Maximilian Kolbe
Lutheran Church | |
---|---|
Beatified | 17 October 1971, Vatican City by Pope Paul VI |
Canonized | 10 October 1982, Vatican City by Pope John Paul II |
Major shrine | Basilica of the Omni-mediatress of All Glories |
Feast | 14 August |
Attributes |
|
Part of a series on |
Persecutions of the Catholic Church |
---|
Catholicism portal |
Maximilian Maria Kolbe
On 10 October 1982,
Due to Kolbe's efforts to promote consecration and entrustment to Mary, he is known as the Apostle of Consecration to Mary.[6]
Early life
Raymund Kolbe was born on 8 January 1894 in
Kolbe's life was strongly influenced in 1906, when he was 12, by a vision of the
He later described this incident:That night I asked the Mother of God what was to become of me. Then she came to me holding two crowns, one white, the other red. She asked me if I was willing to accept either of these crowns. The white one meant that I should persevere in purity and the red that I should become a martyr. I said that I would accept them both.[10]
Franciscan friar
In 1907 Kolbe and his elder brother Francis joined the
World War I
Kolbe was sent to
In the midst of these studies, World War I broke out. Maximilian's father, Julius Kolbe, joined Józef Piłsudski's Polish Legions fighting against the Russians for an independent Poland, still subjugated and still divided among Prussia, Russia, and Austria. Julius Kolbe was caught and hanged as a traitor by the Russians at the relatively young age of 43, a traumatic event for young Maximilian.[13]
During his time as a student, he witnessed vehement demonstrations against Popes
They placed the black standard of the "Giordano Brunisti" under the windows of the Vatican. On this standard the archangel, Michael, was depicted lying under the feet of the triumphant Lucifer. At the same time, countless pamphlets were distributed to the people in which the Holy Father (i.e., the Pope) was attacked shamefully.[14][15]
Soon afterward, on 16 October 1917, Kolbe organized the Militia Immaculatae (Army of the Immaculate One), to work for conversion of sinners and enemies of the Catholic Church, specifically the Freemasons, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary.[16][3] So serious was Kolbe about this goal that he added to the Miraculous Medal prayer:
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee. And for all those who do not have recourse to thee; especially the Freemasons and all those recommended to thee.[17]
Kolbe wanted the entire
Priesthood
In 1918, Kolbe was
From 1919 to 1922, he taught at the Kraków Seminary.[3][7] Around that time, as well as earlier in Rome, he suffered from tuberculosis, which forced him to take a lengthy leave of absence from his teaching duties. Before antibiotics, tuberculosis was often fatal, with rest and good nutrition the only treatment.[3][19]
In January 1922, Kolbe founded the monthly periodical Rycerz Niepokalanej (Knight of the Immaculata), a devotional publication based on French Le Messager du Coeur de Jesus (Messenger of the Heart of Jesus). From 1922 to 1926, he operated a religious publishing press in Grodno.[7] As his activities grew in scope, in 1927 he founded a new Conventual Franciscan monastery at Niepokalanów near Warsaw. It became a major religious publishing centre.[3][7][19] A junior seminary was opened there two years later.[3]
Missionary work in Asia
Between 1930 and 1936, Kolbe undertook a series of
Kolbe had started publishing a Japanese edition of the Knight of the Immaculata (Seibo no Kishi: 聖母の騎士).
In mid-1932, Kolbe left Japan for
Return to Poland
Meanwhile, in his absence the monastery at Niepokalanów began to publish a daily newspaper Mały Dziennik (the Small Diary), in alliance with the political group
World War II
After the outbreak of
Arrest and imprisonment
On 17 February 1941, the monastery was shut down by the German authorities. That day Kolbe and four others were arrested by the
Continuing to act as a priest, Kolbe was subjected to violent harassment, including beatings and lashings. Once, he was smuggled to a prison hospital by friendly inmates.[3][27]
Martyrdom at Auschwitz
At the end of July 1941, a prisoner escaped from the camp, prompting the deputy camp commander, SS-Hauptsturmführer Karl Fritzsch, to pick ten men to be starved to death in an underground bunker to deter further escape attempts. When one of the selected men, Franciszek Gajowniczek, cried out, "My wife! My children!" Kolbe volunteered to take his place.[11]
According to an eyewitness, who was an assistant janitor at that time, in his prison cell Kolbe led the prisoners in prayer. Each time the guards checked on him, he was standing or kneeling in the middle of the cell and looking calmly at those who entered. After they had been starved and deprived of water for two weeks, only Kolbe and three others remained alive.[30]
The guards wanted the bunker emptied, so they gave the four remaining prisoners lethal injections of carbolic acid. Kolbe is said to have raised his left arm and calmly waited for the deadly injection.[19] He died on 14 August 1941. His remains were cremated on 15 August, the feast day of the Assumption of Mary.[27]
Canonization
The cause for Kolbe's beatification was opened at a local level on 3 June 1952.
