On 22 March 2025, the 45th National Pilgrimage of the Defenders of Human Life on Jasna Góra was held, a time of common prayer and reflection for all defenders of human life.
Its motto was the words of St John Paul II: “Life is always good”. They were taken from the encyclical Evangelium vitae. The pilgrimage was attended by a individual whose heart is to defend human life from conception. It was begun by a solemn mass in the Chapel of the Miraculous Image. The pilgrims then went to the hall of St John Paul II for a meeting, which was led by Jan Więpajalski.
In the beginning Archbishop Wenceslaw Depo, the metropolitan of Częstochowa, greeted pilgrims and prayed with them. Wojciech Zięba, president of the Polish Association of Defenders of Human Life, gave the beginning speech entitled “There is nothing to thank for.” He told about the association's activities. He recalled how the Crusade of Prayer was created in the defence of the Concepted Children, to which 100,000 people joined in a short time to pray for the protection of human life from conception. – In the beginning, the organizer of the Pilgrimage of Defenders of Human Life on Jasna Góra was the Crusade of Prayer in the defence of the Concepted Children. In the late 1990s, erstwhile the situation matured so that this informal being could be replaced by a formalized organization, which would be able to operate professionally, the Polish Association of Defenders of Human Life, which this year is 25 years old, was created. The mission of the Polish Association of Life Defenders is to care about human life from conception to natural death. How do we do that? The association is 3 pillars, independent but intertwining and complementary. These are educational activities, organization of prayers and deeds of mercy – said Wojciech Zięba.
Grzegorz Czerwicki then took the floor, who works with prisoners all day, helping them in the real transformation of life (he himself spent many years in prison where he survived conversion). His speech was entitled “The Giver of Hope”. – The life of each of you is an amazing miracle. But what's common? It is frequently that we do not see it ourselves," said the talker at first and introduced himself, saying that he is the husband, father of 2 children on earth, 2 in heaven, student of rehabilitation, coach and author of the book "You are not doomed." – I am besides a man who should not truly be here due to the fact that erstwhile I was a teenager, I wanted to take my own life, I wanted to kill myself due to the fact that I didn't see any sense in my life. Next thing I know, erstwhile I was a grown-up guy, erstwhile I was incarcerated, in a prison, bullied by my life, I found out my sister was in a foster home, in a foster home, that everything was falling apart. Another suicide attempt. I didn't want to live. I wanted to kill myself. I wanted to take my own life. But I am, due to the fact that individual had a plan on me from an early age. individual had a superb plan for me – said Grzegorz Czerwicki, starting a communicative about his life, hard childhood experiences, 12 years in prison, addictions and conversion.
During his moving speech, Grzegorz Czerwicki encouraged pilgrims to reflect on the values they live on a regular basis. – If you say that your top value, another, third, second, is simply a man, see how you respond erstwhile you walk past a guy who's drunk. If it were the top value to you, you'd lean, you'd give a slice. If you think he's worth a man, then if you see a pregnant female standing in line, what do you do? You just let her in front of you, you give way to places, you don't push in," he said.
He besides mentioned that erstwhile he went to criminal establishments in Poland and abroad, he gave hope to prisoners, including murderers and killers. It proves to them that God never rejects any man. It gives them hope that they can live well and remind them that all life has meaning and is simply a miracle.
After refusing to pray, the Angel of the Lord and reading the reflection and refusal of prayer related to the ongoing 5th Week of Prayers for the Protection of Life, the people in the hall listened to the speeches of Dr. Jack Pulikowski, the esteemed speaker, author of books and articles on parenting, fatherhood and love. His speech was entitled “Love the basis for raising and defending children”. Dr Jacek Pulikowski started them with words: "This is the wisest conviction I can say, and I can say with all work after more than forty years of working with marriages, that these and only these marriages break up, in which at least 1 has departed from God, His commandments and His graces.
He then explained that married couples are able to rise themselves from all fall if they return to God and pray. He talked about the roles of a woman, a man and a family. He emphasized the importance of the sin of uncleanness. He recalled 4 of his father's functions. The first is the work for life conceived. – This is the first function of all man – father in the family, father-priest and man surviving alone. The work for life conceived is not a political matter, a side or a substitute. It is entrusted to us men, so our fall is the greatest, if the killing of the conceived kid is carried out," said the speaker. The second function of the father is to participate in education, the 3rd is professional work, but specified a servant and her subordinate family, and an example of a mature Christian attitude.
In his speech, he devoted much attention to raising children in families. – present we have thousands of textbooks on upbringing: how to make a kid eat a cough, how to say that the kid listens, etc. These are applicable things, useful. You can usage that. But why are we raising a child? What is the intent of upbringing? Is that to make him a top man? Is it a Nobel Prize? Is he the planet champion? – Dr. Jacek Pulikowski asked pilgrims and answered: – The kid is to be raised to be happy, due to the fact that God created us.
We request to focus the kid on the right values. Satan's thought is that a kid will choose itself erstwhile he grows up, whether he wants to be a Christian, a Muslim or an atheist, a boy or a girl. No, our natural work as parents is to focus them on actual values. We are to make conditions for the improvement of our children. I'm not talking about food and shelter. It's apparent to give this to a child. The conditions for human improvement are giving this man 4 things. The first is love, the second is love, the 3rd is love, and the 4th is love. Giving the kid 4 completely different loves – noted Dr. Jacek Pulikowski. The first love, as he then explained, is the love of the mother, the second – the love of the father, the 3rd – the love between the parents seen through the eyes of the kid and the 4th – the belief in the love of God.
Another point of the pilgrimage was the presentation of awards and distinctions in the 21st National Youth Competition “Help save life for the defenceless” of Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko. It awarded the best literary, artistic and multimedia works. The participants competed in 3 age categories: grades 4–6 of primary school, grades 7–8 of primary school and secondary schools. The aim of the competition is to make affirmative social attitudes among young people and to rise sensitivity to the needs of another person, especially 1 who needs help.
At the end of the pilgrimage, participants saw the movie “We Hope”. Its characters are this year's winners of the “Friend of Life” award in the category “Silent Hero” (attributed by the board of the Polish Association of Defenders of Human Life) – Magdalena and Łukasz Gniewkowski, parents of Dominika, Emilia and Agnieszka. Dominica and Emilia, twins, were born as premature babies with a birth mass of 550 grams and 1,100 grams respectively. As a consequence of Dominic's premature, he suffers from bilateral proceeding failure and Emilia suffers from cerebral palsy. Agnieszka, on the another hand, is struggling with an ultra-rare illness - Jordan syndrome. The Gniewkowski household inspires to enjoy all moment, even the 1 that seems seemingly invalid. The spouses emphasize that the most crucial value they can give their daughters is simply a careful, delicate and delicate presence.
A message of the 45th National Pilgrimage was published on the Polish Life Defenders Association website. Its signatories remind us that "every Catholic is obliged to participate actively in political life, especially in elections." They stress: “In particular, Catholics have a work to usage their voice to support candidates and parties who warrant respect for values consistent with the teaching of the Church, including in areas specified as protecting life from conception to natural death, caring for family, justice, or helping the poorest. We must make a wise, liable choice of the future president of the Republic of Poland." Signatories besides call on the authorities of the Republic of Poland to respect the constitutional right to life.
ag/PESC
Film entitled “We hope”
Message of the 45th Pilgrimage of the Defenders of Human Life to Jasna Góra.
Recordings of speakers' speeches will be available on the Polish Life Defenders Association channel on YouTube.