Blessed Mary Angela's
greatest desire
was to become
"immolated love,"
a love which she always understood to be
a selfless gift. "To love is to give — to give everything
that love demands,
give it quickly,
without regret, joyfully, desiring only that more should
be demanded of us.
TO LOVE IS TO GIVE - Each day with Bl. Mary Angela
Thoughts of Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska
taken from the Selected Writings, Vol. I, II, III
s. M. Benwenuta Tomasiak CSSF
On the tenth anniversary of the beatification of
Mother Mary Angela Truszkowska,
our Beloved Foundress,
we hope to draw all persons
to her spiritual mission, that is those
who imitate Christ, as she did,
and desire to live out the Father's Will daily.
To love is to give everything that love demands. - Blessed Mary Angela
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska, the foundress of the Felician Sisters, was born in Kalisz in 1825 and died in Kraków in 1899. Pope John Paul II beatified this quiet and humble apostle of mercy who was also an apostle of prayer and suffering.
During the audience for the pilgrims at the beatification, the Holy Father had characterized the very rich and deep spirituality of Mary Angela this way: "This nun who loved God and people, followed the footsteps of Saint Francis and thirsted to renew the world through the fulfillment of God's will and through service to humanity. Christ's exhortation, "My food is to obey the will of Him who sent me" (J. 4.34) were words that inspired her to realize her sole desire namely, to become immolated love, to serve to the end, to follow Christ's way of the cross without any regard for the cost.
Her life was marked with love. She was concerned about all people: those hungry for bread, the heartbroken, the homeless and those hungering for the truth of the Gospel. Since her life was marked with the cross, she derived her strength from Jesus. She lived in Him and with Him, and became one with Him through prayer and her love for the Eucharist.
Her life was marked with faith which allowed her even in the greatest sufferings and interior turmoil to experience the grace of becoming transformed in Christ to be united with Him in His mission of salvation. This faith, purified by the darkness of the spiritual night, allowed her to develop a clear vision of the love and goodness of God witnessed in every cross. From this faith she derived the strength for persevering and enduring all sufferings, accepting and loving God's Will even in the greatest trials." (L'Osservatore Romano 5-6/1993, p.18) In the homily delivered during her beatification, the Holy Father emphasized Mother Angela's path of suffering and love: "Christ led Mother Angela through an unusual way, allowing her to share in the mystery of His cross. He had marked her soul with suffering which she accepted with faith in heroic submission to His will: in silence and solitude, during a long lasting and burdensome sickness, in the dark night of the soul."Blessed Mary Angela's greatest desire was to become "immolated love," a love which she always understood to be a selfless gift. "To love is to give—to give everything that love demands, give it quickly, without regret, joyfully, desiring only that more should be demanded of us." These are her words by which she encapsulated her entire life's program. (L'Osservatore Romano 5-6/1993, p.14)
The Felician Sisters organized and prepared the selected thoughts of Blessed Mary Angela for publication in the form of short reflections for each day. This way they hope to silhouette the fullness of the sublime spirituality of Blessed Angela, their foundress, and simultaneously to encourage confidence in her efficacious intercession for them before the throne of God
– Most Reverend Stanislaus Smolenski
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska
Foundress of the Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska, baptized Sophia Camille, was born in Kalisz in 1825, as the first child of a deeply religious family who were affluent landowners, Sophia's exceptional sensitivity to the signs of the time had an explicit influence on her spiritual and personal formation.
Initially Sophia thought of living a cloistered life with the Visitation Sisters. an obstacle for her was the serious illness of her father who disagreed with her intention. As a caretaker for her father she journeyed with him to Salzbrunn. On her return trip she visited the Cathedral in Cologne where she experienced a deep inner call from God directing her way of life. Immersed in contemplation, she recognized that her vocation was to build in the heart of people a sanctuary to the living God just as the poor Poverello of Assisi had done; however, in discerning her goal, she took advantage of the advice and help of others, but remained a person of independent and mature decisions, undertaken in the atmosphere of her own spirituality.
