Religious-Patriotic Message of Selected Artistic Decoration from Żoliborz „Mass. For the Homeland” (1982-1984)

Abstract

In the history of Poland and the Catholic Church in the Homeland there is no lack of heroic witnesses, whose attitude, words and testimony has become a certain “sign of” a given historical period. Undoubtedly, such a character is Bl. Rev. Jerzy Popieluszko, whose teaching and famous “Mass. For the Homeland” – became a symbol of the end of the twentieth century in Poland. With these services, there was a certain custom of plastic decoration that decorated the chancel of the church of St. Stanislaw Kostka during each “Mass for Homeland”. They expressed the thematic content of the given service in a plastic form, thus constituting a patriotic-national-religious message. There were prevailing historical themes referring to the events at that time and the religious elements. The article presents chosen plastic decorations, also referring to the sermons of the “Zoliborz priest”. The analysis and presentation of works of art is possible thanks to archival collections of the Center for Documentation of the Life and Cult of Bl. Rev. Jerzy Popieluszko.