In God’s Hands: The Spiritual Diaries of Pope St John Paul II
Литагент HarperCollins
The spiritual diaries of Pope St John Paul II – published for the first time ever in English. The most intimate insight into the longest-serving pontiff of our time.Ten years after his death, the popularity and devotion towards John Paul II, the pope who helped bring down communism in his native Poland, the great statesman, and the most-travelledpope in history, remains as strong as ever.Since his early years as a priest in the 1960s, up until 2003, two years before his death, the pope kept a spiritual diary, recording his reflections on God, life, spirituality, theproblems facing the church – and his own struggles.Never intended for publication, these diaries were entrusted before his death to his personal secretary, who saw fit to have them published as they represent an unprecedented and important testament to the spirituality of this Christian leader, adored to this day by Catholics and non-Catholics alike.
Copyright (#ulink_8c9c8ea3-113e-53bb-995f-f996b06b793b)
William Collins
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This eBook edition published by William Collins in 2017
Copyright © Centrum Jana Pawła II ‘Nie lękajcie się’ 2017
English translation © Dr Joanna Rzepa 2017
Znak Publishing House on behalf of the author hereby asserts the author’s moral right to be identifed as the author of this work
Cover photo by Gianni Giansanti, Corbis
A catalogue copy for this book is available from the British Library.
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Source ISBN: 9780008101053
eBook Edition © February 2017 ISBN: 9780008101060
Version: 2018-02-08
Contents
Cover (#ub3c7449c-c52d-5555-a34b-84e1d55e1f18)
Title Page (#u6ba344e4-3d6c-52f9-96e9-4372fff3395e)
Copyright (#ud7d3f048-2733-5587-bca6-5d41f7e17eac)
Introduction by the Archbishop of Cardiff, George Stack (#u690214a5-b036-5d59-b17c-88015f9f2e2e)
Introduction to the Polish Edition (#ue39e8507-aec1-55c1-a87d-4cae0822cb37)
Preface by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Kraków, Stanisław Cardinal Dziwisz (#u7511847f-dce9-5c74-9c41-b7d572a5861f)
The Secret of Father Karol Wojtyła – Pope John Paul II’s Spiritual Notes (#ub41646f4-ee3a-5e82-961a-3e1f618ba96f)
The Retreats (#ua40406b4-4250-5270-bbbc-689471946b88)
1962 (#u3b16524d-524b-531d-bbed-89387a6c206a)
1962 (#uc8fae0b0-a079-5a49-ae37-d9467b4edffb)
[31 October – 4 November] 1962 (#u2fa3c421-aac7-5033-b3fc-d7c1cc1acf24)
6–7 July 196? [probably 1963] (#uf56af10a-9a6f-51d5-b45a-266ffaeee746)
19–23 [August] 1963 (#u9623d7b4-1289-5e1e-9f39-18f5d9faf25d)
[5–8] March 1964 (#uba991c7d-b719-5007-a67c-1c2377a0de7b)
31 August – 3 September 1964 (#u2596cc89-b41a-58ce-a1fe-a03c64b0e4a6)
17–20 [August] 1965 (#uf69ae866-56ed-52f4-8bcc-a8f7b204759a)
[19]64 (65?) (#u931379a6-a19e-5f2d-8fa3-f4233be9a9e7)
31 October – 1 November 1966 (#ub27d9c4f-237b-5810-93f9-c241ece27628)
19–21 December 1966 (#u8f19b8dc-3642-5c64-bd92-9c18d9a388ff)
29 February 1968 (#u904ce43a-bfbc-51aa-b0e0-c2aa99ffb7b0)
11–14 September 1968 (#u22f16022-dbf7-5902-a7e6-50ddf0f43f82)
9–13 August 1969 (#uccbca14c-9048-50a4-93f2-9db915c52649)
4–7 November 1970 (#u9235e727-912c-530a-91a8-a31accc6d6e5)
1–5 September 1971 (#ub2b72c95-55cc-5d82-b184-acd845bbed0f)
5–6 July 1973 (#u706e3db3-b920-54f9-9bc5-b47afb45a740)
9–12 August 1973 (#u760aafa6-d895-53c8-9813-fb6b4b786ee2)
1974 (#uf76522c6-11f3-5591-939b-f42fb476682e)
[3–7 September] 1974, The Holy Year (#uf5e3e641-d069-5cb0-975d-e34afd748b14)
4–8 July 1975 (#ud184b759-daf9-5c2c-a04e-07b2a738a5ec)
21–26 September 1976 (#u5dea9d58-8bba-5051-9831-5eddf23cdf29)
5–9 July 1977 (#u40fae218-d8a2-5329-ac99-474a34e70510)
26–29 June 1978 (#uc0510bf4-ba8e-579e-8ed7-67ed02e87f55)
[October 1978] (#ued37724a-d162-56a2-a1be-bc8c969aac78)
4–10 March 1979 (#ueeec3d53-f434-5dc0-a415-be02179590f8)
24 February – 1 March [1980] (#u91a6a2ec-2fac-53dc-bd6d-607db5ba4d29)
8–14 March 1981 (#ua48fff81-a3d6-5208-ae7f-605f5400dfaf)
28 February – 6 March 1982 (#u3f78c039-a59b-5746-bb7f-cd90b6d08cfb)
20–26 February 1983 (#u10f4fc9b-64b3-5127-9b2f-9ac1cd7fcca2)
11–17 March 1984 (#u0817c668-dc4f-53a6-9faa-2d10e13b51e1)
24 February – 2 March 1985 (#ud06999a0-617a-5b62-a07a-cadd42ffb5cf)
16–22 February 1986 (#ua0a737ba-cdd9-59fb-8015-c67d236003b8)
8–14 March 1987 (#uc815cfcc-8523-5221-aa58-59050d8c62cd)
21–27 February 1988 (#ua74ab9b2-fdc6-5da5-83e3-d38f7683541f)
12–18 February 1989 (#ud670df4e-4e17-5c9b-ac6b-bacf263659fc)
4–10 March 1990 (#u7f84459f-8be4-5f52-b4e7-a9f0a081f62d)
17–23 February 1991 (#u3f671a37-98b1-5b48-96ff-0a89ea8f291a)
8–14 March 1992 (#u800f5d90-63f4-54a9-9ddc-5eb8f71d4ee6)
28 February – 6 March 1993 (#uf31a61d4-7ce6-50ec-b7e9-6e3de74ec8c3)
20–[26] February 1994 (#u54305a36-6afb-518d-9267-4aab6b903984)
5–11 March 1995 (#ueca1e79b-b38a-5293-83ef-bcb47533d1d0)
25 February – [2] March 1996 (#uea4f1a98-2128-5f3f-b4cc-b7a49063abd6)
16–22 February 1997 (#ufe3a7d8a-cc17-5148-96c9-d63900d44f42)
1–7 March 1998 (#u6c236b83-974a-5a60-b7fd-f1a4a0cb13ad)
21–27 February 1999 (#ud911a20d-e932-503a-b05a-031b78c1ae81)
12–18 March 2000 (#u533c1906-c2ea-5292-97ed-38a2918c9d25)
4–10 March 2001 (#u6d850b49-c80b-56af-a2c1-34d59f6edfe3)
17–23 February 2002 (#u0727262b-25db-5ee5-ae3c-83aeae162efc)
9–15 March 2003 (#ub3aade63-d95b-5582-92ad-5485174498b0)
Footnotes (#ua027f7a6-0766-503c-8edc-25ec970b6916)
About the Author (#u5ff719b6-0eb0-57a3-9dd7-5af5bab527a4)
About the Publisher (#u5e446b75-1cd5-5042-92bf-9d7747bbb0f9)
Introduction (#ulink_9235212e-c15a-5e3a-b769-1847e00b4ed8)
Not since the publication of Journal of a Soul, the spiritual autobiography of Pope John XXIII, have we had such privileged access into the spirituality of a pope. This is what we have been given with the publication in English of the spiritual diaries of Pope John Paul II. In God’s Hands has already been published in his native Poland and in Italy where it has been a phenomenal success. English-speaking readers will now benefit from the extraordinary insights of this spiritual journal.