Sophia imbued the Congregation she established with a Franciscan Spirit. Her wish was to bring Christ to all people. She desired that Christ be known, loved and glorified by everyone — everywhere. Inspired by this desire and a deep concern, she embraced the forgotten children and elderly women living alone in Warsaw where Sophia lived with her parents. Many young women of this capital city joined her. Her undertakings gradually assumed the character of a religious community. The difficulties she encountered had not stymied her. The foundation on which she built her Congregation was her heroic faith. She trusted in Love and inflamed with its fire, she wanted to inflame not only her sisters but also a wounded and forsaken world so that Love may be loved.
To this Franciscan spirituality Mother Angela added her own style characterized by singular dimensions expressed in a life of Gospel fullness, in a unique love and honor for the Eucharist, loyalty to the church and riveted attention on Mary — the exemplar of trust and unconditional abandonment to God.
To her spiritual daughters she left a testament of simple words, taken almost verbatim from the Gospel . . . more than father, more than mother, more than all on earth, love the Will of God, and be immersed in it. She desired as Jesus did to become a sacrificial offering — immolated by love of God and nourished by fulfilling the Will of God which she desired to instill in her sisters. In this context she envisioned her vocation and the formation of her congregation.
Fulfillment of God's Will inevitably results in humble service to neighbor. Blessed Angela's unconditional and boundless love of God did not stifle her degree of sacrifice for others. She went where she saw a need, where no one else would go, to serve and to bring Christ to others. Blessed Angela's desire to fulfill God's Will was expressed by her great love for obedience which she placed above extraordinary graces, above ecstasy and above the gift of prayer. God knew that He could demand much from her and He did. With dignity, His Spouse carried heroically throughout her life the cross of physical and moral pain, the cross of misunderstanding and the cross of the Dark Night of the Soul. In the prime of life, at the age of 44, she moved into the background and was thereby forced to withdraw from administering the Congregation actively. Cancer and rapid loss of hearing made it impossible for her to relate to her existing surroundings. For the next 30 years she lived a solitary life and was always concerned about the growth and expansion of the Congregation. She entrusted it to God and was sure that He would not betray her. Winowska described her as a person of great trust: In the face of trials, God had chiseled the countenance of Mother Foundress and human words appear strangely inadequate and poor. The naked cross is not the measure of words but of silence. Sophia trusted in God but God must have trusted her that He laid bare her soul and leveled her to the ground. A rich harvest follows her death.
Mother Angela's love of the Eucharist bounded with her idea of immolated love — a total offering of self. Gazing at the Eucharist with an attitude of humility, reparation and admitting her weaknesses, she tried to live Eucharist, thereby becoming Eucharist for others.
Her faith and love expressed themselves also in relation to the church and the Vicar of Christ. As a faithful daughter of Saint Francis, she desired like him to repair the house of God in the hearts of people.
For Blessed Angela, Mary was a model of fulfilling God's Will. From her she developed an attitude of humility, trust, obedience and courage in suffering. Imbued with God's Word and Mary's example, she developed a universal love. She loved the rosary and was convinced that through this prayer she obtained graces for herself, the Congregation and the whole church. As early as 1864 the Foundress solemnly dedicated the entire congregation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary as she was convinced that only in this heart can members grow in the fullness of the Gospel.
Mary Angela was a gift for the Church in the 19th century. She was a woman distinguished not only for her faith and exceptional devotion, but she was also intelligent and wise singularly creative and noble, in a word, one of those women about whom it is said they were born to reign in the kingdom. (Ernest de Beaulieu). A gift for the Church of our times, she stands before us as a safeguard of inner truth in the light of which the only greatness and love is God.
– Sister M. Angelica Spychalska, CSSF
Editors:
s. M. Angelika Spychalska – Warszawa
s. M. Alina Płoszczyca – Kraków
s. M. Jonasza Stelmach – Przemyśl
English Edition prepared by:
s. M. Anastasia Wdowiak – Lodi, New Jersey
s. M. David Malczynski – Lodi, New Jersey
Technical Assistant:
s. Lenore Marie Murawski – Lodi, New Jersey
Graphic Design:
Magdalena Lazicka
ISBN 83-7257-048-5
Copyright by the Felician Sisters, Warsaw 2003
Published by
Sisters of Loretto
16/20 Zeligowski Street
04-476 Warsaw
Największym pragnieniem
Bł. Marii Angeli
było stać się
„miłością ofiarną,"
miłością, którą zawsze rozumiała jako
bezinteresowny dar z siebie.
