Those were exceptional days. With several other persons (Sr Ewa, The Sister of Mercy of St Charles Borrmeo, and Margaret from our editorial team) we assisted Sue Hilgers during her meetings in Wrocław and Częstochowa.

It’s not the first time that I’ve been under the great impression of her devotion, her service and extraordinary enthusiasm which she brings into anything she does. For each person she met, she had her full attention. She noticed everyone, she had a good word for each of them, and found a unique personal gift of each person she spoke with. No matter if it was during a radio interview, or a meeting with a large group, or individual conversations. Someone who has served the culture of life and love for all of her life will be like that in all that she does.

Even though we were travelling across a large portion of Poland, from meeting to meeting, she never complained of being tired. Simple words, full of humor and respect for each single individual. No matter if it was a small baby, or an elderly lady, or a researcher with many degrees – all that is important is this very moment of the meeting and the good that can be brought about by it.

There was very little time for sleep, or for taking a rest, but the exhaustion is filled with joy that we were able to see so much good.

Today it’s the farewell time. For all of us the subsequent days will be filled with meetings and catching up on work. And in all that we’ll have new enthusiasm and the same mission – to see the beauty in each person we meet.

May today and tomorrow will be a gift for us. May our meetings bring into the lives of the others the joy of life which is God’s gift.

With prayer for each of you

Fr Jay

This Programme could probably be so called. It is a very long perspective. Being a parent today means becoming a grandparent sometime in the future. We’d like to prepare our children as well as possible for this new dignity and responsibility: to become parents.

When we look at these kids today, it’s difficult to imagine them tomorrow as parents but we know that some time they can assume this role.

How should we prepare them for it, how should we equip them so that some time they can cope even better than we did?

Our idea is to take more care of one’s marriage. The ancient saying went “verba docent, exempla trahunt”, words teach buut examples attract.

It was an intensive weekend but thanks to it the following weeks may be much more beautiful. So much depends on us…

I remember you fondly
Father Jarosław

We have already written about the preparations to build the great boat.

Twenty-odd families from the Wrocław Group but some families that trusted us so much as to join our team for the first time, came in the morning of Corpus Christi to Wisełka to set up a new playground in the retreat centre that hosts us kindly every year and witnesses so many miracles in our lives.

It is such a great joy for us that this project has come to fruition precuisely on the Children’s Day. A year ago one of us, Jack Jacket, said to us: Let’s do something like this because they do so much for us. He said so and took resposibility for his words. It took sa many months to to the planning, designing, buying materials, preparing intermediate products as far as 500 km from the sea so that the work could be finished in two days… The we drove with the bus rented by Jack and with the truck that carried 2 tons of wood. And only 2 days for the work.

The men woke up at 6:30 am. They were divied into several teams and had to plan their work so that everything went well as a whole.
At the Mass celebrating the Children’s Day there were so many reasons for joy. The bons of friendship between us work well in working together. We know that we can count on each other. We can cede the leadership because not everyone has to be a leader but we all need to serve with our ideas and gifts. Thanks to this wonderful adventure we felt again a family of families where we feel well.
God blessed this effort with good weather. Today in the morning a flood began but we have an Ark:).

Although He is hidden deeply in the form of bread, we surround it with our care and we show Him reverence, inviting Him to visit our streets. We take our most beautiful monstrances, flags, pillows, feretrums, we throw Him flowers…

We remember that everywhere that He came, people were healed, He stiated their hunger and spread the Good News about themselves, about the love of the Father to each of us, about our wonderful future and the place in Heaven that He prepared for us.

During the procession I like looking at the families, preferably through the monstrance. Just like it’s impossible to look at the sun without a glass that is a colourful filter, so we must look at marriage and family through the Eucharist. In that way marriage shows all its dignity, purity, potential, mission and the warmth of human ove that can embrace all aspects of life, from changing a nappy too looking with love into the eyes of the spouse.

Although we may follow Him in different places, He will always be the same. Yesterday and today, the same for ever and ever.

Remembering about you

Father Jarosław

The Love of Father and Son.

Married couples have a special right to Him. He is called at the very beginning of the sacrament of marriage . It is them who are referred to in the words from the Sunday of the Holy Trinity: “suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us”.

It’s difficult to imagine a married couple who do not experience suffering. And suffering produces perseverance. They need it so much. But they can also experience the presence of the Holy Spirit so much.

With my preyers and thankfulness

Father Jarosław

Today the words from the Book of Sirach touched me again: “He set his eye upon their hearts to shew them the greatness of his works”. You can only see well wth your heart. This is thanks to “his eye”. Only He can show us the whole truth. “And he gave to every one of them commandment concerning his neighbour.” He is so worried about our relations. He knows that our eyes are quick to spot what hurts us, what is  danger and what others lack. And we should look at reality with His eyes. Therefore “his eye on our hearts”.

