Albert Chmielowski

Saint
Albert Chmielowski
T.O.S.F.
Albert in early 1910s
Religious
Born 20 August 1845
Igołomia, Małopolskie, Congress Poland
Died 25 December 1916(1916-12-25) (aged 71)
Kraków, Kingdom of Poland
Venerated in Roman Catholic Church
Beatified 22 June 1983, Kraków, Poland by Pope John Paul II
Canonized 12 November 1989, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City by Pope John Paul II
Feast 17 June
Attributes Priest's attire
Patronage

Saint Albert Chmielowski (20 August 1845 – 25 December 1916) - born as Adam - was a Polish professed religious and the founder of both the Servants of the Poor and Sisters Servants of the Poor.[2][1] Chmielowski fought in the January uprising that saw him damage a leg that had to be amputated which prompted him to resort to a wooden replacement for the remainder of his life. He became a popular and well-known painter and used religious themes for most of his paintings before deciding to give all of that up in favor of a life dedicated to the plight of the poor. He first entered the Jesuits but later left and became a professed member of the Third Order of Saint Francis.[3][4]

The sainthood process started in 1966 under Pope Paul VI who later titled him as Venerable in 1977 upon the confirmation that the late religious had lived a life of heroic virtue. Pope John Paul II - whom Chmielowski's example had influenced to a significant degree - beatified him in 1983 while in Kraków and later canonized him in 1989 in Saint Peter's Square. His liturgical feast is affixed to 17 June and not his death date - as is the norm - due to that date being Christmas.[5]

Life

Adam Hilary Bernard Chmielowski was born in Igołomia - on the outskirts of Kraków - on 20 August 1845 to rich aristocrats as the eldest of four children to Adelbert Chmielowski (1811 - 25 August 1853) and Josephine Borzyslawska (1821 - 28 August 1859). His two brothers were Stanisław Teodor (1848-???) and Marian Antoni (1852-1903) and his sister was Jadwiga Modesta Szaniawska (1850-???).[3] He was to be baptized on 26 August but the turbulent nature of that period saw no priest present, thus it had to be rescheduled; the formal baptism took place on 17 June 1847.

He and his siblings lost their parents during his childhood, which prompted their paternal aunt Petronela to take care of them and raise them. Chmielowski began his initial education in agriculture at the Polytechnical Institute at Puławy in order to prepare himself for managing his late parents' estate. He became involved in politics to a significant degree though later lost a leg while taking part in the Polish nationalist uprising.[2][1][5] Chmielowski participated in a battle on 1 October 1863 in which a Russian grenade killed his horse and damaged his leg to the extent that it had to be amputated; he was fitted with a wooden leg and offered up his dismemberment for God and the cause of Polish independence.[3] The injured Chmielowski was carried to a woodsman's cabin where Finnish soldiers allied with Russia found him. The captain recognized him for rumors persisted that Chmielowski avoided all gunfire and was invulnerable but told him the leg had to be removed, to which Chmielowski said: "Give me a cigar - that will help me pass the time". The successful operation went ahead, though without anesthesia, but he offered his suffering to God and endured the great pain the operation bought.[4][5] The recovering Chmielowski was taken to a hospital for a doctor to assess him - the soldiers then needed to decide what to do with their captive - but accomplices aided him in escaping the hospital hidden in a coffin.

The severe response of the Czarist authorities to this insurrection forced Chmielowski to leave Poland. He settled in Ghent in Belgium where he began his studies in engineering. During this period he discovered he also had a talent for painting which he began to develop. He even traveled to Paris and Munich in order to further his training in art and made numerous friends in the process but attempted to shield his handicap from them as much as possible. He was able to return to his homeland in 1874 where he became a well-known and popular artist in Kraków and served as a painter through 1885; he produced a total of 61 paintings.[3][2][4] But he first went back to Munich from Paris before returning to his homeland where he published an article asserting that art was to be "the friend of man". He lived in Warsaw for a time before settling in Kraków. But he did not like the fame his works bought him and he was even hospitalized on one occasion for depression. His strong political convictions inspired his interest in the human condition and he developed a gentle and compassionate spirit which also made him aware of the suffering of the poor in the area. He felt compelled to help those in need and served in the homeless shelters in Kraków. He also devoted his artistic talents to this awareness and painted one of his best-known works, known as the "Ecce Homo", which depicted the thorn-crowned Jesus Christ. Years of deep reflection caused Chmielowski to abandon his career in order to live among the poor and to accept a beggar's life.[2][5] In 1879 he spent a brief period of time in Lvov with a friend.

