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An article on Jasna Gora and St John Paul II!

ON JASNA GÓRA PATHS OF THE POLISH POPE

FR. IZYDOR MATUSZEWSKI

John Paul II, who on 27 April 2014 on Sunday of Divine Mercifulness was raised to the altars as a Saint, is looking at us from the window in Heaven. We are standing before this window of Father’s Home, remembering the brightness of holiness of Mother’s Home at Jasna Góra.

Pope of Mother at Jasna Góra

This Home is the heart of the Polish land, the Upper Room of the conversion of the land image. At this home John Paul II was growing up. He was at Mother’s all the time, on knees, together with those among whom he appeared as a Pastor of the world. Mary, present here – in this sanctuary ‘living here’, as cardinal Karol Wojtyła used to say – is alive for pilgrims through the sign of the holy icon. In John Paul II Polish heritage of Mary’s religiousness became heritage of the whole Church. He showed the world Mother from whom he was learning courageous faith going beyond any limits.

Mary at Jasna Góra, Mother of faith of pilgrims

In the encyclical ‘Redemptoris Mater’ John Paul II called Mary’s sanctuaries as places of particular presence of Mary. He also confessed: ‘(…) how not to mention Jasna Góra on my homeland? One can speak about a kind of ‘geography’ of faith and Mary’s religiousness which comprises all places of particular pilgrimages of God’s People who are aiming at meeting with God’s Mother, in order to find strengthened faith within the reach of motherly presence of Her who ‘started believing’ (no 28).

The presence of Our Lady understood in this way, entrustment acts mentioned by the Pope in the encyclical of Jasna Góra, which we undertook here during his pilgrimages and his love to this place – all this allows us to speak about ‘Jasna Góra Mother of the Church of John Paul II, Mother who leads him as God’s Mother, Mother of his steadfast faith, Mother who reveals herself to us and is our close Companion and Mother accompanying us in the pilgrimage.

Pope John Paul II took his experience of Mary’s Polish Path to Rome and made a treasure out of his deepest love, immense trustfulness and son’s devotion to Our Lady for the whole Church. He included his complete entrustment to Mary in the bishopric and later the papal coat of arms, where he placed the capital letter ‘M’ and in his call: ‘Totus Tuus’. It was not only a symbol but also the whole program of his entrustment to Mary. He was learning his trustfulness to Mother on his knees, from the years of his childhood, making pilgrimages, especially to Kalwaria Zebrzydowska and to Jasna Góra. The world perceived John Paul II as Mary’s Pope, Pope of Black Madonna.

Maybe we, Poles, have not always perceived him in this way, but believers in the whole world did, and were grateful to him for this Polish religiousness towards Mary.

the rest is here: http://sunday.niedziela.pl/artykul.php?dz=spoleczenstwo&id_art=01082