The two notebooks from which it is drawn are not chronological. However, the first covers the years 1962–1984, whilst the second includes notes at retreats given to the Pope and Roman curia between the years 1985 and 2003. The electrifying element in this publication are the pages of handwritten reflections, explanations and prayers bearing characteristic insights of Pope John Paul II. There is an Ignatian structure to much of his response to the various presentations, homilies, feast days, Liturgy of the Hours and Mass celebrated during the retreats. This structure enables an amazing personal response to take place, with the unique ability to link such thoughts and texts to his own inner life as well as to the public ministry he was called to exercise in the Church and in the world.
In God’s Hands is unusual in that the immediacy of the Pope’s response is given, not just through his handwriting, but in the deepest thoughts elicited by the presentations of the retreat givers. This is not a sedate, refined or sanitised journal of devotion. It allows the reader to follow the different paths which lay before one who was sincerely discerning the will and plan of God unfolding in his own life.
In all this, the leitmotif of obedience to the will of God is obvious not least in his episcopal motto ‘Totus Tuus’. In his devotion to Mary, Pope John Paul II saw someone who was attentive to the will of God, the woman who listened, the woman who believed that God’s plan could be fulfilled through her obedience. By the same token, that obedience, which is based on prayerful listening and the response which follows, was the foundation of the dynamism he was able to bring to the papal ministry.
‘Prayer is the language of our hope’ wrote Cardinal Ratzinger, quoted in one of the spiritual conferences eliciting a very full entry in the retreat notes. Herein lies another path to the heart of the love of God when ‘Heart speaks to heart’ (Cardinal Newman) but always in the silence of the heart. Of course intercession is part of the prayer of Pope John Paul II as he prays for the needs of the world and the Church and all people. But it is in his prayer of adoration and contemplation that he comes to know himself as he is known. This is the path of the mystic, recognising that heaven is ‘… a space that Christ made for man in God’ (Ratzinger). This is also what allowed the Pope to spend time alone with God in prayer ‘… at the morning watch and even in the night’ (De profundis). So often, such waiting on God is regarded as a waste of time. The act of faith that gives the time and space to such contemplation says that no time is wasted in which God is served. The service of God is the sanctification of time. No time is sanctified more than when it is a pure gift, given in faith with no other expectation than to ‘be’ in the presence of God. This is the prayer which permeates these diaries of Karol Wojtyła.
There is another language of prayer with which he was intimately familiar: the language of suffering. From the devastating attempt on his life in St Peter’s Square on 13 May 1981, and the burden of ill health he subsequently bore, suffering was part of the reality of who he was. Old age and increasing infirmity limited his physical resources in ways which were surely both Calvary and cross to this once energetic man and skilled communicator. Even when he could no longer speak, he did not hide himself away from those who came to see and hear him. He had preached often on the meaning of the suffering of Jesus on Calvary and the significance of the cross in the suffering that each person has to bear. Now he was able to personify that teaching in his own weakness and vulnerability. The final pages of his diaries have lost the intensity and vigour of all that went before. It is significant that the last two entries touch closely the heart of his life and ministry: Mary, his patron and hope, standing at the foot of the cross followed by a meditation entitled, ‘Jonah, or the fear of preaching the love of God’.
Having stood with Mary in her faithfulness throughout his life and having preached the love of God on the worldwide stage, now was the time to return to the Father. His final words on his deathbed were: ‘Let me go to the house of the Lord’ (Psalm 122). In the first chapter of the Gospel of John we read of the disciples of the Baptist asking Jesus, ‘Master, where are you staying?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Come and see’ (John 1:38). In God’s Hands is a chronicle of one who responded to that invitation in prayer and in faith every day of his life.
+George Stack
Archbishop of Cardiff
Chair of the Department of Christian Life and Worship of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales
Introduction to the Polish Edition (#ulink_caac2304-184b-5616-9c0a-bfdff5646b55)
We present the reader with a book that covers the content of the two notebooks in which Bishop Karol Wojtyła, and later Pope John Paul II took personal notes and recorded his reflections, which related primarily to the retreats and reflection days which he attended between 1962 and 2003.
The text has not been abbreviated in any way. We have attempted to maintain the layout of the notebooks’ pages, as well as any additional notation: underlining, textboxes, etc.; the marginalia are presented in the same way as in the original notebooks.
The words that were impossible to read are marked as [illegible].
The editorial interventions consisted in the following:
– restoration of the chronological order in the entries from the first notebook;
– translation of phrases and sentences recorded in foreign languages (mainly in Latin and Italian);
– correction of obvious spelling and punctuation mistakes;
– expansion of the abbreviations used in the reflections to facilitate reading; if these abbreviations were not easy to decipher, they were retained in their original form.
All editorial insertions are marked by square brackets.
Translator’s Note
Pope John Paul II’s notebooks were first published in Polish in 2014, and soon afterwards translated into several languages, including Italian, French, German, Romanian and Portuguese. It is a great joy to present the English-speaking reader with this translation. In order to help the reader fully to appreciate the richness of John Paul II’s thought, the English edition provides notes with references to biblical quotations and other important sources used by John Paul II, as well as additional background information on people, places and events mentioned in particular entries. All biblical quotations are given according to the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition. For other sources, wherever possible, full references are given to the editions used by John Paul II and to existing English translations. When citing from John Paul II’s speeches and homilies delivered in Polish, I used the existing Vatican translations with minor adjustments where necessary. To make the edition more accessible, Latin names of regular prayers and services have been translated into English. The edition has greatly benefitted from Dr Máté Vince’s expertise in Latin and Greek, and Dr Andrea Selleri’s assistance with Italian. I gratefully acknowledge their help.
Preface by the (#ulink_5861f1e9-82f3-5b94-a768-c1896bfc620a)Metropolitan Archbishop of Kraków, (#ulink_5861f1e9-82f3-5b94-a768-c1896bfc620a)Stanisław Cardinal Dziwisz (#ulink_5861f1e9-82f3-5b94-a768-c1896bfc620a)
‘I leave no possessions of which it will be necessary to dispose. As for the things I use every day, I ask that they be distributed as seems appropriate. Let my personal notes be burned. I ask that Fr Stanisław see to this, and I thank him for his kind help and collaboration over the years. I leave all my other “thank yous” in my heart before God Himself, because it is difficult to put them in words’ (John Paul II, Testament, 6 March 1979).
This is the instruction that the Holy Father John Paul II left in his Testament. After his death in 2005, I faithfully fulfilled the Holy Father’s will, giving away all his possessions, especially the personal memorabilia. I did not dare to burn the personal notes and notebooks that he had left behind because they contain significant information about his life. I saw them on the Holy Father’s desk, but I never looked into them. When I saw his Testament, I was moved that John Paul II, whom I had accompanied for almost forty years, had entrusted me with his personal affairs.
I did not burn John Paul II’s notes because they are a key to understanding his spirituality, that is, what is innermost in a person: his relationship to God, to other men and to himself. They reveal, so to speak, another side of the person whom we knew as the Bishop of Kraków and Rome, the Peter of our times, the Shepherd of the universal Church. They show his early life, in the years when he was ordained a bishop and installed in the Diocese of Kraków. They allow us to get a glimpse of the intimate, personal relationship of faith with God the Creator, the Giver of life, the Master and Teacher. At the same time, they present the sources of his spirituality – his inner strength and his determined will to serve Christ until the last breath of life.
When I return to John Paul II’s notes, I can see the figure of the Holy Father in the home chapel at Franciszkańska Street,
as he prays immersed in God, before the Blessed Sacrament, and I hear his sighs coming from the little chapel at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. His radiant face never revealed his inner experiences. He always looked at the cross and the icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa with courage. He learnt from her to surrender himself to God entirely, repeating the words of Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort: Totus Tuus ego sum, o Maria, et omnia mea Tua sunt – ‘I am entirely Yours, O Mary, and all that is mine is Yours’. Complete surrender to God in Mary’s likeness and the fulfilling of God’s will until the end were the characteristic traits of this man of prayer, who discovered the abundant world of the spirit in his relationship with God.
