1221 litterae ad p. alexium armini, s.p. 8. Litterae ad P. Alexium Armini, S.P. Neo-Jerosolymae, 23 Martii 1688. Introduction Father Papczyński wrote this letter to resolve his doubt: whether he was to continue in the Congregation of Marians of the Immaculate Conception that he had founded, or seek to return to the Piarists. Such a doubt arose in him because of two external factors: on the one hand, after the death of Bishop Wierzbowski (March 6, 1687), the great protector of the Marian Congregation, there was no one who would defend this Congregation against the attacks of those seeking to annihilate it (in fact, Bishop Witwicki,298 successor to Bishop Wierzbowski, allowed himself to be convinced that the Congregation had no legal basis for its existence and it seemed ready to be eliminated). On the other hand, more and more Marians were leaving the Congregation, for it was easy to find confessors who would release them from simple vows, as, at that time, they were often considered simply promises. So, Fr. Papczyński wondered if all of this was a sign that God did not want the Congregation he was founding to continue to exist? If Fr. Armini told him he should remain in the Congregation despite all threats to its existence, he would. But if Fr. Armini advised him to leave the sinking boat of his Congregation and return to the Piarists, he would take that as a sign that God Himself was behind all that was seeming to lead to the destruction of the Marian Congregation. We do not know for certain how this letter was responded to, but it seems that Fr. Armini advised him to stay in his place and do everything possible to lead the Congregation out of the crisis. It is certain that Fr. Papczyński did not seek to return to the Piarists and undertook steps to save his Congregation. 298 John Stanislaus Witwicki (ca. 1630-1698), successively the bishop of Kiev, Lutsk, and the Ordinary of Poznań (1687-1698). Cf. Pisma Zebrane, p. 1273, n. 4.
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