AN ANNUAL memorial Mass For Fr Jerzy Popieluszko, coupled with the Martyrs of the Church in the twentieth century, will be offered at 7.45 pm on Thursday October 31, at Brompton Oratory, by kind permission of the Provost, and all are warmly invited to attend.
The chief celebrant will be Bishop Szcepan Wesoly, Bishop Delegate for Poles residing Abroad, and the chief concelebrant will be Bishop Kevin O'Connor, Auxiliary Bishop of I,iverpool.
Said Fr Jerzy Popieluszko "In the history of The Church, in the history of Christianity we have many examples to what limits The Truth must be defended quite simply to the end."
His murder in October 1984 brought home the reality of the persecution of The Church in a unique way. The Church's "frontline" where clergy and lay people risk and sacrifice their lives for proclaiming Christ's truth entered the front rooms of our homes and became very real, as a result of the widely publicised death of this gentle man of God.
People of all ages were shocked out of their individual dispositions and situations: from those who had never been aware of the very nature of the persecuted Church, through to those who had let effective propaganda lull them into thinking that the persecution of The Church is never as bad as it is made out to be.
The memorial Mass for Fr Jerzy, held in Westminster Cathedral after the news of his murder, with Polish and English Bishops concelebrating, awakened and consolidated for many this new awarnesss of the true position. Further details from Janusz Sikorski, chairman, the Jerzy Popieluszko Memorial Mass for the Martyrs of the Church in the 20th Century, 44 Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge, London SW7. Telephone Day 01-837 2442, evening 01-851 6426.