(ANS – Szczyrk) – At the end of the Team Visit to the North Europe – East Sector Region the Rector Major paid a visit to the Salesian House of Spirituality on the “Hill of the Beatitudes” at Szczyrk where there is a Marian shrine. 

He arrived on Wednesday afternoon 7 September accompanied by  Brother Jean Paul Muller, the Economer General, Fr Marek Chrzan, Councillor for the North Europe Region and by his secretary  Fr Juan José Bartolomé. Also present with them were  the Provincial of Krakow Fr Dariusz Bartocha, the Vice Provincial  Fr Adam Paszek and Bro Sebastian Wisniewski.

They were given a very warm welcome by the authorities  the Deputy Mayor Wojciech Kufel, the deputy diocesan parish priest Fr Krzysztof Cojda, while some regional musicians sang traditional mountain songs  and the young people greeted the Rector Major in Spanish, giving him a bunch of flowers and a local-style hat which moved him.

In the Sanctuary there is the miraculous picture of Mary Help of Christians of Szczyrk, The Rector Major spent a long time in prayer before the Madonna the Lady of the “Beskidy” Mountains.

Fr Marek Kaczmarczyk, responsible for the Sanctuary as well as being Rector of the Salesian house, officially welcomed the Rector Major before asking some local youth leaders to speak. One of them, Maciej, told Fr Chávez: “We are ready to follow your words and especially the message of the Strenna you gave this year. We want to follow Christ  in order to see him in our brothers and sisters.”

After the choir of the Sanctuary conducted by Fr Piotr Wala and Mr Grzegorz Stec sang, the Rector Major thanked the Salesians for their ministry at the Szczyrk Hill of the Beatitudes. “Mary was present at the dawn of the history of salvation and at the beginnings of the Salesian Congregation. We can remember that in the famous dream at nine years of age, Jesus told little John Bosco: ‘I give you a teacher, my mother.’” Turning to the young people present he added: “I am happy that in the Krakow Province there is a place like Szczyrk, where the presence of Mary is so strong.”
 
Published 09/09/2011