Pope encourages women on Polish pilgrimage to joyful witness

By Fr Rafał Skitek

“Witness the Gospel with joy in the family and society”, Pope Francis said at the Sunday Angelus, in greetings to the tens of thousands of girls and women who participated in the pilgrimage to Piekary Śląskie. This place of worship was dedicated to Mary in the 17th century. According to tradition, the boys and men’s pilgrimage takes place in May, and the girls and women’s pilgrimage in August.

This year, Cardinal Gerhard Müller presided over the Mass and delivered the homily, during which he stressed that “standing under the Cross of Jesus, and not cowardly running away, is what makes a true Christian”. He added that the scene of the women under the Cross “also shows us the special charisms of women or, as Pope John Paul II pointed out, the religious genius of women”.

Women on pilgrimage to Piekary Šląskie   (foto archidiecezja katowicka)

'The Church is for evangelization'

Archbishop Adrian Galbas, Metropolitan of the Archdiocese of Katowice, the territory where the Piekary shrine is located, stressed that “the Church is not a spiritual spa; the Church is for evangelization.” He then referred to the motto of the pilgrimage, “I am in the Church, so I go”. 

Participants’ testimonies are of encouragement: “This pilgrimage gives us strength throughout the year. Mary gives us strength”, said a woman from Katowice. Among the most recurring prayer intentions were health, harmony in the family, marriages, and children.