„Kochać znaczy
dawać —
dawać wszystko,
czego zażąda miłość,
dawać szybko,
bez żalu,
z radością, pragnąc jedynie
tego, aby jeszcze więcej
od nas żądano.
KOCHAĆ, TO ZNACZY DAWAĆ– każdego dnia z bł. Marią Angelą
Myśli bł. Marii Angeli Truszkowskiej
z Wyboru Pism (t. I, II, III) wybrała s. M. Benwenuta Tomasiak CSSF
W dziesiątą rocznicę beatyfikacji Matki Marii Angeli Truszkowskiej,
naszej Umiłowanej Założycielki,
pragniemy przybliżyć
Jej duchowe posłannictwo
wszystkim, którzy na wzór Chrystusa,
podobnie jak Ona,
chcą żyć na co dzień pełnieniem woli Ojca. Siostry Felicjanki
Kochać to dawać.
Dawać wszystko, czego zażąda miłość. (Bł. M. Angela)
Błogosławiona Maria Angela Truszkowska, założycielka Sióstr Felicjanek, urodziła się w Kaliszu w 1825 r., a zmarła w Krakowie w roku 1899. Papież Jan Paweł II w 1993 r. w Rzymie wyniósł do chwały ołtarzy tę cichą i pokorną apostołkę dzieł miłosierdzia, a zarazem apostołkę modlitwy i cierpienia.
W czasie audiencji dla pielgrzymów przybyłych na beatyfikację Ojciec Święty tak scharakteryzował bardzo bogatą i głęboką duchowość Marii Angeli: «Ta miłująca Boga i ludzi zakonnica, idąc śladami św. Franciszka, zapragnęła odnowić świat poprzez spełnianie woli Bożej i służbę bliźniemu. Chrystusowe słowa: „Moim pokarmem jest wypełnić wolę Tego, który Mnie posłał" (J 4,34), były dla niej natchnieniem w realizowaniu jednego tylko pragnienia: aby stać się żertwą miłości, służyć do końca, iść za Chrystusem drogą krzyża bez względu na cenę, jaką trzeba za to zapłacić.
Życie jej znaczone było miłością. Była to troska o wszystkich głodnych chleba, serca i domu oraz prawdy Ewangelii. Życie jej było znaczone krzyżem. A siłę czerpała z Jezusa. Żyła w Nim i z Nim, zjednoczona przez modlitwę i umiłowanie Eucharystii.
Życie jej znaczone było wiarą. Wiara w miłość Boga pozwoliła jej w największych cierpieniach i wewnętrznych doświadczeniach dojrzeć łaskę przemieniania się w Chrystusa, włączania się w Jego zbawcze dzieło. Ta wiara, oczyszczona przez ciemność nocy duchowej, pozwalała jej dojść do jasnego widzenia w każdym krzyżu wyrazu miłości i dobroci Ojca. Z tej wiary czerpała moc do przetrwania i znoszenia wszystkich cierpień, przyjmowania i miłowania woli Bożej, nawet najbardziej krzyżującej» (L’Osservatore Romano, wyd. pol. 5-6/1993, s. 18).
W homilii wygłoszonej podczas beatyfikacji Ojciec Święty uwydatnił drogę cierpienia i miłości Marii Angeli: «Chrystus prowadził M. Angelę drogą niezwykłą, dając jej szczególny udział w tajemnicy swego Krzyża. Rzeźbił jej duszę cierpieniem, które przyjmowała z wiarą i heroicznym poddaniem się Jego woli: w ukryciu i samotności, długotrwałej i uciążliwej chorobie, w ciemnej nocy duszy».
