Queen of Poland

Last week at Connor's soccer practice, I was standing by the fence with another parent who had moved to the U.S. from Korea a few years ago.  He said that he owed his Christian faith to a wonderful Baptist preacher in Lousianna whom he and his family met shortly after they arrived.  Now in NC, they have found a new church home, this time for Korean Baptist believers.  And he had a question for me, "Can you tell me what Catholics believe about Mary?"

I said that we honor Mary because she is the mother of Christ.  We do not believe that she is God, but in response to our prayers,  she can and will intercede for us before the throne of her son Jesus.

And then he asked me where she is mentioned in the Bible, and we talked about some of the passages found in Genesis (in response to the sin of Adam and Eve, God promised a Savior, born of a woman, who would crush the head of the serpent), the Gospel of Luke (when the Angel Gabriel came to get Mary's consent to bear a child whom she would name Jesus and the miracle at the wedding feast of Cana when Mary told Jesus that they had run out of wine and then told them to "Do whatever He tells you"), in the Gospel of John (when from the cross Jesus says to His beloved diciple, "Behold your mother" and with that the apostle John took her into his heart and into his home...as all Christians are invited through him to do), and Revelation (when the woman appeared in the sky clothed with the sun and the moon under her feet who was pregnant and in labor while the dragon waited to devour her child.)  With that, he thanked me and then our attention returned to the action on the soccer field.

Thirty two years ago when I was a freshman at UNC,  I was asked a similar question and I had no answer for my roommate who wanted to know if Catholics worship Mary.  It had never occurred to me to think critically about my faith, instead I just knew and accepted the fact that I was Catholic.  It was not until I was challenged by people wanting to know more of what we believed that I began to question and seek answers to the teachings of the Catholic faith.   And for that I am so grateful!  So many of us carry what we learned as children into our adulthood until we fear we have somehow outgrown our childhood beliefs.  And so we must go through a second conversion in which we inform our adult minds and accept anew the faith that will sustain us through the ups and downs in this life.

And that brings me back to Mary.  I knew of her presence in the Biblical accounts, but have since learned that she has appeared through the years in visions to various groups of people around the world.  Some of the names I have personally come to know her by are Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico), Our Lady of the Americas (North, Central  and South America), Our Lady of La Van (Vietnam), Our Lady of Kibeho (Rwanda), Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of  Lourdes, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Our Lady of Grace, Our Lady of Sorrows, and so many more.

Last fall I sought her intercession under the title of Our Lady Undoer of Knots (Germany) which I heard about when I purchased her statue and novena booklet at a local conference.  In return for her help in finding Father Symeon a position as a diocesean priest with a U.S. Bishop, I promised to make a pilgrimage in thanksgiving to the U.S. Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in August 2013.  The promise tied in with my desire to walk the Camino in Spain, a thirty day 500 mile pilgrimage to the Shrine of St. James.  This walk is much shorter, only three days walking from the church of Sts. Peter and Paul in NJ to the National Polish Shrine near Philadelphia.  And I wanted to somehow talk Fr. Symeon into walking with me.

Just a few weeks later, Fr. Symeon did land a position with the Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston in West Virgina.   And I found myself fulfilling my promise this August, not to the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Pennsylvania, but to the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Poland!  It is the top pilgrimage site in a country devoted to the Blessed Virgin and the place of the miraculous image of the Black Madonna, venerated by the people for the Blessed Mother's answer to their prayers in times of great oppression.

And then I realized afterward that I not only visited the shrine with Fr. Symeon at my side, but we were there on August 2, his Ordination Anniversary too!    As we stood with the kids in front of the blessed image and heard mass being said, I brought with me my many intentions and those of everyone whom we would meet on our trip and all who would ask it about it later or read my blog (And since God is outside of time and space, you can go ahead and offer your prayer intentions right now.) And I asked Mary to protect us and guide us and teach us to follow her son.

And in yet another surprise from God, I realized as I sat down to write about this experience today, that it is August 26th, none other than The Feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa....now that is simply amazing!

