The Rule of Life

Informative Preface 1 1. This Congregation of the Immaculate Conception, about which we provide to you, most benevolent reader, this informa- tion, was canonically erected in the eremitical status 2 by Bishop StephenWierzbowski, Ordinary of Pozna ń and elect Archbishop of Gniezno, who has laudably passed through this life. The Con- gregation was endowed with certain indulgences and a Confra- ternity by theMost Holy Father Pope Innocent XI of happy mem- ory 3 , and it was approved and assumed in perpetual protection by the most august and invincible Prince John III, most happily reigning King of Poland 4 together with the whole Polish Re- public in the General Diet celebrated in Warsaw in 1677. 5 2. [...] the life of Hermits ... is approved in the status of pen- itents [...]. Hence they do not need any approval, once they are admitted juridically and canonically by an Ordinary of the place. 1 This Preface was written by Blessed Stanislaus Papczy ń ski probably in 1697, when the Marians were getting the Rule of Life ready for publication. In fact, on Feb. 20, 1698, they obtained the necessary imprimatur from Bishop Nic. Pop ł awski, but the text was not printed, because after the death of Bishop Witwicki (March 4, 1908) the Marians decided to try once again to obtain pontifical approval for their Institute (the present Norma Vitae would have had to be updated, if this effort were to meet with success). 2 The date of the canonical erection: April 21, 1679. See the text of the document in Positio , pp. 392-400. 3 The reference is made to the breve “Cum Sicut accepimus” of March 20, 1681. This was the first pontifical recognition of the Marians. In fact, it is difficult to see in the breve of the indulgences the asserted con- cession of a Confraternity of the Marinas. It is true that the text contains the phrase “Confraternity of the Faithful”, but it seems that it crept into it only by inadvertance of the one who was writing the breve . None- theless Bishop Wierzbowski (and the Marians) concluded from this phrase that the Holy See gives permission to establish a Confraternity. Accordingly, from that time on, the Marians started to erect the “Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception assisting the souls of the faithful departed” at their own churches; cf. below, Ch. VII, n. 8. See the text of the breve in Positio , pp. 404-409. 4 Blessed Stanislaus speaks here about King John Sobieski (1674-1696). 5 The document of the Approval is published in Positio , pp. 376-78.