Największym jej pragnieniem było stać się „żertwą miłości". A miłość rozumiała zawsze jako bezinteresowny dar z siebie. „Kochać to dawać. Dawać wszystko, czego zażąda miłość. Dawać prędko, bez żalu, z radością, z pragnieniem, by więcej od nas zażądano". To są jej słowa, w których wyraziła zwięźle cały swój życiowy program (tam, s. 14 ).
Siostry Felicjanki opracowały i przygotowały do druku wybrane myśli błogosławionej Marii Angeli, zestawiając je w formie krótkich refleksji na każdy dzień. Tą drogą pragną przybliżyć nam pełną uroku duchową sylwetkę błogosławionej Matki Założycielki, a zarazem wzbudzić naszą ufność w skuteczność jej orędownictwa u Bożego tronu.
–Ks. Bp Stanistaw Smoleński
Bł. Maria Angela Truszkowska
Założycielka Sióstr św. Feliksa z Kantalicjo – Felicjanek
Bł. Maria Angela Truszkowska, ze chrztu Zofia Kamila, urodziła się w Kaliszu w roku 1825 jako pierwsze dziecko głęboko wierzącej, ziemiańskiej rodziny. Wyjątkowa wrażliwość Zofii na znaki czasu ma wyraźny wpływ na kształtowanie się jej osobowości i na jej duchowość.
Zofia myśli początkowo o życiu klauzurowym u wizytek. Na przeszkodzie staje jednak poważna choroba ojca i brak zgody z jego strony. Jako opiekunka ojca wyjeżdża do Salzbrunn. W drodze powrotnej zwiedza katedrę kolońską. Tam przeżywa głębokie, wewnętrzne wołanie Boga, wyznaczające jej drogę życia. Zatopiona w kontemplacji poznaje, że jej powołaniem jest budowanie w sercach ludzkich świątyni Bogu żywemu, podobnie jak to czynił Biedaczyna z Asyżu. Chociaż w odnalezieniu swojej drogi korzysta z rad i pomocy innych, to jednak pozostaje zawsze człowiekiem samodzielnych, dojrzałych decyzji, podejmowanych w klimacie własnej duchowości.
W założone przez siebie Zgromadzenie tchnie ducha Franciszkowego. Chce nieść wszystkim Chrystusa. Pragnie, by Bóg był wszędzie i przez wszystkich znany, kochany i wielbiony. Inspirowana tym pragnieniem otacza opieką opuszczone dzieci i samotne staruszki z Warszawy, bo tam zamieszkała z rodzicami. Dołączają do niej liczne, młode kobiety stolicy. Podjęte dzieło przyjmuje stopniowo kształty coraz bardziej uformowanej wspólnoty zakonnej. Nie przerażają jej trudności. „Skałą", na której buduje swoje Zgromadzenie, jest jej heroiczna wiara. Uwierzyła Miłości i zapalona jej ogniem, chce nim zapalać nie tylko swoje siostry, ale nieść go wszędzie zagubionemu światu, by Miłość była kochana.
Franciszkańskiej duchowości nadaje Matka Angela własne kształty znaczone szczególnymi wymiarami. Wyrażają się one w życiu pełnią Ewangelii, w niezwykłej miłości i czci do Eucharystii, w wierności Kościołowi oraz w zapatrzeniu się w Maryję – wzór zawierzenia Bogu i bezwarunkowego oddania.
Swoim córkom duchowym zostawia niejako w testamencie słowa proste, żywcem prawie wzięte z Ewangelii:.. nad ojca, nad matkę, nad wszystko na świecie miłujcie wolę Bożą, by zatonąć w niej. Pragnie jak Jezus stać się ofiarą zadośćczynną, żertwą Bożej miłości. Tę ideę żertwy, karmionej wypełnianiem woli Bożej, wpaja swoim siostrom. I w tym kontekście widzi swoje powołanie i formowane przez siebie Zgromadzenie.
W pełnieniu woli Bożej znajduje też wyraz pokorna służba bliźnim. Bezgraniczna miłość Boga Matki Angeli i wynikający z niej maksymalizm nie pozwala na zakreślanie granic poświęcaniu się dla drugich. Idzie tam, gdzie widzi potrzebę, gdzie nie pójdą inni, by służyć, by nieść Chrystusa.
