{"id":25547,"date":"2010-05-05T05:56:20","date_gmt":"2010-05-05T09:56:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/2010\/05\/blessed-gregory-frackowiak-soc\/"},"modified":"2010-05-05T05:56:20","modified_gmt":"2010-05-05T09:56:20","slug":"blessed-gregory-frackowiak-soc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/2010\/05\/blessed-gregory-frackowiak-soc\/","title":{"rendered":"Blessed Gregory Frackowiak, Society of the Divine Word"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Blessed<\/a><\/p>\n

Gregory Frackowiak was the youngest of our four martyrs was 31 when he was beheaded
\non May 5, 1943, in the prison of Dresden. Brother Gregory consciously offered
\nhis life as a substitute for others [does this sound the Law of the Gift spoken of my Jesus and recalled often by Pope John Paul II?]. His willingness to claim responsibility
\nfor some thing he did not do saved several people (including his brother) from
\ncertain imprisonment and death. This heroic gesture makes him similar to
\nanother martyr of the same war — St. Maximilian Kolbe, who also gave his life
\nfor someone else in the concentration camp at Auschwitz.<\/p>\n

Gregory is his
\nreligious name. He was born Boleslaw Frackowiak in Lowecice (a small village
\nnot far from Poznan). One of twelve children, he grew up in a deeply religious
\natmosphere. At the age of 18 he entered the Society of the Divine Word<\/a> (SVD) novitiate in Gorna Grupa. From the beginning he exhibited great joy in being a
\nmissionary Brother. He worked both as a receptionist and as a professional
\nbinder in the printing press. Among the people of the area he was remembered as
\nsomeone with a special sensitivity towards the poor. He had numerous visitors,
\nbecause he was known for providing something to eat, a warm welcome, and a good
\nword for everyone. Some called him “the friend of the poor.”<\/p>\n

His gentleness,
\nsimplicity, and deep spirituality were also appreciated by the students of the
\nminor seminary, who enjoyed his presence and sought his advice. His work as a
\nbookbinder in the printing press was acknowledged as exemplary by both lay
\nemployees and by the confreres. When Brother Gregory professed his final vows
\non September 8, 1938, he was deeply convinced that he was offering his life to
\nGod for the mission of Christ and of the Church. He had no idea how quickly and
\nhow radically he would be expected to live out that commitment.<\/p>\n

When World War
\nII began, Brother Gregory was part of the SVD community in Gorna Grupa. When
\nthis house was made an internment camp for priests, the brothers were forced to
\nleave. For a while he lived with relatives in Poznan. There he served as the
\nsacristan at St. Martin’s Parish. He also taught catechism to children and even
\nbaptized some of the newborn. One day the pastor was arrested by the Gestapo.
\nSince he could no longer safely hide the Blessed Sacrament, Brother Gregory
\ntook upon himself the task of distributing it among the faithful. For an entire
\nday and night he and others in the parish knelt in adoration before the Blessed
\nSacrament. Then with great reverence he distributed Holy Communion to those
\npresent.<\/p>\n

Eventually Brother Gregory was able to find work in a printing press
\nat Jarocin, a small town not far from his home. Like many others, he received
\nand passed on some anti-Nazi material. However, Fr. Paul Kiczka, SVD, advised
\nhim to discontinue receiving and passing on these pamphlets, and so he stopped.
\nA year later these activities were discovered by the Gestapo.<\/p>\n

Among those
\narrested were men who had wives and children. Wouldn’t the others be saved if
\nhe took on himself the whole responsibility for this anti-Nazi activity? “May I
\naccept the responsibility for them?” he asked his spiritual director. Fr.
\nKiczka responded: “If you have the courage and strength. It would mean
\nsacrificing your life.” Gregory made his confession and received Holy
\nCommunion. After his thanksgiving he shook his confrere’s hand and said, “Till
\nwe meet again — but not on this earth.” He went home, where he was arrested the
\nfollowing day. He “confessed” his crime, and immediately afterwards some of the
\nother suspects were freed. Gregory was transferred from the prison in Jarocin
\nto Poznan and then finally to Dresden, where he was beheaded.<\/p>\n

A few hours
\nbefore his death Gregory wrote to his relatives<\/span>. A few sentences from that
\nletter reveal his readiness for death: “I am writing to you for the last time
\nin this world. By the time you receive this letter I will no longer be among
\nthe living. Today on Wednesday (5.5.1943) at 6:15 PM I will be executed. Please
\npray for me. It is already one o’clock, and at two o’clock the priest will
\nbring me Jesus. Don’t cry, but pray for my soul. I leave it to you, whether you
\nwant to communicate to my mother the manner of my death. I am completely at
\npeace. I greet all of you, and I will wait for you in God’s presence. Please
\ngreet all the Missionary Brothers in Bruczkow. After the war bring my cassock
\nthere. God bless you. Remain faithful Catholics. Forgive any faults of mine.
\nI’m sorry for my poor mother. May God protect you. Till we see each other in
\nheaven<\/i>.”<\/p>\n

Blessed Gregory Frackowiak was beatified by Pope John Paul II on June
\n13, 1999, together with three companions from the Society of the Divine Word,
\nas part of a group of 107 Polish martyrs of the Second World War.<\/p>\n

This
\nbiography provided by the Society of the Divine Word<\/a>, this religious congregation out if you think you have a vocation. We need more Blessed Gregorys….<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gregory Frackowiak was the youngest of our four martyrs was 31 when he was beheaded on May 5, 1943, in the prison of Dresden. Brother Gregory consciously offered his life as a substitute for others [does this sound the Law of the Gift spoken of my Jesus and recalled often by Pope John Paul II?]. … Continue reading Blessed Gregory Frackowiak, Society of the Divine Word<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[2420,1710],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25547"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25547\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}