Our Lady of Czestochowa, pray for us!

Reference: http://www.theholyrosary.org/maryundoerknots

Shrine of Divine Mercy

Father Symeon suggested that a fitting way to end our day at the concentration camps might be a visit to the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Lagiewniki to pray for all of those affected by the holocaust.  And I readily agreed, as this particular pilgrimage site was high on my list of things to see while we were in Poland.  It was a thrill to go to venerate the relics of a saint whose writings and work had meant so much to me in the past few years.  And it was exciting to enter the shrine where Pope John Paul II had commended the world to the Divine Mercy of God in a solemn Mass.

It so happens that Sister Maria Faustina Kowalska was the first saint cannonized by Pope John Paul II in the new millenium, shortly after I returned in earnest to my Catholic faith.   She lived between the two world wars and received visions of Jesus asking her to have an image painted and venerated around the world in tribute to His Divine Mercy.  She kept a diary in which she made a remarkable accounting of her spiritual life and faithful devotion to her mission despite many obstacles.  A particular archbishop named Karol Wojtyla of Krakow (later named Pope John Paul II) began the initial investigation into her life in 1965.  This beloved pope is soon to be cannonized himself, perhaps later this year.  And it is worth noting that he not only promoted this feast day, but he devoted his pontificate to it and then died on the eve of Divine Mercy Sunday (the second Sunday of Easter) in 2005.

Perhaps the image is most recognizable of all.  In it Jesus stands with one hand raised in blessing and the other revealing his heart from which two rays are eminating: one white to represent the saving waters of Baptism, and the other red to represent the blood he shed for us on the cross.   At the bottom are the words, "Jesus, I Trust in You!"

Pope John Paul II

---

"Right from the beginning of my ministry in St. Peter’s See in Rome, I consider this message [of Divine Mercy] my special task. Providence has assigned it to me in the present situation of man, the Church and the world. It could be said that precisely this situation assigned that message to me as my task before God."

—November 22, 1981 at the Shrine of Merciful Love in Collevalenza, Italy

"Those who sincerely say ‘Jesus, I trust in You’ will find comfort in all their anxieties and fears."

 "There is nothing more man needs than Divine Mercy – that love which is benevolent, which is compassionate, which raises man above his weakness to the infinite heights to the holiness of God."

—Shrine of Divine Mercy in Cracow, Poland on June 7, 1997

"…with the burning desire that the message of God’s merciful love proclaimed by St. Faustina may be made known to all the peoples of the earth and fill their hearts with hope.  May this message radiate from this place to our beloved homeland and throughout the world… In the mercy of God the world will find peace and mankind will find happiness."

—August 17, 2002

"The Message of Divine Mercy has always been near and dear to me… which I took with me to the See of Peter and which it in a sense forms the image of this Pontificate."

—John Paul II speaking on his Pontificate

"Be apostles of Divine Mercy under the maternal and loving guidance of Mary."

—John Paul II to the Marians, June 22, 1993

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Faustina_Kowalska:

The fact that her Vatican biography directly quotes some of her reputed conversations with Jesus distinguishes her among the many reported visionaries.  The author and priest Benedict Groeschel considers a modest estimate of the following of the Divine Mercy devotion in 2010 to be over one hundred million Catholics. 

Pope John Paul II said: "The message she brought is the appropriate and incisive answer that God wanted to offer to the questions and expectations of human beings in our time, marked by terrible tragedies. Jesus said to Sr Faustina one day: 'Humanity will never find peace until it turns with trust to the Divine Mercy.'"

There is a beautiful recording of  The Divine Mercy Chaplet in Song  on EWTN and also on You-Tube.  Reference for the 20 minute recording:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5TGfisOKMM&feature=youtube_gdata_player 

The Concentration Camps

I have struggled a bit with whether to include our trip to Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II - Birkenau in my blog.  The reason is that it is such a sensitive subject, such a sad place to visit, and a difficult thing to talk about. As we were making plans to drive there the night before, Adam's whole family seemed sad by their own memories of having visited there or having heard about the trips of others who went there too.  It seems that Symeon was taken there on a school field trip when he was fifteen as are many of the school children in Poland.  It is a testament to the Polish people that they have not only preserved these sites of great horror, but also have invited the world to come, to remember, and to see.