Pragnienie pełnienia woli Bożej wyraża się u Marii Angeli w wielkim umiłowaniu posłuszeństwa, które przedkłada nad wszystkie łaski nadzwyczajne, nad zachwycenia, nad dar modlitwy. Bóg wiedział, że może od niej wymagać wiele. I wymagał. Z godnością Jego oblubienicy niesie heroicznie przez całe życie krzyż cierpień fizycznych i moralnych, krzyż niezrozumienia, krzyż ciemnej nocy ducha. W pełni życia, w wieku czterdziestu czterech lat odchodzi w cień, zmuszona do wycofania się z czynnego kierowania Zgromadzeniem. Choroba raka i postępująca szybko utrata słuchu uniemożliwia kontakt z otoczeniem. Trzydzieści następnych lat przeżywa w samotności, zatroskana cały czas o rozwój Zgromadzenia. Zawierzyła je Bogu i jest pewna, że jej nie zawiedzie. O niej, jako o człowieku wielkiego zawierzenia, napisze Winowska: W obliczu prób, jakimi Bóg szlifował oblicze Matki Fundatorki, słowa ludzkie wydają się dziwnie wiotkie i ubogie. Nagi krzyż nie jest na miarę słów, lecz milczenia. Zofia zaufała Bogu, lecz jakże Bóg musiał jej zaufać, skoro aż tak ją ogołocil i z ziemią zrównał, i oto widzimy rozrastający się na jej grobie bogaty plon.
Miłość Eucharystii u Matki Angeli jest bardzo związana z umiłowaną ideą żertwy - ofiary całopalnej. Zapatrzona w Eucharystię w postawie pokory, zadośćuczynienia i uznawania własnej słabości stara się żyć Eucharystią, stawać się niejako Eucharystią dla innych.
Jej wiara i miłość wyraża się także w relacji do Kościoła i Namiestnika Chrystusowego. Jako wierna córa św. Franciszka, pragnie jak on naprawiać dom Boży w sercach ludzi.
Wzorem pełnienia woli Bożej jest dla Matki Angeli Maryja. Od Niej uczy się postawy pokory, zawierzenia, posłuszeństwa i męstwa w cierpieniu. Razem z Maryją zasłuchana w Słowo Boga uczy się kochać miłością, która pozwala ogarnąć wszystkich ludzi. Kocha różaniec i jest przekonana, że tą modlitwą wyprasza łaski sobie, Zgromadzeniu i całemu Kościołowi. Już w roku 1864 Założycielka oddaje uroczyście całe Zgromadzenie Niepokalanemu Sercu Maryi. Jest pewna, że tylko w tym Sercu może wzrastać ku pełni Ewangelii.
Maria Angela była darem dla Kościoła XIX wieku, była kobietą odznaczającą się nie tylko wielką wiarą i niepospolitą pobożnością, ale także inteligentną i mądrą, w szczególności zaś przedsiębiorczą i szlachetną, słowem, jedną z tych kobiet, o których się mówi, że urodziły się, by rządzić królestwem (Ernest de Beaulieu). Jest darem dla Kościoła naszych czasów. Staje przed nami, jako strażniczka wewnętrznej prawdy, w świetle której jedyną wielkością i miłością jest Bóg.
–siostra M. Angelika Spychalska CSSF
Pracę redakcyjną wykonały:
s. M. Angelika Spychalska – Warszawa
s. M. Alina Płoszczyca – Kraków
s. M. Jonasza Stelmach – Przemyśl
English Edition prepared by:
s. M. Anastasia Wdowiak – Lodi, New Jersey
s. M. David Malczynski – Lodi, New Jersey
Technical Assistant:
s. Lenore Marie Murawski – Lodi, New Jersey
Opracowanie graficzne:
Magdalena Łazicka
ISBN 83-7257-048-5
Copyright by Siostry Felicjanki, Warszawa 2003
Wydawnictwo Sióstr Loretanek
ul. L. Żeligowskiego 16/20
04-476 Warszawa
Blessed Mary Angela's
greatest desire
was to become
"immolated love,"
a love which she always understood to be
a selfless gift. "To love is to give — to give everything
that love demands,
give it quickly,
without regret, joyfully, desiring only that more should
be demanded of us.