After his canonisation, a feast day for Maximilian Kolbe was added to the
Maximilian Kolbe is
Controversies
Kolbe's recognition as a
Accusations of antisemitism
Kolbe's alleged antisemitism was a source of controversy in the 1980s in the aftermath of his
During World War II, Kolbe's monastery at Niepokalanów sheltered Jewish refugees.[42] According to the testimony of a local, "When Jews came to me asking for a piece of bread, I asked Father Maximilian if I could give it to them in good conscience, and he answered me, 'Yes, it is necessary to do this because all men are our brothers.'"[45]
Relics
First-class relics of Kolbe exist, in the form of hairs from his head and beard, preserved without his knowledge by two friars at Niepokalanów who served as barbers in his friary between 1930 and 1941. Since his beatification in 1971, more than 1,000 such relics have been distributed around the world for public veneration. Second-class relics, such as his personal effects, clothing and liturgical vestments, are preserved in his monastery cell and in a chapel at Niepokalanów, where they may be venerated by visitors.[47]
Influence
Kolbe influenced his own Order of Conventual Franciscan friars, as the
According to the friars:
Our patron, St. Maximilian Kolbe, inspires us with his unique Mariology and apostolic mission, which is to bring all souls to the Sacred Heart of Christ through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Christ's most pure, efficient, and holy instrument of evangelization – especially those most estranged from the Church.[49]
Kolbe's views into
In 1963,
There are examples of Catholic institutions around the world adopting Kolbe as their patron saint. An example of this is Kolbe Catholic College in Rockingham, Western Australia. Founded in 1989, the college is a secondary education institution that uses the motto of "courage, faith and excellence" to connect with Kolbe's charism. In 2014, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the college, staff and students went on pilgrimage to Poland and Italy to retrace the life of Kolbe. The pilgrimage includes Auschwitz to connect with "courage", Niepokalanow to connect with "faith", and Rome to connect with "excellence". The college has returned to Europe with around 16 students and 2 or 3 faculty members again in 2016, to coincide with World Youth Day celebrations in Krakow, and then again in 2018.[citation needed]
In 2023, the Mexican production company Dos Corazones Films will release the animated feature film Max, which will tell part of the life of this priest.
Immaculata prayer
Kolbe composed the Immaculata prayer as a prayer of consecration to the Immaculata, i.e. the immaculately conceived.[55]
See also
Notes
- ^ Pronounced [maksɨˌmʲilʲan ˌmarʲja ˈkɔlbɛ].
References
- ^ Kijas, Zdzisław Józef (2020). "THE PROCESS OF BEATIFICATION AND CANONIZATION OF MAXIMILIAN MARIA KOLBE" (PDF). Studia Elbląskie. XXI: 199–213.
- ^ "'I would like to take his place' – DW – 08/14/2016". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Saints Index; Catholic Forum.com, Saint Maximilian Kolbe[self-published source]
- ^ Biniaz, Benjamin. "Religious Resistance in Auschwitz: The Sacrifice of Saint Kolbe". USC Shoah Foundation. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "Holy Mass at the Brzezinka Concentration Camp". Vatican. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-8146-3922-1.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Czesław Lechicki, Kolbe Rajmund, Polski Słownik Biograficzny, Tom XIII, 1968, p. 296
- ^ Strzelecka, Kinga (1984). Maksymilian M. Kolbe: für andere leben und sterben (in German). S[ank]t-Benno-Verlag. p. 6.
- ISBN 978-0-06-061901-5.
- ISBN 978-0-8146-3922-1.
- ^ a b "Saint Maximilian Kolbe | Catholic-Pages.com". Catholic-Pages.com. Archived from the original on 3 August 2020. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-06-061901-5.
- ^ "St Maximilian M Kolbe". Retrieved 18 January 2021.
