The relics of blessed priest Jerzy Popiełuszko, brutally murdered by the communist secret services in 1984, were placed in the Polish Parliament’s (Sejm) Chapel as part of the 40th anniversary of his tragic death.
The relics of Priest Jerzy were given to the Sejm Chapel by his family. The special mass that introduced the precious relics was said by Cardinal Kazimierz Nycz. 
The Chaplain of Polish Parliament Priest Andrzej Sikorski, stressed that the act of introducing the relics of the blood of Bl. Father Jerzy is the completion of an act that began in 1997, when his mother gifted the Polish Parliament a cross from the tomb of priest Jerzy. Today, that cross hangs in the main Chamber of Polish Sejm.
Cardinal Nycz said he asks for three things during the introduction mass: to let us learn to preach the Gospel of love, to to stand up for human dignity in all its dimensions and to stand in defence of overcoming evil with good.
Cardinal also reminded the Members of Parliament that on moral grounds they all shall represent the Heavenly Kingdom, but on secular grounds they should cooperate and represent the “Kingdom which name is Poland”.
The Mass was attended by members of most Polish parliamentary political parties such as the Civic Coalition, Law and Justice and Polska 2050. The latter was represented by the Speaker of the Sejm Szymon Hołownia.
The ceremony was preceded by an official opening of an exhibition devoted to the life and work of Priest Jerzy Popiełuszko. The exhibition showed the personal object of Priest Jerzy connected to his patriotic family tradition and explained the most important pillars of his teachings. The opening gathered parliamentarians from all political parties.
The Polish Parliament also accepted a special resolution in memory of Priest Jerzy Popiełuszko.
Priest Jerzy Popiełuszko was one of the most dedicated supporters of the Polish liberation movement ‘Solidarity’ in the 1980s, as priest serving the workers of the Warsaw steelworks between 1980 and 1981. During martial law, he celebrated a series of religious celebrations called ‘Mass for the Homeland’ every month, which attracted crowds of the faithful to the St. Stanislaus Church in Warsaw. On 13 October 1984, Priest Jerzy travelled to Gdansk to celebrate Mass at St. Brygida Church.
Priest Popiełuszko was abducted on 19 October 1984 in the village of Przysiek near Toruń by three agents of the Security Service Piotrowski, Pękala and Chmielewski.
The torturers torture him in an extremely cruel and sophisticated way. His hands are tied, and after he loses consciousness he is put into the boot of a car. Soon after, the agents throw the unconscious priest’s body into the Vistula River. His remains are soon found and the information made public on 30 October 1984.
Popieluszko’s funeral takes place on 3 November with the participation of thousands of the faithful from all over the country – according to the estimates of the Institute of National Remembrance, 600,000 people attended the funeral.
Jerzy Popiełuszko was beatified in Warsaw on Sunday 6 June 2010.
Photo: Tomasz Modrzejewski
Source: HistoryinPL/NB
Tomasz Modrzejewski
