Saint Maria De Mattias, the founder of the Congregation of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, was born in Italy in 1805. In accordance with the customs of the era, she did not attend any school. Her first teacher was her father, Giovanni, who instilled in her a love of God and respect for people. From 1810 to 1825, fratricidal fighting took place around her hometown. These events had an enormous influence on Maria’s life.
The patron saint of Bolesławiec was a passionate mystic, deeply committed to promoting her ideas. She opened new paths for women in the Church and in social life. She was courageous. She went against the tide. She opened non-public schools for girls at a time when women had no opportunity to acquire knowledge through education. During catechism classes, she taught how to live as Christians. Men, whom she could not address in accordance with the customs of the time, often listened to her teaching in secret.
The history of Maria De Matiias and the Congregation of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, which she founded, is inseparably linked with Bolesławiec. The sisters began their mission here in 1946. They arrived together with re-emigrants and repatriates. In the post-war period, the Bolesławiec region was a unique cultural and ethnic melting pot, while the idea of unity among people promoted by the patron saint of our city brought the local community together.
The city authorities hope that the patron saint will intercede for the graces needed by the residents of Bolesławiec, and that the activities of the sisters from the Congregation of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ will contribute to the spiritual development of the community of our city and make it more sensitive to the plight of others.
“She is a beautiful person,” says Krzysztof Pieszko from Ziemia Bolesławiecka. In the councillor’s opinion, the Italian woman, by fighting for women’s rights, was ahead of her time. “It would be difficult to find people in either those days or these times who devoted themselves so fully to others,” the councillor adds.
Only two councillors from the Democratic Left Alliance voted against recognizing Maria de Mattias as the patron saint of our city. “I am not opposed to sainthood,” explains Stanisław Andrusieczko. “But she was not Polish. Maria De Mattias is absolutely not connected with Bolesławiec,” the councillor adds. Józef Burniak refused to comment.
The official announcement establishing Saint Maria De Mattias as the patron saint of Bolesławiec will take place on 18 May at 12:00 in the market square.
(UM/GA information)