May reading the spiritual notebooks of John Paul II help everyone discover the spiritual depth of the people of the twenty-first century, and may it lead everyone to a greater love of God and other people.
Stanisław Cardinal Dziwisz, Metropolitan Archbishop of Kraków
On the Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Patron Saint of the Parish in Wadowice
Kraków, 21 November 2013
The Secret of Father Karol Wojtyła – Pope John Paul II’s Spiritual Notes (#ulink_0e158f39-4682-5ba7-903b-1eee10fb9dba)
Karol Wojtyła–John Paul II’s personal notes already aroused interest at the time of his death. The Pope wrote in his Testament that Fr Stanisław Dziwisz, his personal secretary and closest collaborator, who had accompanied him for the nearly forty years of his episcopal service in Kraków and the Petrine ministry in Rome, should burn the notes. Fr Dziwisz, the current Metropolitan Archbishop of Kraków, did not burn them out of respect for their author, but presented them to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, which examined the life of the Holy Father in the beatification process. A glimpse at the notes was enough to see that their author led a rich spiritual life that embraced all dimensions of his work.
The spiritual notes reveal the depth of Karol Wojtyła’s life with God during the many years (1962–2003) when he served as Auxiliary Bishop, and then Archbishop of Kraków, Cardinal and Pope. They shed light on the secret of the heart of the Peter of our times, who was Bishop of Kraków in the difficult period of communism, and then for almost twenty-seven years led the Barque of St Peter through the turbulent waves of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The spiritual notes contain reflections on inner experiences, resolutions, prayers, meditations and remarks on spiritual progress. They express, above all, their author’s relationship to God, who was the centre of his inner life.
1. Two notebooks
The spiritual notes were recorded in two notebooks: in the diaries ‘Agenda 1962’ and ‘1985’. Both diaries were printed in Italy by the Archdiocese of Milan.
In the first notebook, the author introduced his own page numbering, from 1 to 220. However, the notes are not ordered chronologically: the first entry is devoted to the retreat that Archbishop Karol Wojtyła attended with the Polish Bishops’ Conference at Jasna Góra from 1 to 4 September 1971. In the following pages we find notes from earlier years – beginning with 1962 – which are interwoven with later retreats. The author recorded entries according to his own system and put together personal and spiritual experiences from various years.
The notes in this notebook cover the years when Karol Wojtyła was Auxiliary Bishop and Metropolitan Archbishop of Kraków, and include meditations from days of reflection and private retreats at Kalwaria Zebrzydowska; at the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec; in Zakopane, at Jaszczurówka, at the Ursulines of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus; at the Bachledówka Pauline Monastery; in Kraków, in the district of Prądnik, at the Albertine Sisters’, in the so-called ‘cottage’ (the house situated in the garden of the motherhouse of the Albertine Sisters’ Convent at 10 Woronicza Street); at the Albertine Sisters’ in Rząska; and the annual retreats of the Polish Bishops’ Conference at Jasna Góra and in Gniezno. The first notebook also contains the notes from the first six years of John Paul II’s pontificate. The notes end with the reflections on the retreat led by Cardinal Alexandre do Nascimento on 11–17 March 1984 in the Vatican.
The second notebook originally belonged to the Pope’s Secretary, Monsignor Emery Kabongo, as witness the erased signature on the first page and the embossed paper seal. The centre of the seal contains the abbreviation ‘EK’ and the edge reads ‘Library of Emery Kabongo’. These notes cover the years 1985–2003. They begin on the page dated 5 January and continue over the next 315 pages, not all of which have been written over.
Thus, the notes taken by Cardinal Wojtyła–Pope John Paul II can be organised in the following way:
The first notebook contains notes covering the years 1962–1984 and focuses on the following events:
– the retreat (Dies recollectionis) after the arrival in Rome for the first session of the Second Vatican Council (9 and 14 October 1962) [p. 2]
– the retreat on the anniversary of priestly ordination at the Felician Sisters’ Convent in Rome (31 October– 4 November 1962) [p. 5]
– the retreat at Kalwaria – The Shrine of Our Lady (6–7 July 1963?) [p. 12]
– the retreat in Tyniec (19–23 August 1963) [p. 13]
– the retreat before the installation ceremony in Wawel Cathedral (5–8 March 1964) [p. 20]
– the retreat at Jasna Góra led by Bishop Kazimierz Józef Kowalski (31 August–3 September 1964) [p. 23]
– the retreat in Tyniec (17–20 August 1965) [p. 30]
– the retreat at [?unknown] (7 November–2 December 1964?/1965?) [p. 36]
– the retreat at Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (31 October– 1 November 1966) [p. 37]
– the retreat at the Albertine Sisters’ Convent (19–21 December 1966) [p. 38]
– the retreat at [?unknown] (29 February 1968) [p. 44]
– the retreat in Tyniec (11–14 September 1968) [p. 45]
– the retreat at Bachledówka (9–13 August 1969) [p. 51]
– the retreat in Tyniec (4–7 November and 19 December 1970) [p. 60]
– the retreat at Jasna Góra led by Bishop Lech Kaczmarek (1–5 September 1971) [p. 67]
– the retreat at Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (5–6 July 1973) [p. 75]
– the retreat at Bachledówka (9–12 August 1973) [p. 76]
– the retreat at [?unknown] 4 July–24 August 1974 [p. 86]
– the retreat in Gniezno led by Bishop Jerzy Ablewicz (3–7 September 1974) [p. 87]
– the retreat at Bachledówka (4–8 July 1975) [p. 99]
– the retreat in Jaszczurówka (21–26 September 1976) [p. 107]
– the retreat at Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (5–9 July 1977) [p. 117]
– the retreat at Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (26–29 June 1978) [p. 126]
– election to papacy (October 1978) [p. 136]
– the Vatican retreats led by:
– Father Faustino Ossanna OFM (4–10 March 1979) [p. 137]
– Archbishop Lucas Moreira Neves OP (24 February– 1 March 1980) [p. 149]
– Bishop Jerzy Ablewicz (8–14 March 1981) [p. 168]
– Father Stanislas Lyonnet SJ (28 February–6 March 1982) [p. 189]
– Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (20–26 February 1983) [p. 205]
– Cardinal Alexandre do Nascimento (11–17 March 1984) [p. 221].
The second notebook covers the years 1985–2003 and the retreats led by:
– Archbishop Achille Glorieux (24 February–2 March 1985) [p. 235]
– Father Egidio Viganò SDB (16–22 February 1986) [p. 247]
– Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach SJ (8–14 March 1987) [p. 265]
– Archbishop James Aloysius Hickey (21–27 February 1988) [p. 283]
– Cardinal Giacomo Biffi (12–18 February 1989) [p. 299]
– Father Georges Cottier OP (4–10 March 1990) [p. 316]
– Archbishop Ersilio Tonini (17–23 February 1991) [p. 333]
– Cardinal Ugo Poletti (8–14 March 1992) [p. 346]
– Bishop Jorge Arturo Agustín Medina Estévez (28 February–6 March 1993) [p. 363]
– Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini (20–26 February 1994) [p. 379]
– Father Tomáš Špidlík SJ (5–11 March 1995) [p. 395]
– Archbishop Christoph Schönborn (25 February–2 March 1996) [p. 400]
– Cardinal Roger Etchegaray (16–22 February 1997) [p. 419]
– Cardinal Ján Chryzostom Korec SJ (1–7 March 1998) [p. 433]
– Bishop André-Joseph Mutien Léonard (21–27 February 1999) [p. 448]
– Archbishop François Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận (12–18 March 2000) [p. 454]
– Cardinal Francis Eugene George OMI (4–10 March 2001) [p. 467]
– Cardinal Cláudio Hummes OFM (17–23 February 2002) [p. 475]
– Bishop Angelo Comastri (9–15 March 2003) [p. 479].