O amor não tem medida - Each day with Bl. Mary Angela
Thoughts of Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska
taken from the Selected Writings, Vol. I, II, III
s. M. Benwenuta Tomasiak CSSF
On the tenth anniversary of the beatification of
Mother Mary Angela Truszkowska,
our Beloved Foundress,
we hope to draw all persons
to her spiritual mission, that is those
who imitate Christ, as she did,
and desire to live out the Father's Will daily.
To love is to give everything that love demands. - Blessed Mary Angela
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska, the foundress of the Felician Sisters, was born in Kalisz in 1825 and died in Kraków in 1899. Pope John Paul II beatified this quiet and humble apostle of mercy who was also an apostle of prayer and suffering.
During the audience for the pilgrims at the beatification, the Holy Father had characterized the very rich and deep spirituality of Mary Angela this way: "This nun who loved God and people, followed the footsteps of Saint Francis and thirsted to renew the world through the fulfillment of God's will and through service to humanity. Christ's exhortation, "My food is to obey the will of Him who sent me" (J. 4.34) were words that inspired her to realize her sole desire namely, to become immolated love, to serve to the end, to follow Christ's way of the cross without any regard for the cost.
Her life was marked with love. She was concerned about all people: those hungry for bread, the heartbroken, the homeless and those hungering for the truth of the Gospel. Since her life was marked with the cross, she derived her strength from Jesus. She lived in Him and with Him, and became one with Him through prayer and her love for the Eucharist.
Her life was marked with faith which allowed her even in the greatest sufferings and interior turmoil to experience the grace of becoming transformed in Christ to be united with Him in His mission of salvation. This faith, purified by the darkness of the spiritual night, allowed her to develop a clear vision of the love and goodness of God witnessed in every cross. From this faith she derived the strength for persevering and enduring all sufferings, accepting and loving God's Will even in the greatest trials." (L'Osservatore Romano 5-6/1993, p.18) In the homily delivered during her beatification, the Holy Father emphasized Mother Angela's path of suffering and love: "Christ led Mother Angela through an unusual way, allowing her to share in the mystery of His cross. He had marked her soul with suffering which she accepted with faith in heroic submission to His will: in silence and solitude, during a long lasting and burdensome sickness, in the dark night of the soul."Blessed Mary Angela's greatest desire was to become "immolated love," a love which she always understood to be a selfless gift. "To love is to give—to give everything that love demands, give it quickly, without regret, joyfully, desiring only that more should be demanded of us." These are her words by which she encapsulated her entire life's program. (L'Osservatore Romano 5-6/1993, p.14)
The Felician Sisters organized and prepared the selected thoughts of Blessed Mary Angela for publication in the form of short reflections for each day. This way they hope to silhouette the fullness of the sublime spirituality of Blessed Angela, their foundress, and simultaneously to encourage confidence in her efficacious intercession for them before the throne of God
– Most Reverend Stanislaus Smolenski
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska
Foundress of the Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice
Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska, baptized Sophia Camille, was born in Kalisz in 1825, as the first child of a deeply religious family who were affluent landowners, Sophia's exceptional sensitivity to the signs of the time had an explicit influence on her spiritual and personal formation.
Initially Sophia thought of living a cloistered life with the Visitation Sisters. an obstacle for her was the serious illness of her father who disagreed with her intention. As a caretaker for her father she journeyed with him to Salzbrunn. On her return trip she visited the Cathedral in Cologne where she experienced a deep inner call from God directing her way of life. Immersed in contemplation, she recognized that her vocation was to build in the heart of people a sanctuary to the living God just as the poor Poverello of Assisi had done; however, in discerning her goal, she took advantage of the advice and help of others, but remained a person of independent and mature decisions, undertaken in the atmosphere of her own spirituality.
