Posted on 08/13/2010 10:52:16 PM PDT by Salvation
St. Maximilian Kolbe, priest and martyr
(1894-1941)
Maximilian was born Raymond Kolbe in Poland, January 8, 1894. At age twelve and around the time of his first Communion, he received a vision of the Virgin Mary that changed his life.
"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 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." -Saint Maximilian
In 1910, he entered the Conventual Franciscan Order. While still in the seminary, he and six friends founded the Immaculata Movement (Militia Immaculatae, Crusade of Mary Immaculate) devoted to the conversion of sinners, opposition to freemasonry , spread of the Miraculous Medal (which they wore as their habit), and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the path to Christ. He was sent to study in Rome where he was ordained a priest in 1918.
Father Kolbe returned to Poland in 1919 and began spreading his Militia of the Immaculata movement of Marian consecration, which he founded on October 16, 1917. In 1927, he established an evangelization center near Warsaw called Niepokalanow, the "City of the Immaculata." By 1939, the City had expanded from 18 friars to 650, making it the largest Catholic religious house in the world.
In 1941, the Nazis imprisoned Father Maximilian in the Auschwitz death camp. There he offered his life to spare another prisoner and was condemned to slow death in a starvation bunker. On August 14, 1941, his captors ended his life with a fatal injection. Pope John Paul II canonized Maximilian as a "martyr of charity" in 1982. St. Maximilian Kolbe is considered a patron of journalists, families, prisoners, the pro-life movement and the chemically addicted.
A man whose boots the greatest men and women in our world are not worthy to lick.
St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for us in our hour of need.
Amen! Visiting his cell at Auschwitz was heart wrenching yet warm. There was a candle in it that was left by Pope John Paul II when he visited Kolbe’s cell.
Amen. Perfect prayer - thanks.
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This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.
Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends, if you do the things that I command you.
- Gospel According to Saint John Chpt 15: 12-14
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That must have been an awesome story-telling occasion. Wow!
Reading | A letter of St Maximilian Kolbe |
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We must sanctify the whole world |
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He was a very humble man and like many war veterans, never dwelt on the horrors he saw and sacrifices he made, but spoke glowingly of the inspiration of Fr. Kolbe. Seeing his ID tattoo and the "1000 mile stare" and knowing the horrors of the death camps left an indelible impression on me.
The one message he gave was that when confronting evil faith alone was not enough, but that we are called to act upon our faith in His name.
My youngest son’s name is Maximilian in honor of this great saint.
**The one message he gave was that when confronting evil faith alone was not enough, but that we are called to act upon our faith in His name.**
So true. I think many of us do this in our own way.
Our Pastor’s Patron Saint is St. Maximilian Kolbe, and he visited his cell in Auschwitz twice. He spent quite a lot of time this morning talking about his visit to Auschwitz, and St. Kolbe. He has a relic, 3 hairs, that he brought to Mass this morning. After Mass we all kissed the relic. Quite an emotional morning.
It was an emotional pilgrimage for me too, as I visited his cell at Auschwitz and went to his Ministry home at Niepokalanow.
I suggest that anyone who makes it to Europe MUST also go to Auschwitz!
We have an altar server at my church by the name of Maximillian too.
I often wonder how those who believe that Sola Fide or Faith Alone, which at a superficial or academic level makes some sense, conclude that it somehow absolves us of the responsibility of confronting evil in real life.
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