“We regard as particularly dangerous the persistent attempts at the programmatic secularization of the young generation of Poles, raising them in the spirit of moral standards alien to us, restricting religion classes and removing crosses from school classrooms, as well as further anti-Polish reductions of school curricula, the removal of pearls of literature, outstanding works by authors who taught entire generations of young Poles sensitivity to the national cause,” said Fr. Jarosław Wąsowicz SDB in his homily during the Eighteenth Patriotic Pilgrimage of Football Fans to Jasna Góra, the organizer of the pilgrimages and chaplain to President Karol Nawrocki, who is also taking part in the event.
On Saturday, the Eighteenth Nationwide Patriotic Pilgrimage of Football Fans to Jasna Góra is taking place. This year, the event’s motto is “Ciebie Boga Wysławiamy”. On the occasion of the pilgrimage, a solemn Holy Mass was celebrated in the Chapel of the Miraculous Image of Our Lady of Częstochowa, presided over by Fr. Jarosław Wąsowicz.
“Each of us can find courage within ourselves”
At the beginning of the homily, the priest quoted the words of the First Letter of Saint John the Apostle: “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey His commandments; for the love of God is this, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith.” As he noted, “these words of Saint John the Apostle largely set the program of our lives.” – “We often wait for the New Year to change something – to live better, to be more ambitious than before, to fulfill some of our dreams. But it is not so much a specific date marked on the calendar that has some ‘magical’ power to renew ourselves and the world around us. Everything is in our hands, strengthened by God’s grace. Each day is an opportunity to be a little better for ourselves, for others, for the world. Each of us can find within ourselves the courage to become a better version of ourselves. Not a perfect one, just more kind, attentive, and ready to carry good. The power that changes life is within us. Let us not count on the calendar to make our lives better. Instead, let us focus on the good we can bring into the lives of others. It is the person, not the date, who opens the perspectives of the future. Together we can make this year more beautiful than before. Believers know and believe that in this project of transforming life for the better, we have powerful support. The Christmas season is a time when we can invite Jesus into our hearts, who wants to accompany us daily and together with us change ourselves and the world around us. ‘For whatever is born of God conquers the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith,’” he said.
“In extremely unfavorable conditions they sustain national identity”
The priest emphasized that this is already the eighteenth edition of the fans’ pilgrimage. “One could say that symbolically we are entering adulthood. Over all these years we have given strong testimony that, for matters important to us and to our Homeland, it is possible to unite, to soften animosities, and together reflect on the challenges that await us in the nearer and more distant future. Over these years, out of concern for the Homeland, we have formulated many demands during our pilgrimage, sometimes argued about them, listened to the advice and suggestions of distinguished invited guests, and attentively followed lectures and patriotic concerts. Above all, however, we were able to undertake joint projects, including the most important one, which is still ongoing and developing beautifully, because it is motivated by memory and gratitude toward our compatriots from the former lands of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, for the fact that they often, under extremely unfavorable political and social conditions, sustain national identity: they remain faithful to Polish culture, customs, and the Catholic Church,” he announced.
“Anti-Polish reductions of school curricula”
“We too, throughout all the years of our pilgrimage, have stood guard over these values which even today in Poland must be recalled and which often need to be defended. Over eighteen years we have observed more or less subtle attempts to detach Poles from the sources of national identity,” he said.
As he stated, “we regard as particularly dangerous the persistent attempts at the programmatic secularization of the young generation of Poles, raising them in the spirit of moral standards alien to us, restricting religion classes and removing crosses from school classrooms, as well as further anti-Polish reductions of school curricula, the removal of pearls of literature, outstanding works by authors who taught entire generations of young Poles sensitivity to the national cause.” – “Equally dangerous we see the restriction of teaching Poland’s beautiful history, marginalizing the story of our proud heroes who, from generation to generation, passed on a strong attachment to freedom and responsibility for the Homeland,” he added.
“These are also sinister attempts to depreciate national heroes – it is enough to recall here precisely orchestrated efforts to diminish the achievements of Saint John Paul II or the Cursed Soldiers. At the same time, with a light hand, those who tried to erase our state from the maps of the world, to Russify and Germanize us, to destroy our culture and faith, are absolved. At the same time, we also observe the promotion of a cosmopolitan vision of the world, consistently cutting us off from the roots of Polish identity,” Fr. Wąsowicz announced.
“We are a proud Christian nation”
“Despite all these adversities, today during the 18th Patriotic Pilgrimage of Football Fans, from the depths of our hearts we sing ‘Ciebie Boga wysławiamy’, because ultimately we are still a proud Christian nation that, in moments of threat, can unite. And preserve in the social sphere what is important and most important to us. Because we still know where our strength lies: ‘For whatever is born of God conquers the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith,’” he continued.
The priest noted that “it is clear that over eighteen years of our pilgrimage, much has happened.” – “Many of those who pilgrimaged with us have departed to the sector of heaven. The world changed, governments in Poland changed, wars broke out, we lived through the Smolensk tragedy, in which we lost the President of the Republic of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, and many Polish patriots. At that time, as fans, we stood guard at the Presidential Palace, and the late Andrzej Kołakowski, who passed away suddenly on October 19 last year, performed the moving Smolensk Requiem right here, in this Jasna Góra chapel, during the fans’ pilgrimage. Andrzej symbolically departed from us on the day of another anniversary of the kidnapping and murder of Fr. Jerzy Popiełuszko, who from the very beginning was the patron of the fans’ pilgrimage and who, in that tragic year of 2010, was proclaimed a blessed martyr of the Church and later the patron of ‘Solidarity’,” he listed.
“We are growing stronger”
“Although over 18 years many events have taken place and many changes have occurred in Poland, our initiative continues to be fiercely attacked by mainstream media and liberal-left circles. And we, Polish patriots, year by year grow stronger in numbers and spiritually. What has also remained unchanged is that, as participants in the fans’ pilgrimage, we have always met here at Jasna Góra with concern for our Homeland in mind and consistently, with the same sensitivity, always spoke about the same things: who we are and where we come from, what our roots are, which values we want to remain faithful to, what the foundations of our national identity are, and who our heroes are. And today, here at Jasna Góra, we are joined by the President of the Most Serene Republic, who also consistently reminds us that we are a proud Christian nation, that we must defend our Homeland on many fronts, and cultivate the values that shaped us and define us. ‘For whatever is born of God conquers the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith,’” he said.
“And for all of this, today we want to sing a solemn Te Deum Laudamus – Ciebie Boga wysławiamy! Let us ask for the gift of courageous profession of faith; it will always bring us victory! God bless Poland! Amen,” he concluded.