Theological Foundations new file

14 Theological Foundations of the community, who created a particular model of meeting and expe- riencing God, that left its mark on the religious order giving it its spe- cific character. 4 Comprehensive studies of the history of a religious order and its character allow us to understand better and to fathom to a certain degree the very ideal of Christian life. It seems very useful and worth- while for us to conduct such studies on our native soil. As the first reli- gious order founded in Poland, the Congregation of Marians, founded in 1673 by Stanislaus Papczynski and renovated by George Matulaitis- Matulewicz in 1909, merits our special attention. Although the congre- gation has been in existence for over three centuries now, its spiritual heritage is little known and insufficiently researched. And yet, both the Founder of the Marians, the Venerable Servant of God Stanislaus, and its Renovator, Blessed George, were considered holy men by their con- temporaries. Their holiness was reflected in their writings which emanate the true spirit of the Gospel, and are based both on experience and intense spiritual lives. Both the Founder and the Renovator of the Marians knew how to interpret the signs of the times and each sought ways to meet the needs of his contemporary world. They both managed to avoid the errors pre- sent in the Catholic moral teaching of their times. 5-6 They were able to see those truths of the Gospel, which hold true in every age but which merit special emphasis during a particular period of history. Such an approach is considered appropriate even today as we discuss the need for a new evangelization. Therefore, it is entirely justifiable that we become acquainted more closely with the spiritual legacy of these men, the most prominent of Marians. Their writings contain a lot of elements drawn from the rich heritage of Christian tradition. They provide vari- ous moral guidelines; the guidelines known to Christian asceticism and mysticism, which lead to union with God. They speak about the hard work undertaken in order to attain Christian perfection and obtain sal- vation through the control of one’s desires and self denial. They call to penance, to fighting sin, to conversion, to prayer and to acquiring virtues. Since, as I have already mentioned, the majority of these guide-