And it is no easy thing to do.  We arrived on a hot and sunny morning around 10 am and were assigned to an English-speaking group that would be led through the camp by a docent.  Tour guides have to study for two years before they can be a docent at the camps, and their presentations are thoughtful and solemn and appropriate.  They allot three hours for the tour in order to give visitors a chance to not only take in what is there, but to also read about it, meditate on it, and mourn over it too.

As we walked over the train tracks, the very ones that delivered countless thousands into the camps, I tried to imagine how it would have felt to disembark and be separated from my own husband and children as so many innocent familes had been years before.   As we walked through the museum and the dormatories and the gas chambers and the surrounding area, it was hard to understand how the dignity of the prisoners could have been held in such contempt and even overlooked as they were systematically starved and gased and worked to death in the misguided pursuit of eugenics.

But there were signs of hope in the camp as well, in the spirit of Maximillian Kolbe, the Catholic priest who traded his life for a father's, in the people of Poland outside the fence who offered food and assistance however they could, in the hope that lived in the hearts of those who held out until they could be freed, and in the smooth and worn stairsteps throughout the tour standing as testament to the many many people from around the world who have come to see, to pray, to mourn, and to reflect.  And to try to ensure that something like this never happens again. 

On to Krakow

We took a train from Warsaw to Krakow in order to experience how the local people travel (Father Symeon wanted to save the luxury of a rental car for later!) and found ourselves quite comfortable in a first class cabin for six.  We were somehow able to hoist all of our luggage into the racks above our seats and settle in for the three hour trip to the home of Symeon's cousins.  Time passed fairly quickly as we enjoyed the views of the countryside outside our window, which was being opened by us and closed by our cabin-mate as we tried to ward off heat and wind by turns.  My son Connor had purchased a magnetic chessboard for the occasion and he and Father Symeon were passing it back and forth across their laps with occasional exclamations of victory and defeat.  It was a fun diversion for them and for Courtney and me too, as we watched them spar.

Before long we were seated on a bench at the train station in Krakow, awaiting the arrival of  Symeon's cousin Adam, who would wisk us away to his home on a farm just east of the city.  After a little while of waiting, we were soon swept up by him as he greeted Symeon, grabbed one of our suitcases, and began walking full speed down the platform, down a ramp and into a tunnel, then out into a parking lot where his truck was parked. He loaded all of our bags into the back (with nary a complaint!), helped us into the back seat and then sat up in front with Symeon as he drove us away.  He talked and he gestured and he laughed and he smiled as he caught up with Symeon as we flew down the highway toward his home.  When we arrived, we received a warm Polish welcome from his mother, his wife, his daughter and two sons, and the many other family members and friends who came in and out during the time that we were there.

I think I have written to you a few weeks ago about our stay on their farm.  It was a real highlight of the trip for all of us, giving us a chance to meet and converse with many people and to be so generously provided for by his whole family in every way possible during our stay.   One of the things they gave us was the use of their car during our stay.  This allowed us to travel much more quickly and efficiently and comfortably too, to the outlying sights we were planning to see, and we readily accepted their generosity.

The only catch was that I was the only one who could drive a stick-shift car and so I would be doing the driving....!  The next morning Adam took me on an early morning errand to pick up something for his business and give me a chance to learn how to drive.  He didn't speak much English and I certainly didn't know Polish, but between the two of us we managed to get there and back despite the fact that I didn't understand their signs too well ...(a yellow diamond means that I have priority and should not yield and a yellow triangle with a red band around it means the other driver has right-of way).   When we arrived back at his house, he critiqued my driving with Symeon and asked him to explain to me the signs I did not understand.  He said I was a good driver....and I must admit that he is a far more relaxed and patient driving teacher than I have been in the past....hopefully I have learned not only how to drive in Poland, but also how to be a patient teacher for my teenaged kids  too.)

