By Paul Suski –
As well as being the feast of the Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary this day also is the first anniversary of the beatification of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński. His liturgical memorial was celebrated for the first time on May 28, 2022.
The Marxist thought which has been poisoning young minds in universities throughout Western democracies for the past six decades, long ago reached the Antipodes, and its bitter fruits are becoming ever more apparent.
“Half of Aussies say they’re ‘feminist’.” concluded Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
“We marched for our Black sisters who have suffered violence, abuse, racism and misogyny in this country for more than 200 years” said Lidia Thorpe, an important Australian politician representing the Greens.
“Wouldn’t it be great if women in their twenties were invited to participate in the life of the seminary, to discern as they can what their vocation might be?” commented Kate Englebrecht, who can strangely jar feminism with her Catholic faith.
The feminization of culture, on many occasions, deprived men of a sense of dignity and self-confidence; hen-pecked, uxurious men became almost the rule; in some cases it upset the transparency of biological sex, turning them into passive, commodified bodies. Through concupiscence a human being treats another one as his or her own possession. Out of a fear of being branded “sexist” or “misogynist” the sterner sex makes no protest. No wonder there are countless womanish men unable to recognize their proper role in the family, the community and the Country.
As a consequence, women in the Western world have lost their feminine identity, and the family has been desecrated. One might say that women’s rights activists have hung around their neck a noose, for the majority of the Aussie men would fins it far simpler to sacrifice themselves for dying koalas than stand up to protect their home country. This is not mere rhetoric, since the Chinese Communist Party has recently been marked the biggest national security threat to Australia. A nation that has failed to preserve its traditional values will eventually be incorporated into a stronger and more dominant one.
Yet, God doesn’t want us to be alone in our earthly journey, therefore He sends us holy persons as signposts at the time we need them the most.
As nearly all the values are unsettled, norms seem to be broken, moral, and social anarchy begins to take hold, the return to a world of Christian values is an urgent necessity.
In his own milieu, Bl. Stefan Wyszyński as a young bishop was a witness of a painful series of injustices and resentments; nevertheless, his trust in Divine Providence allowed him to pass the test of faith. He left several pieces of advice that modern men can follow.
- Live for others
There is a special need for an example of self-sacrifice in our country so that a modern man can forget about himself, and begin to think about other people, about the well-being of his family, about living out his vocation and performing his duties for the sake of others, and about the well-being of the entire nation.
- Start with yourself
You should not count on others, perhaps even relying on elected leaders, and demand from them to improve themselves. Every one should begin with himself so that we all can truly be transformed.
- Be humble
“Only humility can conquer the world. Atheists are scandalized the most by our cheek and hubris, especially when they hear: I will teach you! It happens that sometimes a confused young man, of very weak faith and full of doubts, comes to a church; and suddenly he is being heavily criticized. Then he loses the remnants of faith, and becomes an unbeliever for half of his life or even more, until he forgets. […] You should be very cautious, considerate, and tactful toward all people, especially those with different religious beliefs.”
- Be reliable in the workplace
“Looking at you, the builders of Poland in the future, the salt of this Polish land, as I see you standing still, quiet and attentive, then I know that in your young bodies a noble heart beats. I know you are hungry for justice, so that our Christian country can be fair to everyone. So that bread will never run out. So that there will not be the privileged of any sort. So that there might be God’s peace, and genuine, true social love. […] After my return from prison I would say, and I repeat it today: Poland needs more than your blood: your conscientious work so that no one will have to cry for bread, clothing and home. You have to work at it.”
- Get rid of hatred
“Our country cannot be defended by the power of hate, but we must defend her anyway. Defend the country with the power of love. Go ahead but do not lift your hand against anyone. In the past invaders would beat us. We mustn’t imitate them. […] You should reach agreement through love; in this way, the world seeing us will say: <em>See how they love one another</em>! Only then can the longed-for peace, reconciliation and mutual trust be restored. ”
- Look for true joy
“Modern man lacks joy, despite the fact that there is a lot of entertainment around. Man looks for it but he fails in all of them, getting sadder and sadder. Finally he is gripped by frustration and becomes depressed. For joy comes from the Lord, who wants it for his children. If our soul is deprived of God we will not be able to rejoice.”
- Time is love
“It’s commonly said: “time is money”. But I tell you: time is love. Because we all, as we have met here together, are the fruit of God’s paternal love. We would not exist in this world, would not be in this square, if God the Father had not first loved us! He loved you before your mother held you in her arms, before you were held to her bosom. You must know that her love was not first, but the love of God, who instilled his Love into the heart of your mother, and she only conveyed it to you. […] Our life is worth as much as there is love in it.”
Australian Catholics, seduced by mediocrity, and determined to hedge their bets by keeping quiet so as not to expose themselves to criticism from ecclesial and state authorities, seem not to walk through the Narrow Gate that leads to Heaven. They are blissfully unaware that Catholicism lite in the Land Down Under, and anywhere in the world, will unequivocally prove a complete failure.
“The Church and the Bible have been the major impediment in the way of women’s emancipation.” The antidote for this cultural ideology, are and always have been the Christian virtues of Temperance, Prudence and Fortitude as exemplified by the numerous Saints and Blesseds of the Universal Church.
It wasn’t my intention to exclude women from this article – some time ago, I alluded to their needs in Cardinal Wyszyński: Defender of the Heart’s Purity and the Catholic Faith. This time, please only allow me to give a thought-provoking quotation of the Primate of the Millennium. “A Mother has a right to her own body, but she has no right to the unborn, because it belongs to God and the Nation.”
Paul Suski is based in Poland. He has a BA in English language teaching, MA in Political Science, three adolescent children and wears a Carmelite scapular.