APRIL 23rd - FEAST OF ST. ADALBERT of Poland

Today is the Feast of St. Adalbert, Patron Saint of Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Prussia.

St. Adalbert was born into a noble family in Prague in the year 939. He was a well-educated man who became a priest and later the Bishop of Prague. Although wealthy, he lived poorly. He strongly opposed the slave trade, polygamy and idolatry. He did tremendous religious work in the countries who gave him the honor of Patron Saint. His work in Christianizing the pagans in Prussia who worshipped the spirit in oak trees which he chopped down, cost him his life. So the Duke of Poland had to buy his dead body in its weight in gold to enshrine St. Adalbert in the Cathedral in Gniezno, Poland. The cathedral is the only Romanesque church in Europe with a bronze door with 18 reliefs of scenes from the life of the saint.

The late Pope John Paul II officiated the ceremonial mass at the Cathedral of Gneizno in April 1977 on the occasion of the thousandth anniversary of
St. Adalbert's martyrdom. Heads of seven European States and about a million believers took part in the mass. (Remember, Poland is 98% Catholic)

To commemorate the canonization of St. Faustina to whom Jesus of Divine Mercy appeared, I went on a pilgrimage to Eastern Europe in the year 2000. We visited Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Austria.

It was in Krakow, Poland where I visited the small Church of St. Adalbert which the saint consecrated in 997 and where he preached before going in his mission to bring Christianity to Prussia. He was later martyred in Prussia. Throughout the history of Krakow, the Church of St. Adalbert was a place of worship and visited by merchants and tourists across Europe. It is located in the eastern corner of an enormously wide 10-acre market square called Grand Square in the Old Town of Krakow. The Grand Square is the largest plaza of medieval Europe demarcated in 1257. The Church of St. Adalbert had already stood there for centuries before.

In Krakow's Grand Square is the huge magnificent Gothic building called Cloth Hall. It is the oldest shopping mall of the world having been around for 700 years. The building itself is almost a city- block long. i managed to go to some stores and admire the many conceivable manufactured and hand-made merchandise. My eyes feasted on the numerous amber jewelry on display. Like any woman, I could not resist a pair of amber earrings.

Almost opposite the Cloth Hall across the square is the huge Gothic Basilica of the Virgin Mary built in the 13th Century. It is Krakow's showcase temple and is the best known and the most liked church in Poland. There are two towers- the taller one with a fantastic Gothic spire and a lower one which accommodates five bells. Inside the church is breathtakingly fantastic! It boasts of excellent Renaissance art especially a giant Gothic altarpiece reputedly carved by one of Europe's best in that century. The altarpiece is, based on the encyclopedia, the world's greatest Gothic structure. Ornate woodwork, stained glass windows and beautiful wall paintings adorn the church and its 12 chapels.We were informed that the treasure house of the Basilica of the Virgin Mary is rich in priceless objects of art including 300 masterly embroidered ancient vestments. We did not have time to see the vestments but I remembered having seen some of the exquisite medieval vestments in Avignon, France where for 75 years the Popes stayed there. To my mind, those works of art can never be duplicated by "modern" hands!

The visit to Czeckoslovakia was particularly exciting to me. I was so moved to visit the Shrine of the Miraculous Infant Jesus in Prague at the Church of Our Lady of Victorious because of my family's special devotion to Sto. Nino. The pleasant surprise was finding Father Anastacio as Pastor whom I met in Arenzzano, Italy in 1998 at the Church of the Miraculous Infant Jesus. Father Anastacio so graciously offered to say mass for our group right at the very beautiful chapel of the original image of Santo Nino who spoke to Fr. F. Cyril who later propagated the devotion.

The concert in the ballroom of a palace in Vienna, Austria was a thrilling experience I can never forget. Yes, the admission ticket was so prohibitive such that only three (all Filipinos) of the forty-two pilgrims signed up for the concert. But the experience was well worth it!

Hungary and its provinces and cities especially Budapest all presented a phenomenon so foreign to my very little knowledge of the country. I was humbled by the numerous Renaissance architecture and a culture rich in enviable tradition. The Parliament rivals that in London!

Travel is indeed a source of information and appreciation of a heritage inherent to a particular nation and people. We become better citizens of this world!