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July 6, 2008

Pope John Paul II’s secretary pays a visitPolish Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, archbishop of Krakow, spent three days making pastoral visits to Chicago’s Poles

By Alicja Pozywio

CONTRIBUTOR

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz

Age: 69
Ordained: 1963 by then-Archbishop Karol Wojtyla of Krakow
Years with pope: Served the archbishop as his secretary for 12 years before he became Pope John Paul II, and continued serving as his secretary for the 27 years of his papacy.
Ordained a bishop: 1998 and made an official of the Prefecture of the Papal Household.
Named archbishop: 2003 by Pope John Paul II
Return home: June 2005, about two months after John Paul II’s death, Pope Benedict XVI named him archbishop of Krakow, his home diocese
Elevated to cardinal: 2006
Book: “A Life with Karol: My Forty-Year Friendship with the Man Who Became Pope” (Doubleday, 2008)

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop of Krakow, visited the Windy City June 27-29 and provided Catholic Poles with a historically memorable feast. As a friend and long-term personal secretary to their beloved Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Dziwisz came to Chicago as a guest of Cardinal Francis George and Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Paprocki, the liaison to Polish people in Chicago.

Chicago was one of a few places the Polish cardinal visited while traveling to North America for the International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City, Canada, as a representative of the Polish Bishops’ Conference.

While Dziwisz’s schedule during his three-day visit to Chicago was very tight, there was time for participation in various events.

“I felt that people in Chicago welcomed me with great joy and open hearts,” he said at the Bishop Abramowicz Seminary Dinner June 29, the last event before he returned to Poland.

The Polish cardinal’s perceptions were not mistaken. Enormous enthusiasm and big crowds welcomed him at Holy Trinity Polish Mission as well as St. Hyacinth Basilica in Chicago, where he celebrated Masses June 29.

‘Tears of joy’

There were tears of joy and affection spilled on the Holy Trinity Mission’s floor when the two cardinals, Stanislaw Dziwisz from Krakow and Francis George from Chicago, came together at the celebration of the holy Eucharist. The prayer community of the Polish and American cardinals symbolized for many the unity in the church, a home for people of many languages and cultures.

Dziwisz, who wrote “My Life with Karol: My Forty-Year Friendship with the Man Who Became Pope,” knows that people are still hungry for stories and memories of their beloved Pope John Paul II. The congregations listened in deeply focused, respectful silence at Holy Trinity and St. Hyacinth Basilica when he shared some of his memories about Pope John Paul II.

“Let today be the time of thanksgiving for a special gift of John Paul’s life. We can’t wait for his beatification because we know that the current world needs witnesses of our faith,” said the cardinal during his homily at St. Hyacinth.

Dziwisz’s visit to St. Hyacinth was significant for several reasons. First, Dziwisz walked Father Michal Osuch, pastor of St. Hyacinth, through the process of changing its status from a regular parish church to a basilica.

Second, he conducted the ceremony of blessing the crowns for the icon of Our Lady of Czestochowa. The icon of Our Lady of Czestochowa, known as the Black Madonna, is extremely important in the religious life of Polish people. The icon is believed to have been painted by St. Luke. Famous for its miracles, the Black Madonna in Poland is visited every year by thousands of pilgrims from around the world.

Award recipient

Dziwisz’s primary objective in visiting Chicago was to participate in the annual dinner for the Bishop Abramowicz Seminary, at which he received the Caritas Christi Award. The seminary is a bridge between Poland and Chicago. It serves seminarians from Poland who come to study English for a year and then continue their theological studies at Mundelein Seminary, after which they are ordained priests for the Archdiocese of Chicago. The recipient of the Caritas Christi award is recognized for his or her openness to diversity in ministry, sensitivity to culture, giving of self and services to Polonia and the Catholic Church.

Bishop Paprocki summarized the honors due to Dziwisz, saying: “In light of the many accomplishments of Dziwisz, in particular his many years of service to our late Holy Father, the Great Pope John Paul II, as well as his dedicated service to the Catholic Church not only in Poland but throughout the world, it is a distinct privilege for me and for Cardinal George to present this year’s Caritas Christi Award to His Eminence, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz.”

The visit is over, the crowds are gone, but the memories will linger forever. For many Polish people, Dziwisz, metropolitan archbishop of Krakow, is an intriguing person, who lived for many years in shadows as the personal secretary to the world-renowned pope.

People became interested in his life and personality after the death of John Paul II. Thanks to the combined efforts of Cardinal George and Bishop Paprocki, Chicago was given an opportunity to watch this intriguing figure up close. They recognized in him a spontaneous, modest man speaking with assurance in a soft, quiet voice. They saw in him a man with a unique sense of humor who turned three Chicago summer days in late June into a historically memorable feast.