Sophia imbued the Congregation she established with a Franciscan Spirit. Her wish was to bring Christ to all people. She desired that Christ be known, loved and glorified by everyone — everywhere. Inspired by this desire and a deep concern, she embraced the forgotten children and elderly women living alone in Warsaw where Sophia lived with her parents. Many young women of this capital city joined her. Her undertakings gradually assumed the character of a religious community. The difficulties she encountered had not stymied her. The foundation on which she built her Congregation was her heroic faith. She trusted in Love and inflamed with its fire, she wanted to inflame not only her sisters but also a wounded and forsaken world so that Love may be loved.
To this Franciscan spirituality Mother Angela added her own style characterized by singular dimensions expressed in a life of Gospel fullness, in a unique love and honor for the Eucharist, loyalty to the church and riveted attention on Mary — the exemplar of trust and unconditional abandonment to God.
To her spiritual daughters she left a testament of simple words, taken almost verbatim from the Gospel . . . more than father, more than mother, more than all on earth, love the Will of God, and be immersed in it. She desired as Jesus did to become a sacrificial offering — immolated by love of God and nourished by fulfilling the Will of God which she desired to instill in her sisters. In this context she envisioned her vocation and the formation of her congregation.
Fulfillment of God's Will inevitably results in humble service to neighbor. Blessed Angela's unconditional and boundless love of God did not stifle her degree of sacrifice for others. She went where she saw a need, where no one else would go, to serve and to bring Christ to others. Blessed Angela's desire to fulfill God's Will was expressed by her great love for obedience which she placed above extraordinary graces, above ecstasy and above the gift of prayer. God knew that He could demand much from her and He did. With dignity, His Spouse carried heroically throughout her life the cross of physical and moral pain, the cross of misunderstanding and the cross of the Dark Night of the Soul. In the prime of life, at the age of 44, she moved into the background and was thereby forced to withdraw from administering the Congregation actively. Cancer and rapid loss of hearing made it impossible for her to relate to her existing surroundings. For the next 30 years she lived a solitary life and was always concerned about the growth and expansion of the Congregation. She entrusted it to God and was sure that He would not betray her. Winowska described her as a person of great trust: In the face of trials, God had chiseled the countenance of Mother Foundress and human words appear strangely inadequate and poor. The naked cross is not the measure of words but of silence. Sophia trusted in God but God must have trusted her that He laid bare her soul and leveled her to the ground. A rich harvest follows her death.
Mother Angela's love of the Eucharist bounded with her idea of immolated love — a total offering of self. Gazing at the Eucharist with an attitude of humility, reparation and admitting her weaknesses, she tried to live Eucharist, thereby becoming Eucharist for others.
Her faith and love expressed themselves also in relation to the church and the Vicar of Christ. As a faithful daughter of Saint Francis, she desired like him to repair the house of God in the hearts of people.
For Blessed Angela, Mary was a model of fulfilling God's Will. From her she developed an attitude of humility, trust, obedience and courage in suffering. Imbued with God's Word and Mary's example, she developed a universal love. She loved the rosary and was convinced that through this prayer she obtained graces for herself, the Congregation and the whole church. As early as 1864 the Foundress solemnly dedicated the entire congregation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary as she was convinced that only in this heart can members grow in the fullness of the Gospel.
Mary Angela was a gift for the Church in the 19th century. She was a woman distinguished not only for her faith and exceptional devotion, but she was also intelligent and wise singularly creative and noble, in a word, one of those women about whom it is said they were born to reign in the kingdom. (Ernest de Beaulieu). A gift for the Church of our times, she stands before us as a safeguard of inner truth in the light of which the only greatness and love is God.
– Sister M. Angelica Spychalska, CSSF
Editors:
s. M. Angelika Spychalska – Warszawa
s. M. Alina Płoszczyca – Kraków
s. M. Jonasza Stelmach – Przemyśl
English Edition prepared by:
s. M. Anastasia Wdowiak – Lodi, New Jersey
s. M. David Malczynski – Lodi, New Jersey
Technical Assistant:
s. Lenore Marie Murawski – Lodi, New Jersey
Graphic Design:
Magdalena Lazicka
ISBN 83-7257-048-5
Copyright by the Felician Sisters, Warsaw 2003
Published by
Sisters of Loretto
16/20 Zeligowski Street
04-476 Warsaw
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