The entries in both notebooks were written in Polish. However, the author often introduced phrases in Latin and Italian, especially during the Vatican retreats. The Vatican retreats for the Holy Father and the Roman Curia were always preached in Italian.
2. The schedule of a retreat day
The daily schedule played an important role in the retreats and days of reflection. The order of the retreat that was developed in Kraków, when Bishop Karol Wojtyła began his ministry, included three talks; Lectio spiritualis – spiritual reading; Corona Rosarii – Rosary; Via crucis – the Way of the Cross; Adoratio – Adoration; Matutinum – Matins; Lectio – reading; Sacrum or Officium Eucharisticum – Holy Mass or Eucharist; Vesperae – Vespers; Adoratio Sanctissimi Sacramenti – Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; Completorium – Compline.
During the retreats, Archbishop Karol Wojtyła followed the Ignatian method. He became familiar with this method in the seminary under the guidance of Fr Stanisław Smoleński, who was later made Auxiliary Bishop of Kraków. The method involved preparing a detailed outline of a topic for reflection and spiritual reading. During his episcopal ministry in Kraków, Archbishop Wojtyła led retreats and days of reflection himself, consulting Bishop Smoleński or Fr Aleksander Fedorowicz on spiritual topics. The latter was the spiritual father of the Lwów Seminary in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska in the 1960s, and then the spiritual director at the Laski Centre, near Warsaw. He would also come to Rome and offer counsel to the Holy Father.
This method of reflection allowed Fr Wojtyła to organise the whole retreat or reflection day according to a characteristic plan. The rhythm of the retreat day was set out by the breviary, which was recited according to the pre-conciliar method, with Matins, Lauds (laudatory prayers), Terce, Sext and Nones. Almost every day included:
– Laudes – Lauds
– Meditatio ante Sacrum – meditation before Holy Mass
– Sacrum – Holy Mass
– Gratarium actio – thanksgiving
– Lectio S. Scripturae – reading the Holy Scriptures
– Meditatio – meditation
– Via crucis – the Way of the Cross
– Vesperae – Vespers
– Adoratio – Adoration
– Rosarium – Rosary
– Lectio spiritualis – spiritual reading
– Meditatio – meditation
– Matutinum anticipatum – anticipated Matins
– Lectio S. Scripturae – reading the Holy Scriptures
– Rosarium – Rosary
– Completa – Compline
– Hora Sancta (Sacra) – Holy Hour
– Lectio – reading.
Bishop Wojtyła remained faithful to this order of reflection days and retreats throughout his life, which is evident in his later notes, in particular the notes from the period when he was pope.
3. The content of the notes
The notes taken during the retreats reflect the quality of Bishop Wojtyła’s and Pope John Paul II’s spirit. They show how spiritually sensitive he was to the problems that the Church in Poland and the Church in the world faced. He took the effort to prepare the topics of reflection days and private retreats by himself. At the retreat that he attended together with the Polish Bishops’ Conference, he used the retreat leader’s thoughts to develop his own reflection on his relationship with God and the ways in which he should fulfil his episcopal duties, which gave meaning to his life.
The author of the notes appears to be an extraordinarily regular and well-organised person, focused on spiritual topics. He refrains from describing his emotional states, current affairs and people involved in them. His entire focus is on the extent to which he can reflect Christ in his own life – Christ the Highest Priest. At the end of his entries, the Pope often adds the abbreviation: AMDG/UIOGD – Ad maiorem Dei gloriam / Ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus (For the greater glory of God / That in all things God may be glorified).
A characteristic feature of the notes is their Christocentrism. Fr Wojtyła related all his experiences to Christ, the Highest Priest. He sought to establish a personal contact with Him through regular prayer, meditation on the word of God and pastoral service. He related to Christ all his personal affairs and problems, which he had to face as diocesan bishop, cardinal and pope.
At the centre of all of Fr Wojtyła’s days was the Holy Mass. He prepared for it through the morning meditation, thanksgiving after the Holy Mass and during the day, as well as the Holy Hour in the evening, before the Blessed Sacrament. For Fr Wojtyła, the Eucharist was the space where he could experience Christ’s sacrifice and, at the same time, offer his own life as a sacrifice to God. It was his style of life, which consisted in the surrender of his own self, just as Christ gave up His life on the cross. Through the daily celebration of the Holy Mass, Fr Wojtyła was united with the unique sacrifice of Christ and entered into a personal relationship with the Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Marian theme is another important feature of the notes. It is developed around the theology and spirituality of St Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (Treatise on True Devotion to The Blessed Virgin Mary). Mary appears in Fr Wojtyła’s prayers and reflections as the One who received and fulfilled God’s will in the most perfect way. Fr Wojtyła underlines Her greatness, which was expressed in the wonderful gift of divine grace that She received as the Mother of the incarnate Word. At the same time, the Holy Father considered Mary a person who was mature in faith and who, taking the decision to say ‘fiat’ – let it be to me according to Your word – became a partaker in the divine plan of salvation.
4. Faithfulness until the end
In the last years of his life, John Paul II’s notes became sparser. The Holy Father took note of the topic of the retreat and the order of the day. There is less of his own reflections. It is evident that he found writing more and more difficult. His handwriting also changed and became more irregular.
In 2005, the Vatican retreat was led by Bishop Renato Corti from Novara, who in accordance with the tradition gave talks in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel on 13–19 February. The topic of the retreat was: ‘The Church in the service of the new and eternal covenant’ (‘La Chiesa a servizio della nuova ed eterna alleanza’). John Paul II took part in this retreat by listening to the radio broadcast from the chapel. He listened to all the talks and participated in the Spiritual Exercises, which he practised privately during retreats. He was accompanied by his personal secretary, Archbishop Stanisław Dziwisz, and other members of the household. The notebooks contained only the printed programme of this retreat, which the Holy Father held in his hand while listening to Bishop Corti’s talks. John Paul II remained faithful to the tradition of annual retreats. His last retreat was made complete through his suffering, which became a special mark in his spiritual diary.
Fr Jan Machniak
The Retreats (#ulink_56ef14a2-4ce8-5c05-b65f-d5cddd4b46db)
1962 (#ulink_ee0f91df-df11-5916-9662-fb232014626f)
Recollectio (inter.) [Inner retreat]
Praenotanda [Introduction]
8 July
The following key inner topics have been put together and discussed with the father:
1. death
2. power
3. creativity
4. people.
2 September
The recollection of these topics and novum [novelty] (as if a common denominator was found for all the experiences and reflections): I am very much in God’s hands – the content of this ‘Totus Tuus’ [‘Entirely Yours’]
opened, so to speak, in a new place. When any concern ‘of mine’ becomes in this way Mary’s, it can be undertaken, even if it involves an element of risk (though one must not overdo it: in human terms, i.e. on the human side, the issue needs to be dealt with thoroughly). At a certain point, however, one needs to abandon human calculations and somehow grasp the Godly dimensions of every difficult issue. A peculiar iunctim [junction] of issue 4 with issue 2 begins to emerge here.
I discussed all this with the father too.
1962 (#ulink_bf20cfc5-6f3d-5a6d-86c2-33db43fd5c8d)Dies recollectionis (sequ.)
[Reflection days (continuation)] after the arrival in Rome for the first session of the Second Vatican Council
9 October
Holy Mass; Lauds; Prime
I participated in the ‘capella papalis’ [‘solemn papal ceremonies’] on the fourth anniversary of the death of the late Pope Pius XII, thanks to whom I became a bishop. Thoughts: (a) moving from external to internal vision, I have realised that all those present are connected in one spirit and it is the Spirit of Christ, the Son of God. I experienced this unity in diversity very clearly, and with various degrees of participation taken into account. Not a gathering of many separate units, but the unity of substance. It is the substance of thought, doctrine – and it is attended to by the Pope and the Council. But it is also the substance of life, morals, which we realise within the one Church, through, above all, the mysterium (sacraments): the unity of our sacrificial posture with Christ’s, sealed with the Communion; (b) a background thought that came to me was about the truth of priesthood and episcopacy, which was also given to me from within Christ’s priesthood through His Vicar on earth (Vicarius Christi).