With that, we loaded the kids into the backseat of the car, and Symeon and I set out to find our way to  Oswiecim, Poland where former concentration camps Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II- Birkenau are located. 

http://en.auschwitz.org/z/

Warsaw

August 22, 2013

When we were planning our trip to Poland, we tried to include people and places that would interest each of us and enrich the experience for everyone.   Father Symeon was most interested in visiting his large extended family, I hoped to venture to religious pilgrimage sites, and the kids were interested in touring castles, World War II sites, and thriving university towns.

This was a wonderful way to see the country and we saw a rich cross section of Poland as a result.  We began by flying into Warsaw where we stayed two nights in the iconic Hotel Bristol adjacent to the picturesque Old Town which was completely rebuilt following the war.   We ate pierogis, which are goodie-filled dumplings both steamed and fried, drank "bread juice" tea and sampled the local beer on our first day in town.  And we feasted on sumptuous breakfasts of cold cuts, hard cheeses, crispy bacon, local breads, eggs prepared in various ways, fresh tomatoes and cucumbers, juices, and coffee.   It seems impossible to believe, but we didn't seem to gain any weight while we were there, and that is not a reflection of our liking of the food, but rather a tribute to the walking that we did all day and everyday our whole trip through!

We found the city to be sunny and hot by day and dreamy by night as the streets filled with people taking strolls in the cool evening air, enjoying a little outside time before going to bed.  We walked past huge old churches like St. Anne's which had been spared from damage during the war, past musical benches playing tunes by Chopin, along sidewalk containers of colorful flowers spilling over the sides, toward palaces and monuments and many restaurants with seating outside.  

And we were able to get around without too much difficulty as the city is well marked and clean and safe.  To our surprise, many people spoke English if asked, especially the twenty-somethings who learned it school.  Of course it didn't hurt to have a native Polish speaker with us, but I don't think it is necessary and anyone would find the people helpful and happy to have visitors from the U.S. in their midst.  In fact we often heard, "Tell all whom you know that Poland is a wonderful place to visit!"  (And granted, this could have been Father Symeon saying it over and over again...and indeed it was! But I think we heard it from his large family and from others too.)  And truly, we all agree!

For more information, visit their official website:  http://www.um.warszawa.pl/en

A Message from Home

August 22, 2013

Dear Friends,

I have been home for almost a week from our amazing trip through Poland and I am beginning to feel rested once again.  As I was wading through the email that had accumulated while we were gone, I found this (amusing) note from my sister:

-----Original Message-----
From: Gail Donovan 

Sent: Monday, August 05, 2013 5:29 PM
To: Ronda Watts
Cc: Courtney Watts; Connor Watts
Subject: Hi!!!

Hi Kids!

I hope you're having a great time! I, myself, am getting bored rereading
Ronda's ONE POST! C'mon! Throw us a bone ;)

Ronda, I'm home now and available to "chat" when you get the chance
(goodness knows, you aren't spending your time blogging). jk :)

Love you all,
Gail=
------------

There is no one like family to keep you in line!  And of course, she is right!     So I would like to make up for it now and write about a few of the things that we experienced on our trip.  Hope you will forgive me and stay tuned!

xoxo Ronda

Polish Hospitality

It's 6:30 AM on August 9th and I've just woken up to the sound of roof tiles being thrown to the pavement below as workers renovate the building next door to our hotel.  Our room is decorated with hand painted wooden furniture, three single beds with iron rails, two dressing tables, and several small chairs.  There are two large windows dressed with draperies and window shears that let in the breeze as the temperature cools off during the night from the unseasonably hot and humid weather during the day.

When I went down to the front desk at 11 PM two nights ago to inquire about a fan for our room, the young woman stationed there gave us her own little fan from her work area and only asked that we return it by morning.  Her generosity surprised and delighted me and the fan helped with the heat exchange in our room immensely.  The next day I was amazed once again when we returned to the hotel after our morning outing to Castle Ksiaz and there was a much larger fan on a stand waiting at the front desk for us.

