the communists had installed when they seized the church. The partitions, ceilings, beams, boards — everything was secured. There were only holes left in the walls where the beams had been. The Roman architecture of the church showed off its splendid lines. The acoustics were perfect. The side altars, which had been made of wood, had been destroyed; and there was nothing left of the high altar. So, it was necessary to build new ones. There was material available. One day about 30 men showed up to work. Out of sturdy beams, we made altar steps, a strong podium, and the altar. We built a tall table out of boards which we then covered with dark burgundy cloth. Thus, a relatively large altar was created with a picture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Visibility was great. I was good with an ax, so the good old man Kuryksza came to me and said: “Father, you'll never go hungry!” They were proud of the work, and this was our bond.