St Stan Illustrated Story

107 T he small group of Marians went through a difficult time after the death of Bishop Wierzbowski. Their opponents now began openly to urge the new Ordinary, Bishop Stanislaus Witwicki, to sup- press the small community. The danger for a time was indeed real. The new bishop, already somewhat prejudiced against the Marians, seemed to lend a willing ear to the calumnious accusations made against them. In 1688, faced with the hostile attitude of the bishop, his superior, Fr. Papczynski began to wonder whether God wanted this undertaking of his to continue. He was even ready, if God so willed, to return to the Piarists. In time, however, Bishop Witwicki came to see that all the accusa- tions against the Marians were unfounded, and his own attitude to the Fathers gradually changed. He was finally quite won over when in 1690, Fr. Stanislaus dedicated his book, entitled The Suffering Christ (Christus Patiens), to him. Nevertheless, the difficulties experienced by the Marians at this time served to remind them how uncertain was the future of a religious community founded on diocesan statutes alone. Consequently, in 1690, the Saint went to Rome in the hope of ob- taining apostolic (i.e., papal) approbation for his Institute. It was a dif- ficult, tiring, and uncertain venture, yet one that he deemed absolutely necessary, for only apostolic approbation would assure the Congre- gation of the stability and security that it needed and enable it to look forward to growth and development.