 Another sign of Polish hospitality are the words "Prosze" (prosh-eh) and "Dziekuje" (Jen KOO yeh) for "Please/Here you are" and "Thank you" which we've heard throughout each and every day.  Since we are here during August we are visiting the attractions along with the Polish people who traditionally take their own vacations at this time of the year.  At the castles and gardens and churches and towns that we've ventured into, we've been able to see signs in English.  Items for purchase, like coffee table books for instance, are almost exclusively offered in Polish.  But menus in "Angielski" or "English" at restaurants are usually produced once we begin to speak and are identified as Amerykanin/Amerykanka citizens.

Our conversations with Symeon's extended family have helped us to know that the Polish people regard their relationship as allies with America throughout the years very highly.  As a result many are fascinated with our lives in America and welcome foreign travelers to their cities and towns and even their homes with legendary hospitality.

We have been overwhelmed with the wonderful meals full of traditional dishes prepared for us by Symeon's family, their constant encouragement to eat and to eat and to  
try everything, their hours of conversation with us as we sit around large and welcoming tables talking back and forth and laughing, their interest in us as people and their willingness to share their lives with us as well, their gracious acceptance of the small gifts that we brought with us from America, and their surprising offering of personal gifts to us and to my husband at home in thanks for our coming to visit.

Yes, we have been warmly welcomed not only by our host Father Symeon, his parents and sister and aunts and cousins, but also by the people of the country itself.  And now we too can speak with appreciation and amazement of the hospitality often offered with this expression of good will, "Na zdrowi!" (Naz-droh-vee-ay!)

Lapczyca

It's a hot and sunny Sunday morning in the little town of Lapczyca just East of Krakow and I'm sitting under a grape arbor on a wooden wagon wheel bench on the family farm of Father Symeon.  On Wednesday we were warmly greeted by his elderly aunt who owns the farm and still maintains her own house and the barn in which she keeps two large sows and eight piglets, along with a number of chickens raised for their tender organic meat, and the fruit orchards in several small gardens surrounding the home.  Her son Adam and his wife and three children have a house that shares the property and they help to plow the fields, plant crops of plant potatoes and wheat, and harvest the produce when growing season is through.

Adam's wife Malgosia and their daughter Ania are in the kitchen preparing a luncheon for the ever expanding and shrinking group of people who gather here throughout the day and evening.   Adam is the man of the house who runs a metal working business and works the farm "as just a hobby" since it no longer earns enough to support them all.  He has just come outside to sit on the bench across from me with his cup of coffee to watch me type on my wireless keyboard.  Although we don't share much language in common, it is not hard to understand when he holds out both hands to mime "touch typing", say "nie" and then proceed to point one finger and then the next at an imaginary keyboard to show me that he must hunt and peck at his computer instead.  Then I point to myself and say "secretary" and he laughs and gets up to return to the kitchen, still shaking his head.  This is just one sign of the friendliness and humor with which he and his family has welcomed us.

Yesterday the family joined Father Symeon, the kids, and I as we toured the Niedzica castle situated on a lovely mountain lake about 90 minutes from here.  The nine of us took two cars and we wound through the scenic hills dotted with chalets displaying cheerful flower boxes and tiny marian shrines.  Most families and indeed the whole country is consecrated to the Virgin thanks to her intercession in times of trouble throughout the ages in response to their prayers.  

The church bells are ringing in the distance now and I can hear the rustling of silverware as the table is set for lunch.  It is a day for Mass, a visit to the family cemetary plot, a brief rest, and then a trip into Krakow for the afternoon.  It is truly a blessing to be in the heart of  Europe in the Southern part of Poland, with a family who loves having company and a little distraction from the heavy demands of their work the rest of the year.  I teared up yesterday as I told Father Symeon that we could never repay them for their hospitality, but that I hoped that they knew what an honor it is to be with them in this most beautiful place.