On 24 September 1880 he entered the novitiate of the Jesuits at Stara Wies but faced a terrible trial at a retreat where he became anxious about his decision, and he soon fell ill. His brother Stanisław came to retrieve him and take him to his home to recuperate, where he decided not to return to the Jesuits because that path was not for him.[4] But he soon discovered the Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi which dazzled him and prompted him to seek them out with the intention of joining their order. It was around this time that his spiritual director was a Lazarist priest.

On 25 August 1887 he joined the Third Order of Saint Francis and was given the habit of that order, at which time he began to call himself "Albert"; he made his vows into the hands of the Cardinal Archbishop of Kraków Albin Dunajewski. He took up residence in the public shelter where he had been serving.[2] In 1888 he professed his religious vows and on 25 August 1888 founded the Servants of the Poor and on 15 January 1891 - alongside Blessed Maria Jabłońska - founded a parallel women's congregation known as the Albertine Sisters who organized food and shelter for the poor and homeless.[2][3] Chmielowski even spent a brief period of time at a Carmelite convent and there became familiar with the published works of Saint John of the Cross who soon became his favorite author. He also came to know the convent's superior Saint Raphael Kalinowski who suggested he become a Carmelite, though he declined this offer and affirmed his place as a Franciscan.

He died at noon on 25 December 1916 - on Christmas - due to stomach cancer in the shelter that he himself had established; he had received the Anointing of the Sick on the previous 23 December when his condition began to deteriorate.[4] His remains were exhumed on 15 September 1932 and placed in a metallic coffin, and exhumed once again on 31 May 1949 and placed in a Discalced Carmelite church.[5]

Legacies

On 10 November 1938 he received a posthumous award in the form of the Order of Polonia Restituta.[5]

Pope John Paul II in 1949 - then a simple priest in Poland - wrote a well-received play about the late religious entitled "Our God’s Brother" which was made into a film with the same title sometime later in 1997. John Paul II later said that he found great spiritual support for his own vocation in the life of the Polish saint whom he saw as an example of leaving behind a world of the arts to make a radical choice for the priesthood.[1]

Sainthood

Chmielowski's Grave

The beatification process began with an informative process that Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha oversaw from its inauguration in 1946 until its closure not long after in 1947; theologians approved all his spiritual writings to be in line with the faith on 3 May 1956, while the formal introduction to the cause came on 27 January 1966 under Pope Paul VI in which he was titled as a Servant of God. Cardinal Karol Józef Wojtyła - the future Pope John Paul II - oversaw the apostolic process from 15 September 1967 until 1968 while the Congregation for the Causes of Saints later validated the previous processes in Rome on 17 October 1970. The C.C.S. officials and their consultants approved the cause on 13 March 1976 as did the C.C.S. alone on 30 November 1976 while the confirmation of his life of heroic virtue allowed for Pope Paul VI to name him as Venerable on 20 January 1977.

The beatification miracle was investigated on a diocesan level in the place that it originated in and it later received C.C.S. validation on 27 January 1983; a medical board of experts approved this healing to be a miracle on 26 May 1983 while theologians did so as well that June with the C.C.S. to follow. John Paul II approved this miracle on 9 June 1983 and beatified Chmielowski while on his visit to Kraków on 22 June 1983.

The canonization miracle was investigated in the diocese of its origin from 9 September to 24 November 1987 and this process was issued its validation on 26 February 1988 before a medical board met to approve it several months later on 23 November 1988. Theological experts also assented to this miracle on 3 February 1989 as did the C.C.S. on 21 February 1989 before John Paul II approved it on 24 February 1989 thus confirming that Chmielowski would be proclaimed as a saint in due course. John Paul II canonized Chmielowski as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church on 12 November 1989 in Saint Peter's Square.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "17 June: St. Albert Chmielowski". UCAN. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Saint Albert Chmielowski". Saints SQPN. 23 January 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "St. Albert Chmielowski: The Painter Who Became an Advocate for the Poor". National Catholic Register. 17 June 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Spiritual Newsletter". Abbey of Saint-Joseph de Clairval. 24 May 2005. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Saint Albert Chmielowski". Santi e Beati. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
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