Adoration: Christ is entirely within the Church and the Church is entirely within Christ. NB I constantly need to remind myself to wish for a good shepherd for the seat of St Stanislaus above all and fundamentally, without allowing for any ‘mea’ [‘mine’].
Reading the schema ‘de castitate, matrimonio, familia, virginitate’ [‘on chastity, marriage, family, virginity’].
Reflection (meditation):
1. quoad theoriam [concerning theory]
2. quoad practicam [concerning practice].
(The problem of a general and ‘perspectival’ leadership in this area.)
14 October
Meditation: Let us consider the most proper way for the human spirit to meet the Divine Spirit. Our Lord Christ laid the foundation for this meeting for every human being – and for the work of the Divine Spirit in the human spirit.
(The theological virtues: the means to adjust the human spirit to the Divine Spirit; the gifts of the Holy Spirit: the means, so to speak, of adjusting the Divine Spirit to the ‘dimensions’ of the human spirit.) A move towards the opening and submission of the human spirit to the Divine Spirit is necessary, particularly during the Council. The goal cannot be the expression or assertion of oneself, the human being, the human spirit alone – but above all the expression of that which comes from the Divine Spirit in the form of virtues and gifts. In this light, the fundamental attitude: (1) a permanent necessity to subordinate creativity to truth; (2) experimentum divinum, non humanum [the divine, not human, experience]; (3) humility.
[31 October – 4 November] 1962 (#ulink_ee0f91df-df11-5916-9662-fb232014626f)
Rome, at the Felician Sisters’ Convent
Topic: The mystery of redemption
Deus, Redemisti nos Domine
in sanguine Tuo ex omni
tribu et populo et natione
et fecisti nos Deo nostro regnum
[God, by Thy blood, O Lord,
you didst ransom us from every
tribe and people and nation,
and hast made us a kingdom to our God]
31 October
The retreat begins at 7.00 p.m.
Adoration; Matins
Introductory meditation: Sixteenth anniversary of [my] ordination to the priesthood – recapitulatio, ut ita dicam, historica [a historical recollection, so to speak]
Reading: Rahner K., XX siècle – siècle de grâce? [twentieth century – the century of grace?]. Opus Creationis – opus Redemptionis [the order of creation – the order of redemption].
(La Rédemption au Coeur de Marie [Redemption in Mary’s Heart]).
Compline
1 November
Rosary (petitionary); Lauds
Meditation: Memories from the ceremony of the sacrament of priesthood ‘ut quidquid benedixerint, benedicatur, et quidquid consecraverint, consecretur et sanctificetur’ [‘that whatever they bless may be blessed, and whatever they consecrate may be consecrated and made holy’].
– On the priest’s hands – Nothing, however, was ‘right’, until the point when I felt great humility towards Christ’s work of redemption – in this spirit, Sacrum cum grat. act., Prima [Holy Mass with thanksgiving, Prime].
Further meditation: Christ redeems us and all for the Father, i.e. offers an atoning sacrifice (propitiatorium), which consists in His complete devotion and union with the Father. Hence the Holy Spirit as the breath of both. We – people – are elevated by the act of Christ’s redemption. Even though we remain outside of what ‘happens’ between the Persons of the Most Holy Trinity, we nevertheless experience the effects of this wonderful spiritual fertility and abundant love. The redemptive act of Christ the Lord embraces, in a special way, priesthood as the culmination of the sacrificial posture, which is, after all, not alien to man as part of the creation. Redemption (Redemptio) also involves a certain striving towards the re-evaluation of everything that is created, in particular everything that is human – and this, as well, should be shared by the priesthood and reflected in it.
The Way of the Cross
Spiritual reading (S. Paul et l’apostolat d’aujourd’hui [St Paul and Today’s Apostolate] and others)
Rosary (II); Vespers
Meditation practica [concerning practical issues]: Problems: (a) Focusing on ‘one’s own’ matters and the necessity to work on a wider range and broaden one’s orientation in many disciplines; (b) certain conclusions on the issue of the ‘priest–laypeople’ balance, and further tasks; (a
) a search for concise and abstract formulae in relation to the human and priestly reality (‘all’ and ‘different’) esp. the needy.
Adoration: In the Eucharist, Christ the Lord allowed us to draw as close to Himself as possible – particularly through priesthood: the closest to who He is, [illegible] and what He fulfils.
Matins (for the dead); Litany of the Saints
Holy Hour: A personal moment with Christ, a personal wish – waiting for a response. Propitiatio pro peccatis meis [The atoning sacrifice for my sins].
2 November
Rosary; Petitionary prayers; Lauds
Meditation (a) Being much engaged in earthly tasks, in creative work, always to be ready: not to lose perspective. ‘Re-evaluation’ constitutes only one aspect of redemption, which in a sense is its least important aspect (when it comes to the values on ‘this side’); (b) and with this understanding to comprehend the words of the liturgy ‘quia in inferno nulla est redemptio’ [‘for in hell there is no redemption’].
Three Holy Masses; Thanksgiving
Reading (L’Eglise dans le monde qui vient [The Church in the modern world])
The Way of the Cross
Meditation: ‘Copiosa apud Eum Redemptio’ [‘with Him is plenteous redemption’]:
Holiness is the source. In Christ the absolute holiness of God is united hypostatically with the holiness of man. God’s holiness (as the love of good and the hatred of evil), but first and foremost as the love of good in everything, even the one who is evil (per accidens [contingently]). All good (the entire sum of values) outside God has its prototype in God Himself. God loves one in another – in this consists His holiness. This holiness is the basis for redemption – also understood as the ‘re-evaluation’ of everything: God restores the value of everything in man, who is personally united with Him. He is Christ – Redemptor [Redeemer]: the holiness of man consists in receiving this good, which God loves – in this manner Christ becomes the model of holiness. In Him that holiness is in a way identical to redemption (Redemptio). In us it has to depend on, first, conversion to God, and second, re-evaluation of everything in accordance with the value that everything has in God, and which Christ the Lord has shown to us.
Rosary; Adoration; Vespers
Meditation super experimentum [on experience]: (An element of risk.) Everything has to be permanently in God’s hands and dependent on God’s assistance. Hence no psychologisation, but moral and, first and foremost, religious orientation (i.e. in Mary’s hands).
Conversation with M.W. (a) missionary–apostolic element; (b) God makes use of different people.
Penitential psalms
Meditation: Conversion in actu quolibet [in every action] has to consist in finding the will of Christ the Lord. There is no other method of opposing the various impulses of human vanity of life; the problem of power, criticism, envy, even together with a certain foundation of some ‘transcendental’ humility towards the Lord God.
Matins (at the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
3 November
Rosary; Petitionary prayers; Lauds
Meditation: Redemption began with ‘Totus Tuus’;
Preparation for Holy Mass
Holy Mass; Thanksgiving
Spiritual reading (L’individu dans l’Eglise [The individual in the Church])
Meditation: Redemption began with ‘Totus Tuus’: the one and only person, the new human being to whom God entrusted Himself. God–Son needed Her to fulfil His task. God–Son could entrust to Her His own being in this task, because it was first achieved in Her and He prepared Her for this Totus Tuus. Mary responded to this devotion of God in its entire redemptive sense, its entire dynamics. She drew from it and is still drawing that which is contained in it for each and every person: first, conversion, and second, re-evaluation. And in all who entrust themselves to Her, She performs both in due proportion.
My problem is solved here: recently I have felt I was very much in Mary’s hands and close to God through two specific issues. Yet, has not the order been reversed? Am I not ‘using’ it to do something that is ‘very much mine’? The stance I am taking on these issues is total humility. Here is the solution: In Mary’s hands, according to the ‘Totus Tuus’ principle, the work of redemption must be realised also in me with the proportion between conversion and re-evaluation duly maintained.
