Seeking the possibility to gather, integrate and collaborate is at the heart of our Jesuit mission today. One of such examples is the ministry of Fr. Leszek Gęsiak SJ, the spokesman for the Polish Bishops Conference. Since autumn of 2020, the beginning of his service, Fr. Gęsiak used the opportunity to integrate the spokesmen from different male religious congregations in Poland, initially through online meetings, but later through meetings in person. In November 12-14, 2023 there happened to be the third of such meetings in person. This time we were hosted by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Kodeń, a town precisely at the Polish-Belarusian border - from the windows of the guest house one could easily watch the Belarusian territory.
It was a good time of sharing experiences in our spokesperson ministry and expanding our knowledge of crisis management. The special guest of the meeting was Capt. Dariusz Sienicki, Spokesman for the Commander of the Nadbuzanski Branch of the Border Guard, who presented his work and the challenges associated with the service at the Polish frontiers, expanding our knowledge in a complex issue of migration. This branch of the Border Guard has under their custody the borders not only with Belarus but also with Ukraine. They were responding to the migration crisis in the fall of 2021 and to the enormous wave of war refugees from Ukraine since February 24, 2022.
During the meeting, we also discussed some of the issues included in the final report after the first Rome session of the Synod on synodality. We also addressed the issue of cooperation between religious orders in media communications and the development of existing information channels.The working sessions were combined with visits to places of pilgrimage. In addition to staying and praying at the Shrine of Our Lady of Kodeń, Mother of Unity, we also visited the Shrine of the Blessed Martyrs of Podlasie in Pratulin and Catholic Neo-Uniate Byzantine-Slavic rite parish in Kostomłoty, the only parish of such rite in the world. In the past, before WW2, the Jesuits made a strong influence on that rite through our mission in Albertin, which included the Byzantine-Slavic rite Jesuit novitiate, and where one of the members of the community was Fr. Walter Ciszek SJ, the Servant of God.
We use cookies on this site to enhance your user experience. Click Agree to accept.