Your fruit will remain

222 Rev. Andrzej Pakuła, M.I.C. CONGREGATION OF THE MARIAN FATHERS. HISTORY AND SPIRITUALITY 1 The Congregation of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary (Congregatio Clericorum Marianorum ab Immaculata Conceptione BVM: MIC) is a clerical monastic congregation founded in1673 in Poland by the Venerable Stanisłaus of Jesus and Mary Papczyński. It was confirmed by Inno- cent XII on 24 th November 1699 (breve “ Exponi nobis nuper ” on the Rule of Ten Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as the last congregation in Poland of the cler- ics regular with the final vows. It was renovated and reformed by Blessed George Matulaitis-Matulewicz (d.1927) in 1909 – 10. History The idea of the new Congregation was first presented by Stanisław Papczyński on 11 th December 1670 after he had left the Piarist Order and obtained the indult to do so. He performed an act of Oblation, in which he offered himself to God and the Virgin Mary, and promised to observe the monastic vows in the Congre- gation of the Marian Fathers of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He was convinced that the “Divine vision was engraved on his soul regarding the foundation of the Con- gregation of the Immaculate Conception of the BVM”. He also vowed a “vow of blood”, to be ready to give his own life in defence of the truth of the Immaculate Conception of the BVM. His particular aim was, above all, to spread the cult of the Immaculate Conception of the BVM. A few years later, he further formulated the aims: prayers for the departed, particularly for those who died suddenly and without preparation, i.e. soldiers and victims of pestilence; furthermore, assisting priests in their pastoral work, especially among the “simple folk” and the reli- giously neglected. Supported by Stefan Wierzbowski, Bishop of Poznań, Stanisłaus Papczyński settled in the Karski Estate in Lubocz, in Mazowsze (Mazuria). In 1671, he as- sumed the white habit in honor of the BVM. At the same time, he was working on 1 A shortened version of this article (regrettably with editorial errors) was published in: Encyklope- dia Katolicka (Catholic Encyclopaedia), t. XI, Lublin 2007, kol. 1353-1355.