The Way of the Cross (with Mary); Pastoral letter; Vespers; Rosary
Meditation: The most appropriate effects of redemption in the human being are deeds that stem from it – deeds that through Mary are rooted in Christ, through one’s belonging to Her (Tuus [Yours]), and that are simultaneously in accordance with Christ’s law, with His gospel – in the highest accordance. Here also, among other things, the issue of Father W. (Three possibilities: to simply remain humble and make use of what is at least partly true in there; to make light of it: he will improve as he is young; ‘to keep watch’ and make sure he has improved intellectually and also ‘morally’. First and foremost, one needs to pray for him and for the right decision.)
Adoration; Final concluding meditation (the issue of envy); Matins (memorial of St Charles);
Rosary
4 November
Holy Mass with the relic of St Charles’s heart, celebrated by the Pope
Meditation: ad instar s. Caroli afferre se ipsum ad bonum commune Ecclesiae et in domicilio et in Dioecesi, participans hoc modo in opere Redemptionis [to work towards the common good of the Church both at home and in the diocese after the example of St Charles, thus participating in the work of salvation].
Adoration
[1 December 1962]
Missa ad intentionem satisfaciendi S. Cordi BMV [Mass offered in reparation to the Most Sacred Heart of Mary]
[2 December 1962]: First Sunday of Advent
There are, so to speak, two planes: the divine plane (the love of the Son–Word for the Father) and the human plane (people’s yearning for the true God, for the revelation of God in the Son–Word). These two planes approach and come into contact with each other – this is the spirit of Advent.
My Advent (a reminder from last year): a strong wish for God–Christ to enter into every matter. In this context, there is the experimental meaning too: it is still in fieri [in the process of ‘becoming’] in me, in others, in an objective way and regarding its future sense.
6–7 July 196? [probably 1963] (#ulink_c980acea-e821-575b-b6e7-0990b3fcaf7e) Kalwaria – The Shrine of Our Lady
Aims:
1. To ask for peace and good for the Church of Kraków, efficacy of action, vocations.
2. To prepare the basis for the retreat.
3. To move forward certain tasks.
In general: preferably the form of reflection days (= meditation connected with other tasks).
Confession; Holy Mass; Meditation; The Way of the Cross; The Little Ways
(a) Numerous threads, reflective and ‘existential’. One needs to bring them all here and pass them into These Hands in accordance with the principle ‘Totus Tuus’ [‘Entirely Yours’].
(b) The main topic of the retreat emerges: ‘between past and future’.
19–23 [August] 1963 (#ulink_86515de4-b927-51a8-9e88-c5d1e7013682) Retreat in Tyniec
Topic: Justification – grace
19 August
Compline; Adoration; Meditation
20 August
Lauds; Prime
Meditation before Holy Mass:
1. Holy Mass brings the rhythm of Christ, the rhythm of the Son of God into our lives.
2. (The integrating role of consciousness – the disintegrating role of sensuousness.)
Holy Mass; Thanksgiving; Reading the Holy Scripture; Reading the Council schema; Meditation; The Way of the Cross
A reference to the previous retreat held in Rome on 31 October – [4] November 1962. The dogmatic topic that requires a deeper spiritual reflection is the mystery of justification (iustificatio). Man cannot be ‘just’ before God; he can only be ‘justified’ before Him. The former is proved by the fact that man is not equal to God, his Creator, and the latter by Christ and the entire order of grace.
No creature can be in a position of justice before its Creator. Man is in a way a synthesis of creatures. As a creature in general, he and his existence are unconditionally dependent on his Creator; he is dependent also by virtue of his nature and, consequently, unequivocally subordinate. As a being endowed with vegetative (sensual) life, he is subject to the laws of life and death (generatio et corruptio) like other creatures. As a spiritual being – a person – he bears a more special resemblance to the Creator, which obligates him to maintain the order of justice, i.e. to give to everybody what rightly belongs to them (which also includes paying religious worship to God). The fact of personhood does not render invalid man’s vegetativeness and animalitas [animal nature], which turns him into ‘ash and nothing’
before his Creator. As a person, man can enter into personal contact with the Creator; this contact, however, has to be initiated by the Creator. When He initiates it, it consists (like the act of creation) in an act of mercy, because man as a creature is fully dependent and subordinate. In particular, he needs to be justified because of his sin, which, as an offence to God, does harm to the very essence of this personal contact understood in the way it is understood and intended by the Creator – and it is His prerogative to define the essence of the contact He establishes with His rational creature.
Justification comes through Christ, the Son of God, who initiates this essential contact and gives it, to a certain extent, the qualities of His contact with the Father. Therefore, justification is expressed in us as the new esse [being] – ‘esse ad Patrem’ [‘being towards the Father’] (i.e. sanctifying grace), and the continuation of this personal contact consists in faith, hope and love.
Vespers
Adoration: Lord Jesus hid in the womb of Mother Mary, which He left as a human being – and in the womb of Mother Church, so that it could give birth to sons of God.
Rosary; Spiritual reading (G. Vann)
Meditation: I note down briefly: the (diocesan) bishop’s authority and vocation require, on the one hand, generosity and courage, and on the other hand, service to everybody and universal charity, in particular charity for priests. Regarding all these points: reservations. ‘Episcopatum desiderare’ [‘To aspire to the office of bishop’]
– but it cannot be ‘propter se’ [‘for oneself’]. Many things have yet to ‘burn out’ and ripen. Providence is sweet. Very useful reflections, and thereby quieting down.
Anticipated Matins
One more thing: what has a particular value is suffering for the sake of the matter – it brings more benefit than all the efforts. (Fr Pr.).
Reading; Rosary; Compline; Reading
21 August
Lauds; Prime; Rosary; Reflection; Holy Mass; Meditation
It happened that today I celebrated Holy Mass to mark the reception of the habit and profession at the Daughters of Divine Charity. It allowed me to bring yesterday’s topic – the mystery of justification – closer to the mystery of the Church. The Church – the mystical body of Christ – is, so to speak, ‘esse ad Patrem’ [‘being towards the Father’]. The sisters, who through their vows choose Christ for their bridegroom, in a special way enter into this ‘esse ad Patrem’ not only personally, but they also impress the sign of this ‘esse’ [‘being’] on the life of our entire society. Hence they are much needed by the Church and in the Church. In a way, they constitute its vertical core. At the same time, it needs to be observed that their special vocation and involvement stems from the mystery of justification. It is simultaneously the fruit and the realisation of this justification.
The Way of the Cross
Meditation: Although yesterday it was said that man – a creature – cannot be stricto sensu [in the strict sense] ‘just’ before God, but needs to be justified by Him, this justification nevertheless aims to create the type of relationship between man and God that consists in justice; in any case, it builds its elements and conditions. God wants man to be ‘just’ intrinsically (intrinsece) and not only ‘justified’ (extrinsically – extrinsece). This is indicated by a contrast with the reality of sin, which is an ‘offence to God’. If the Creator had placed his rational creature, man, entirely beyond the relationship of justice, sin would be impossible: An offence is to some extent a violation of justice with regard to a person (and also charity). The Creator gave primary justice to man through grace, and after the sin, He did not deprive him of the possibility of such a relationship. This possibility gestures towards the supernatural order, the order of grace, but it is grounded in the natural order: in the fact that man is a person.
Christ the Lord justified man, that is, helped and has been helping man to be just before God. Man is ‘just’ before God through ‘esse ad Patrem’, which is grace. The Church as the mystical Christ helps man achieve the same, because its task is to be the continuation of Christ and His work. Doing this, Christ and the Church simultaneously contribute to the fulfilment of human personhood. Man is fully a person when he is ‘justified’, that is ‘just’ before God. Without this – one could say – his personhood remains incomplete, it is unfulfilled.
