A resident describes his encounter with a nun on Monday, November 4.
“I entered the lawn between the pavement running along the congregation’s fence and the park of the Museum of Ceramics,” the man explains. “I had gone there many times before to collect green grass for my guinea pig, of which I am a happy owner. The grass there grows quite high, and my pet loves it. Suddenly, a gate opened in the congregation’s fence, and a spirited, elderly, short nun stood in it and shouted at me: ‘What are you looking for there!?’ I asked in disbelief, ‘Pardon me?!’ To which I again heard: ‘What are you looking for there?’ I replied that we did not know each other and were not on familiar terms. The nun changed her form of address and asked: ‘What are you looking for there, sir, since this is private property?’ I replied that I was picking grass for my pet. The nun then forbade me from entering the lawn, repeating that it was private property. I replied that the area would be private once it was fenced off, and that I had not even come close to the convent’s sweat. The nun repeated that it was private property and that no one could enter it, then disappeared behind the gate. I left the area mentioned with a bag full of grass and, while returning to Zgorzelecka Street, wondered about what had just happened to me. Had I broken any rules or violated anyone’s privacy? Had I caused any damage? What was this intervention by the nun about? There were no signs informing people that entry was prohibited. Could you help me resolve the issue of ownership of this lawn and whether it is possible to set foot on it?” asked the reader chased away from the spot reader.
The man also sent us photos of the guinea pig and its feline companion, which had also started nibbling the grass.
We described the man’s story to the nuns and asked what had happened and whether the man had violated the congregation’s property. Regarding the situation described on November 4, we managed to establish which sister it concerned. The sister admitted that the conversation had indeed proceeded in a manner similar to that described. However, she noted that after clarifying the matter, she apologized to the person concerned.
He had been mistakenly identified as one of the intoxicated men who systematically damage the fence around the convent garden and leave rubbish in its vicinity. Both issues are a considerable problem that the sisters find difficult to deal with.
“In any case, the sister’s reaction was inappropriate,” replied Sister Anna Mikołajewicz, superior of the Bolesławiec Congregation. “The area in question is the congregation’s property, but as it is unfenced, it may be used by everyone,” the sister added.
Adorers of the Blood of Christ in Bolesławiec
The work of the Sisters Adorers of the Blood of Christ played an important role in the post-war history of Bolesławiec. Through their activities, the nuns activated and integrated local communities of residents who had come to our city from different parts of the world, facilitating mutual acquaintance, understanding and acceptance. The importance of their ministry to the present-day shape of Bolesławiec is best demonstrated by the fact that since May 18, 2008, the founder of the ASC Congregation, St. Maria De Mattias, has been the city’s patron saint.
The nuns arrived in Bolesławiec in 1946. In spring 1947, by decision of the Bolesławiec Municipal Office, they received buildings at 23 Roli Żymierskiego Street (now 27 Zgorzelecka Street), on the site where the monastery of the Order of the Crusaders with the Red Star and the Church of the Holy Spirit once stood, followed by the Holy Spirit Hospital and an old people’s home, and in 1945—a Soviet field hospital.
The nuns were also allocated farmland in Łaziska, which they could cultivate in order to provide themselves with food. That same year, the Bolesławiec monastery became the motherhouse for other institutions in Poland.