- ^ "Biographical Data Summary". Consecration Militia of the Immaculata. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ Czupryk, Father Cornelius (1935). "18th Anniversary Issue". Mugenzai No Seibo No Kishi. Mugenzai no Sono Monastery.
- ISBN 0-87973-341-1page 63
- ^ "Daily Prayers". Marypages.com. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
- ISBN 0-89870-275-5page 127
- ^ a b c d e f g "Blessed Maximilian Kolbe-Priest Hero of a Death Camp by Mary Craig". Ewtn.com. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-06-061901-5.
- ^ a b Hepburn, Steven. "Maximilian Kolbe's story shows us why sainthood is still meaningful". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
- ISSN 2081-8971. Archived from the originalon 5 December 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
- ISBN 0-8091-6637-2.
city mary india kolbe.
- ISBN 9780898708851.
- ^ "Historia". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "SP3RN @". qrz.com. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Czesław Lechicki, Kolbe Rajmund, Polski Słownik Biograficzny, Tom XIII, 1968, p. 297
- ^ "Kolbe, Saint of Auschwitz". Auschwitz.dk. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "Sixty-ninth Anniversary of the Death of St. Maximilian Kolbe". Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. Archived from the original on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ISSN 1507-9058.
- ^ Index ac status causarum beatificationis servorum dei et canonizationis beatorum (in Latin). Typis polyglottis vaticanis. January 1953. p. 173.
- ISBN 978-1-137-00061-3.
- ^ Binder, David (15 March 1995). "Franciszek Gajowniczek Dead; Priest Died for Him at Auschwitz". The New York Times. p. 39. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
- ^ a b "Maximilian Kolbe". Westminster Abbey. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "The Calendar". The Church of England. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7914-3182-5.
- ISBN 978-1-4721-0516-5.
- ^ Joyce Wadler (5 December 1982). "Mass Is Set For the Saint Of Auschwitz". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Czy prawda się zmienia?".
- ^ Henry Kamm (19 November 1982). "Saint Charged with Bigotry; Clerics Say No". The New York Times.
- ISBN 978-0-671-76089-2.
- ^ a b c d e "Scholars Reject Charge St. Maximilian Was Anti-semitic". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ISBN 978-0-230-61117-7.
- ISBN 978-1-84467-902-7.
- ^ a b "Becky Ready". ewtn.com.
- ^ Becky Ready. "Was St. Maximilian Kolbe an Anti-Semite?". EWTN.
- ^ "The First-Class Relics of St Maximilian Kolbe". Pastoral Centre. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
- ISBN 978-1-78379-029-6.
- ^ a b "O.F.M.I. Friars". Franciscan Friars of Mary Immaculate. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "Sanktuarium Św. Maksymiliana – Zduńska Wola – DIECEZJA WŁOCŁAWSKA -KURIA DIECEZJALNA WŁOCŁAWSKA". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "Parafia p.w.w. M.M. Kolbego w Szczecinie – Aktualności". Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "Niepokalanów". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "National Shrine of St. Maximilian Kolbe". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ UCHWAŁA SENATU RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ POLSKIEJ z dnia 21 października 2010 r.o ogłoszeniu roku 2011 Rokiem Świętego Maksymiliana Marii Kolbego [1] Archived 6 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "University of Dayton Marian prayers". Campus.udayton.edu. 24 March 2009. Archived from the original on 11 December 2008. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
Further reading
- Rees, Laurence (2005). Auschwitz: A New History. New York: Public Affairs. ISBN 978-1-58648-357-9.
- Smith, Jeremiah J. (1951). Saint Maximilian Kolbe : Knight of the Immaculata. Rockford, IL: Tan. ISBN 978-0895556196
External links
- Patron Saints Index: Saint Maximilian Kolbe
- Kolbe's Gift, a play by David Gooderson about Kolbe and his self-sacrifice in Auschwitz based on factual evidence and conversations with the late Józef Garliński
- A Man Feared by the 21st Century: Saint Maximilian Kolbe from the Starvation Bunker in Auschwitz – a drama by Kazimierz Braun
- Saint Maximilian Kolbe, a popular biography at Catholicism.org
- Niepokalanów in English
- Catholic Online, St. Maximilian Kolbe, Catholic Online.Inform-Inspire-Ignite.
- St. Maximilian Kolbe Website
- An "Insight" episode which mentions Maximilian Kolbe, who was portrayed by Werner Klemperer
- Radio Kolbe, International Radio Group OM / SWL / BCL (Based in Italy)