You can read the original text (in Portuguese) here.
Blessed Bronislava of Poland (Polish: Bronisława) was a thirteenth-century Catholic nun and mystic who belonged to the Premonstratensian Order, also known as the Norbertines. She is venerated for her profound devotion to the Passion of Christ, her service to those in need, and her resilience in the face of the invasions and plagues that ravaged her region.
She was born in 1230 at Kamien Castle in Silesia, into an important Polish family. Her grandfather had founded the Premonstratensian monastery at Zwierzyniec, near Kraków, where Bronislava's aunt, Gertrude, had entered religious life and later became prioress of Imbramowice.
Bronislava was also a cousin of the Dominican Saint Hyacinth and a relative of Saint Jacek and Blessed Czeslaw. She grew up in an atmosphere deeply influenced by the Crusades, and love for the Cross became the guiding principle of her life. At the age of sixteen, Bronislava entered the convent of the Norbertine nuns at Zwierzyniec. The Order's rule was extremely austere, marked by absolute poverty, cold cells, and separation from the outside world. She later became Superior of the monastery, leading the community wisely through difficult times of civil war and turmoil.
Her spiritual life was centered on devotion to the Passion of Our Lord and to His Holy Cross. In order to meditate more fruitfully on the mysteries of Christ's Passion, Bronislava would withdraw to a hill at Sikornik, not far from the monastery. It is now known as Saint Bronislava's Hill, where a small chapel was erected in her honor in 1702.
When the plague reached Poland, she devoted herself to caring for the sick and comforting the dying. During the political crisis that engulfed Poland, the convent at Zwierzyniec had to be abandoned on several occasions, since it stood outside the walls of Kraków and was therefore vulnerable to attack. On such occasions, the nuns were forced to seek shelter from bands of marauders in other religious houses or deep within the forests.
The worst attack came in 1241, with the invasion of the Tatars. Bronislava and several of her Sisters were praying with their arms extended in the form of a cross when they received word that the savage Tatars were advancing rapidly toward Kraków.
The convent was in imminent danger of destruction. Bronislava took a crucifix, pressed it to her heart, and said to her Sisters, "Fear nothing; the Cross will save us!" She then led the Sisters into the underground passages of the convent, where they remained hidden from the invaders. The convent, however, was not spared and was set ablaze, trapping the Sisters underground. It is said that when Bronislava struck the stone wall of their dark prison three times with her crucifix, a passage to freedom opened before the Sisters.
After the destruction of the convent, many of the Sisters took refuge in monasteries that had been spared. Bronislava remained among the ruins of the old convent with a small group of Sisters. They built little huts in which to sleep and spent their days caring for the poor, the sick, and the countless victims of the Tatar invasion.
In the biography of Saint Hyacinth, written in 1352 by Father Stanislaus, a Dominican of Kraków, it is related that on the day of the Saint's death, August 15, 1257, Bronislava had a vision in which he appeared to her, being led into Heaven by the Mother of God and the angels.
After living for forty years devoted to monastic labors and religious practices, carried out with fervent zeal, Bronislava died on August 29, 1259. Her remains were placed in the monastery church, where they remained forgotten for a long time. In 1612, they were transferred and placed on the altar of Saint Anne, which was later dedicated to Saint Hyacinth.
The miracles attributed to her and the graces obtained through her intercession gave rise to great devotion among the faithful. Her cult began to spread in the seventeenth century and continues to this day, especially in the Kraków region and Upper Silesia, where her intercession is invoked against epidemics.
At the request of the Congregation of the Norbertines, Gregory XVI granted, by a decree dated August 31, 1839, permission for Bronislava to be publicly venerated in the Diocese of Kraków. Pius IX, by a decree of December 7, 1859, extended her cult to the Diocese of Wrocław (Breslau), and Leo XIII extended it to the entire Norbertine Order.
The efforts of the Polish bishops before Pope Pius XII in 1947 to obtain Bronislava's canonization were suspended for forty years under the Communist regime. Many hundreds of devotees continue to pray for her canonization.
Her relics were placed in a precious reliquary, which is solemnly carried in procession every year on the anniversary of her death. She is regarded as a patroness of a happy death and a protector against illness.
Her liturgical memorial is celebrated chiefly on September 1, although some localities and traditional calendars commemorate her on August 29 or 30.
To this day, Saint Bronislava's Hill in Kraków is home to a chapel dedicated to her and remains a powerful symbol of faith and of her protection of the Polish people against epidemics and times of affliction.
"Bronislawa" means "she who brings glory" or "protectress of glory."
Source: Nobility.org
Comment: Reflecting on the persecution of Christians by Islamic extremists in Africa, India, Pakistan, and the Middle East, we can only pray that God, in His infinite mercy, will do for them what He did for Blessed Bronislava and her Sisters: protect them and prevent the enemies of the Cross from discovering their hiding place.
No comments:
Post a Comment