Man was justified, because he could be (can be) and was (is) unjust before God. Whereas God wants – and He wants it through Christ – man to be just before Him, so indirectly He also wants him to be ‘made equal’ with regard to God – of course through grace. It seems to be the most essentially revealed (genuinely revealed) part of the entire ethics, and simultaneously the most essentially ethical (genuinely ethical) part of the entire revelation (theology!).
Vespers
Adoration: Christ hidden in the womb of the Church, so that He can reveal Himself to humankind. The grace of maturation.
Rosary; Meditation: casus [the case of] W. (T., I.) separately
Reading: De statibus perf. [On the stages of perfection]; Holy Scripture; G. Vann
Matins; Matins (II) for the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Compline
Moreover: thoughts of death!
22 August: Feast of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Lauds; Prime; Meditation; Holy Mass; Thanksgiving; Rosary; Conversation with Sister Aug.
Reading: Holy Scripture; schema De clericis [Concerning the clergy]
Meditation:
1. The mystery of justification evokes the awareness of the human creature’s unjustness to God–Creator. This awareness grows bigger and brings out the need of restitution: to make amends to Christ – Him, who has atoned for us all and ‘justifies’ all.
2. Furthermore: justice has followed from justification, which points to the primacy of grace, as it puts us in the position of justice before God: it is this justice that the Lord God wants from us and that He wants in us.
3. The primacy of grace in being – and as a consequence the primacy of grace in action. In the past year it became very clear to me in a well-known context. It undoubtedly means reliance on God. Example: St Peter on the lake – if I look at the man, I am overwhelmed by pessimism; when I look at Christ, trust returns. However, this trust and reliance cannot be presumptuous. Even here some measure of justice should be considered.
4. Justice in relation to one’s position. A bishop bears a particular responsibility for the Church – and this responsibility should be contained in his justification and justice before the Highest and Only Shepherd of souls. One needs both generosity and humility, in fact, a supernatural courage, not only a ‘drive for importance’.
The Way of the Cross: Station XII: the courageous is the one who is ready for the cross!
Vespers
Adoration: Lord Jesus gathered His apostles in the Upper Room and instituted the Eucharist in front of them. He took with Him perfectly ordinary people.
Rosary
Meditation: Problem of ‘successio’ [‘succession’] – separately. The grace of humiliation. Other concerns: priests, family (W. and others), earlier ones.
Matins; Conversation with Br Michael – v. helpful; Compline
Holy Hour: Our justification follows in a way from our very injustice, because the Lord Jesus accomplished it through His death, which He suffered most unjustly. Justification was then decided solely through the Redeemer’s inner act, the act of love and atoning and justifying sacrifice.
23 August
The Way of the Cross; Lauds; Holy Mass with a homily; Thanksgiving (Rosary); Prime
Meditation: All the thoughts from the retreat somehow come together in this week’s prayer (11 Post Pent. [Eleventh (Sunday) after Pentecost]).
Omnipotens sempiterne Deus,
qui abundantia pietatis Tuae
et merita supplicum excedis et vota –
effunde super nos misericordiam Tuam,
ut dimittas quae conscientia metuit
et adiicias quod oratio non praesumit
Per Dominum …
[Almighty ever-living God,
who in the abundance of Your kindness surpass the merits
and the desires of those who entreat You,
pour out Your mercy upon us
to pardon what conscience dreads
and to give what prayer does not dare to ask.
Through our Lord …]
[5–8] March 1964 (#ulink_5a086213-9493-50d3-b5ee-eb7f4eba3f0e) Before the installation ceremony
5 March
Funeral of Fr Dean J. Śliwa RIP in Wieliczka
Meditation on death: The reality of Christ’s priesthood emerges out of death in a special way: He stands before the Father as the eternal priest, and we stand before the Father with what we share in Christ’s priesthood.
Conversation at the Visitation Sisters’
Conclusion at the Abbey in Tyniec
6 March
Holy Hour; Lauds; Holy Mass; Prime
Meditation: On the relation ‘priest–shepherd’ in Christ the Lord and in each of us.
Reading: ‘Der Bischof als Priester und Hirt seiner Diözese’ [The Bishop as the Priest and Shepherd of His Diocese];
Daniélou: Temple [illegible];
Estreicher: [illegible]; [Zarewicz]: Biskupstwo Krakowskie [The Bishopric of Kraków].
Meditation: On the ways in which my actions are ‘rooted’ in God’s mysteries (preparation for confession).
The Way of the Cross; Adoration; Office
7 March
Holy Mass
Meditation: ‘Domine Deus, in simplicitate cordis mei laetus obtuli universa; et populum tuum, qui repertus est, vidi cum ingenti gaudio: Deus Israel, custodi hanc voluntatem’ [‘Lord God … in the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. O Lord, the God of … Israel, keep forever such purposes’].
The Way of the Cross; Meditation: Priest and shepherd; Confession; Vespers
Pilgrimage to the tomb of Bl. Wincenty Kadłubek, Bishop of Kraków
8 March
Installation
31 August – 3 September 1964 (#ulink_571f178d-fc30-5c68-bef4-eb77382817c7) Retreat led by Bishop K[azimierz] J[ózef] Kowalski
31 August
Talk: The retreat moves on to focus on the most sacred humanity of Christ (ergo: Mater Eius [that is: His Mother]) = sileant doctores … unus est magister: Christ … recedant creaturae … Tu mihi loquere solus [let the scholars be silent … there is one teacher: Christ … let the creatures depart … Let only You speak to me]. Indeed, I wish for and fervently beg for answers on various matters. Finally: for a ‘kenosis’, that is, for the destruction of self-love as a condition for listening to (in a way, a participatory dialogue in) this retreat.
1 September
Matins; Lauds; Prime
Participation in Holy Mass: with a meditation on the topic of ‘humilis Tuae Crucis Sequela’ [‘humble imitation of Your Cross’] (Bl. Bronisława).
Talk: Mission and adoration, or rather the mission to adore God. The foundation for this adoration [is] in the order of creation (creation ex nihilo [out of nothing] and creation ad Deum [towards God]): ‘You are she who is not’;
and furthermore: the foundation in the order of grace, which is entirely and exclusively ex benevolentia et misericordia Divina [out of God’s benevolence and mercy]. Therefore, man, and even more so the priest/bishop, is ‘doulos’, God’s slave.
An analysis of the attitude to atheism: Cardinal Mercier’s suggestive statement on Kant: ‘le plus grand malfaiteur du monde contemporain’ [‘the greatest malefactor of the contemporary world’] (since he maintains that the phenomena and noumena do not tell us anything about God). The attitude grounded in Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Ecclesiam suam
(a dialogue with atheism) = atheism and its alternations: statolatry, materialism and the worship of one’s self (idols).
Talk: The retreat leader called the moment when Plato formulated the term ‘participatio’ (participation) one of the happiest moments of the human mind. With the help of this term, human thought, inspired by the revelation, could reach the reality of God and the mystery of God. For God is the One who gives Himself (the antithesis of the ‘clenched fist’). The retreat leader speaks beautifully about all the material creatures’ participation in being, and how their wealth becomes more and more visible to man – next, the living creatures’ participation in being: vegetation, sensual–affective life, spiritual life – stages, or rather incomparable domains. Even higher there is the supernatural life: grace.
Now we will move on to the participation that we, priests, have in what is most personal to Christ: in His priesthood. And in an even more complete way in episcopacy: we offer all natural and supernatural concerns of all the members of our dioceses. The retreat leader speaks in an especially beautiful way of how episcopacy should bring about the union of fatherhood and motherhood: the participation of the Divine Heart of Jesus and the Heart of Mary. It finds expression in the care for those who are in the greatest spiritual and corporal need.
Spiritual reading: (the encyclical Ecclesiam suam)
Talk: The bishop participates in Christ’s authority. What is at stake is how to use this authority. There is a way of using authority that the Master describes as appropriate for the ‘kings of this world’: they rule in such a way that their subjects can feel their authority and, what is more, they have to consider such rulers their benefactors.
