The Influence of the Catholic Church on the History and Development of Silesia Region. The Contribution to the Discussion of the Role of Christianity in the History of Silesia

Abstract

The author shows the influence of the Catholic Church on the history and development of Silesia. On a positive apology, the author presents how the Church contributed to the historical development of this south-western region of Poland. He describes the role of the Church in the initial formation of the Piast principalities, which laid the foundation for their further development. He indicates the role of the medieval religious orders – especially the Cistercians – in the economic development of Silesia. The first schools and asylums (hospitals) in Silesia appeared also thanks to the Church. Christian Caritas stimulated acts of mercy both on behalf of the most important people in the world as well as those whose social role was less significant. The Catholic Church in Silesia contributed to the creation of a multinational society by bringing together individuals and a community, in which the status of a person was not thanks to the noble birth or money, but thanks to the same dignity of being a child of God. Over the centuries, the Church has prevented the confrontation caused by the national divides or by all kinds of awakenings of nationalisms or totalitarianisms. The Church actively defended the victims and called for respect for every human being. The author also points to the culture-building role of the Church, especially through the works that the Church has left as the treasures of the past. Of course, it should not be forgotten that people of the Church were also children of their era.

The article is a voice in the debate over the role of the Church in contemporary world. It is a message about the truth of the Catholic Church, with its positive contribution to many domains of the world: at the economic, political and cultural level. It must be remembered that the main objective of the Church is to proclaim the proximity of the Kingdom of God, which began on earth with the mission of Jesus Christ. The Church proclaims Christ through man. Paradoxically, all the charity, economic and cultural activity of the Church – as discussed in this article – is not the main objective of the Church. These activities are a means of achieving the objective. This is the way in which the Church transforms the world, in accordance to the will of God the Creator, who ordered people to fill the earth and subdue it. In this manner, the Church participates in the divine plan of salvation.