Italy, Rome: Communiqué of the Superior General on the oncoming feast of Bl. Stanislaus Papczyński

This year, for the first time in history, we will celebrate on May 18th the feast of Bl. Stanislaus Papczyński. This is an event very important not only for our community, but also for all people sharing our charism and the faithful entrusted to our pastoral care. In addition, steadfast prayers for the beatification of our Founder that continued for 300 years, created a large group of his zealous and often anonymous venerators who fly to his intercession and promote his devotion. For all of us, the 18th of May is the opportunity to praise God who shows us His unfathomable grace through His saints, as well as to give honor to the Blessed.

In his apostolic letter, which was proclaimed during the beatification ceremony, The Holy Father Benedict XVI wrote: “We […] grant permission that the Venerable Servant of God Stanislaus Papczyński, priest, the founder of the Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who dedicated himself to prayer on behalf of the departed and to the Christian formation of the people, be henceforth called Blessed and that his feast (festum) may be celebrated in places and according to the rules prescribed by the law every year on the 18th day of May.”

Since on May 18th this year we also celebrate the solemnity of the Holy Trinity, we won’t be able to hold liturgical commemoration of the Blessed Stanislaus with reading of the appropriate texts (liturgical and breviary) approved by the Holy See and provided in the recently published book So that your fruit may endure. However, being convinced that there are no accidents in the Divine Providence’s plans, we see this as an act of the Triune God. Let us humbly give thanks this day to the Holy Trinity for the gift of Fr. Founder’s beatification, praying that it will bring us abundant blessing.

During this-year celebrations of the solemnity of the Holy Trinity (May 18th), I encourage you to speak of in your sermons, announcements, and other forms of devotion, our Blessed as a great and untiring venerator of the Holy Trinity, to which he gave witness in his book Mystical Temple of God (Templum Dei Mysticum): “To you Eternal Father My Creator, To you Eternal Son My Redeemer, to you Eternal Spirit my Sanctifier, this Temple described and living, which I am, I most humbly dedicate for ever. Do not despise what you have created; do not cast away what you have restored; do not abandon what you have promised to inhabit.”

The communities which desire to celebrate Bl. Stanislaus’s feast using their own liturgical texts, may do so on a different day, i.e. May 17th or May 19th, celebrating a Holy Votive Mass for Bl. Stanislaus. Liturgies along with sermons about our Blessed create a wonderful opportunity to enliven in us the grace of vocation and to show the faithful an example of true Christian life. I also believe that they may contribute to bringing about new vocations for our religious community.

I give you all my whole-hearted blessing,

Jan M. Rokosz, MIC
Superior General

Given in Rome, on May 10, 2008
Prot. No. 147/2008