‘But not so with you’ says Christ.
The proper mode of wielding authority in the Church must be pastoral, which was emphasised so much by John XXIII. ‘Caritatem facientes in veritate’ [‘Enacting love in truth’].
There must be a close relation between truth and love, just like between the Persons of the Most Holy Trinity veritas praecedit [the truth comes first].
On the topic of the importance of truth in the life and work of the bishop: the truth of the spoken word, the truth of judgements made about others: audiatur et altera pars [let the other side be heard as well]. The issue of advisors.
V. interesting sentence: atheism gives birth to satellites. God’s love seeks brotherhood.
On the topic of charity: it has to be universal, it cannot be particular and it cannot create divisions. Next: it has to be servile; servitude perhaps best expresses love. Finally: it has to be forgiving. All this needs to be learnt beside the Heart of Jesus through the Heart of Mary.
Anticipated Matins (memorial of St Stephen); Adoration; (Evening) Mass, 7.00 p.m.; Litany of the Saints; Benediction; Compline
2 September
Rosary; Meditation; Morning Mass, 7.30 a.m.; Lauds; Prime
Talk: On sanctity and love, based on the calling and life of St John the Evangelist. The exegesis of some passages in his Gospel, in particular the reassurance given by the Redeemer (love opens itself up, and this opening inspires others). It is this fire, this apostolic zeal, that it is mostly about. Have I inspired anybody?
Much on the attitude to the Eucharist: to protect it with utmost care (it was also mentioned in yesterday’s Benediction), but also to make it accessible as widely as possible.
Love is kindled by the Heart of the Lord Jesus and enters it together with others. The sanctity of an open heart.
(The Little Hours)
Now the example of St Peter, who both was v. imperfect and considered himself such, ‘for I am a sinful man’.
Each of us is a sinful man too, but also bishops as a group (the times of Arianism, the French Revolution, d’Herbigny).
To dispose of the ‘acceptatio personae propriae’ [‘acceptance of oneself’] and then to stand before Christ the Lord. Since we are called to greater love, sin becomes a greater burden for us, and it can, above all, ‘break’ the entire Church, particularly one’s own diocese. Therefore odium peccati [the hatred of sin] is necessary. This is also fire: and here one needs to call good what is good, and evil what is evil. When it comes to one’s own and others’ struggle against sin, it is not enough to reproach and destroy, but one has to always introduce positive ideals.
Question: How do we benefit from our own confession? The choice of the right confessor, not necessarily one, who is our forgiving Christ. In addition to that, to value those who reproach us. Away with flatterers. And not to break down in the face of persecution: because sin enters this way. To avoid occasions for sin. Not to undertake to solve ‘satanic’ problems (the temptation of the Lord Jesus: apage satanas [go away, Satan]). A discussion with Satan is possible only when we are very much united with Christ and ‘deep in the Mother of God’. Each victory over Satan should be a stimulus for even greater humility and alertness.
The attitude of the bishop to the sinner: an open heart, to accept humiliation even from the mouths of sinners, and when the time comes – fortiter agere [to act firmly]. And, finally, to believe in the victory of grace over sin (ubi abundavit delictum, superabundavit gratia [where sin grew bigger, grace was even more abundant]). Our task is to bring down grace. Not to surrender before any sin (delictum). Misericordia = summa christianitas [Mercy = the highest form of Christianity].
The Way of the Cross [illegible]; Rosary (together); Vespers
Talk: We follow St Paul, ‘douloi Jesu Christi’:
Christ’s slaves – not to weaken it! The retreat leader speaks about the rhythm of inner life: between the periods of dullness, when one needs to keep the lamp of faith and love always burning, and the periods of growth. It is about constant obedience to Jesus and Mary. It should move forward in uniform acceleration. Growth in wisdom and charity, which is related to the cross (stultitia crucis [the foolishness of the cross]).
Not to be discouraged by crosses. The cross is our dowry – above all, it was Mary’s dowry. The Lord Jesus underwent passion three times: in the sacramental, spiritual and bloody ways (the first holy hour of Christ’s Mother during the agony and in Gethsemane), and then Her presence under the cross. When we celebrate the Holy Mass, we are ‘en Christo’ [‘in Christ’] – and at the same time we receive the Mother from Christ – ‘this is your Mother’ … The influence of Mary’s motherhood through the Holy Mass. Celebrating the Holy Mass, we can be ‘en Christo’, enter into Him together with the Mother of God as His slaves. The happiness derived from celebrating the Holy Mass: here we are at the roots of the priestly vocation. Jesus never denies the sufficient number of priestly vocations to the Church. If this number falters, the cause must lie within us – not Christ. Our death is the completion of our sacrifice ‘en Christo’, a participation in the Lord Jesus’ resurrection along the entire path of our inner life. We have to change in the hands of the Mother of God in such a way as to raise the level of the Church in Poland for ages to come.
We follow Our Lady of the Rosary. Joyful Mysteries.
Sorrowful Mysteries.
Glorious Mysteries.
Adoration; Matins; Benediction [illegible]; Penitential psalms; Compline
3 September
Laudes (St Pius X); Rosary; The Way of the Cross; Prime; Holy Mass
Meditation: ‘instaurare omnia in Christo’ [‘to unite all things in Christ’].
‘Terrena non metuit’ [‘He feared no earthly powers’] (St Pius).
Talk: Faith. Jesus demands faith in Him, in His person (in Me veritas [truth is in Me]). He demands strong faith (resilient and exultant), unconditional faith (modicae fidei [of little faith]). Faith comes from the Father (Pater revelavit [the Father revealed]), it is the divine light and divine truth instilled in our minds. An example of faith: the annunciation to Zechariah versus the annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary (a very beautiful analysis). How much of the ‘flesh and blood’
is still in our theological virtue of faith? The example of the Mother of God. St Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort says the Mother of God’s faith is preserved in the holy Church. Participation in Mary’s faith is the only way against perils and threats to faith.
Faith makes use and should make use of reason ‘to ponder and treasure God’s truth in one’s heart’.
It is the function of the depth: ‘ancilla’ [‘servant’].
The greatness of Mary’s faith throughout Her entire life (thirty years, Calvary, Pentecost). The apostles were sustained by Mary’s faith. Let us be so too – in order to provide sustenance to others. To do so, we need to be ‘douloi’ [‘slaves’].
Does everything in me ‘live out of faith’? One needs to believe in an episcopal way. The example of the Holy Father Paul VI: the way he speaks about the Mother of God! Building the Church through universal faith, but at the same time with our own local contribution.
Talk (final): St Paul as the model of Christian hope, though he was a Roman citizen. It was different with ‘Ancilla’ (Virgo Marya [Virgin Mary]), no human connections, no human support. And therefore Her hope is the greatest. At all stages of Her life. Under the cross, and especially later: She supported the early Church with this hope of Hers. And Her hope is kept within the holy Church. To what extent do we participate in Mary’s hope? The Church in Poland is in the position of ‘ancilla’, that is a servant.
The Lord God allows for this in order to make our hope grow. Stabat Mater – stabat episcopus sub Cruce Christi [the Mother stood – the bishop stood under Christ’s cross].
Do we live with hope? Do we find support essentially and exclusively in God’s grace? In what mood do people go back after meeting us? If they stand, inspired by the bishop’s optimism, we have fulfilled our service to hope. ‘Grant me, Mother, Your hope, and fill my heart with Your hope’ (nostra conversatio in coelis est [our citizenship is in heaven]).
Nothing can threaten us, neither Satan, nor the world, nor sin – if there is Christ’s power in us in the same way it is in Mary.
And during this retreat God’s love has been poured into our hearts, as it was into Mary’s, by the Holy Spirit.
1–3 November [probably 1964]
Visiting the shrines: Montèvergine – S. Giovanni Rotondo – S. Michele in Gargano – Lanciano (!)
4 November: Memorial of St Charles Borromeo
At the Felician Sisters’ – quaedam reasumptio [a certain conclusion]
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
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