Five couples, each with ther own history, their difficulties, expectations, desires. Correcting perspectives, attitudes, sensibilities. We need to depart from what is ours to live at His scale, to lve up to God’s invitations, to live in His image. “He gave them counsel, and a tongue, and eyes, and ears, and a heart to devise: and he filled them with the knowledge of understanding”. We need to resurrender to Him.

Six simple steps that are supposed to rebuild in us Sześć prostych kroków, które mają odbudować in us what is worthy of Him and the vocation to marriage.

Today so many married couples have prayed for us. Also the group of couples from Programme 1 in Mexico joined the prayer. They were the last group to pass the Programme. They know how important it is that the participants are prayed for so there was a prayer flowing from before the image of Mary of Guadalupe. Dziś za nas modliło się tyle małżeństw. Dołączyła do tej modlitwy grupa małżeństw z Programu 1 w Meksyku.

The world united in the worry for the beauty of marriage. The civilisation of live crosses all borders and unites everyone. “That they might praise the name which he hath sanctified: and glory in his wondrous acts, that they might declare the glorious things of his works”. Glory be to God.

With a thankful prayer for you all

Father Jarosław

It is on Her day that six years ago we found our home. It was after a short search but after a two yeras’ prayer of our children to find “a house with a garden”. The keys to that house with a garden we received also on Her day (12 September).

So many times we experienced in our lives help, friendship and dscrete presence of Mary. We like to remember that our youngest son was born at 12.00 – when the the bells for Angelus Dominus were ringing.

In my view the words of today’s Bible reading refer so much to her:

“A loyal friend is a powerful defence: whoever finds one has indeed found a treasure. A loyal friend is something beyond price, there is no measuring his worth. A loyal friend is the elixir of life, and those who fear the Lord will find one”. (Sirach 6: 5-17)

Sometimes it is worth quarrelling with the Husband, to finally remmber that:

– it’s difficult to come up with “sorry” earlier than him,

– he has good intentions just as I do and he fails just as I do,

– he’s so wonderfully creative that he can make a beautiful – and memorable – morning out of a spoilt evening:

Our repeated texts in a quarrel mean boredom that depresses us so often once the emotions quieten down. But the real challenge is in what comes afterwards.

M

Unfortunately – because it’s the farewell day and the beautiful meeting comes to an end.

Today, apart from going to my own lecture:) and the talk of Louise Kirk, whom you probably from our trip to the UK, I have gone to all those session that were dedicetd to fatherhood. And I liked them veeery much. Not only were they very good as farr as the subject matter is concerned bacause they showed how much the presence of a father changed the lives of children and influenced their future functioning in life but also they were presented by excellent speakers – husbands who also followed their vocation as fathers.

So many knew people I got to know, so many inspirations, good experiences. Family is always the same, regardless of the latitude, confession, skin colour…

A novelty at the congress was a fashion show – where fashion was presented that expossed the dignity of woman.

I remembered then our fashion show, organised my by students of Personalistic Bases of Conjugal Love, where the students presented collections of clothes for different occasions, each outfit received a mark “L&R” (Love and Responsibility approved, conforming to the personalistic norm). Perhaps the possibilities were more limited than at the show here but the clothes presented were fit for different occasions, not only for extra nights out. Of course I did not hesitate to suggest it to the author of the show, Judy Limbers. She liked the idea. Their Facebook page is The Dress Shoppe.

Finally we heard the Tongan Touth Choir.

And, as usual, it was difficult to say goodbye. I wanted totalk a little with everyone and thank for the good. Wepromise to each other that we’ll meet again next year, meaning 1-12 September 2014. For many people it will be much closer. There’s also an idea to go to the congress in Moscow from Vladivostok, with the famous Trans-Siberian railway, 2 weeks before. It sounds good to me.

Tomorrow I have one day for myself to do some sightseeing in Sydney.

So far I have had mixed impressions of Sydney. I stay in theory in Sydney but in reality in… Chinatown. The whole district where our hotel is located consists of shops, restaurants and offices with names in Chinese.

Best greetings

Father Jaroslaw

Every day we have a plenary session in the morning and in the evening, as well es 4 seminar sessions a day, 5 thematic blocks in every session and 3 to 4 speakers. People from nearly every part of the world. An incredible place for the exchange of experiences. Every day I wonder a lot which subject to choose because each of them seems very important and worth hearing.

For example, do you know that there are 1 billion active users of the Facebook? I mean active users, not merely registered ones! That 43% people start their day, checking their account? And that the most active group is women, aged from 12 to 24? And the majority are 15 years old girls?

It’s worth knowing.

Each of us has something good to say to the whole world. It’s not important whether this world is the child whom we say that it’s our greatest treasure or our spouse whom we make a nice surprise today because I want to, or our neighbours, or colleagues, or… Facebook friends.
from Sydney

Father Jay