Mary Immaculate as a Model of Man’s Relationship to God in the Theological Thought of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe
Grzegorz Bartosik
Uniwersytet Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego w Warszawie (Polska)https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5894-2541
Abstract
In the Final Document of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis stressed that during the deliberations of the synod, there was a call for the Church to better realise the relationship with God, between the members of the Church, and also the relationship with creation. At the same time, the Synod clearly emphasised and reminded that human salvation is realised through relationships.
These synodical indications compel Christians to seek personal models that can help build the right relationships with God and with others. In this context, we can find valuable guidance in the teaching of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe. For him, the most perfect model for building relationships with God and with people is Mary Immaculate. In this perspective of relationality, Fr. Kolbe showed the role of the Immaculate Virgin in the economy of salvation. It was also in this perspective that he prepared his textbook on Mariology, which was not completed due to his arrest by the Gestapo. The imitation of Mary’s relationship to God and people was the central idea of the spirituality and practiced by Fr. Kolbe.
The purpose of this article, entitled Mary Immaculate as a model of man’s relationship to God in the theological thought of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe, is therefore to attempt to reconstruct the course of Fr. Kolbe’s thought on the topic formulated in the title, based on the scheme of the planned book preserved and based on his writings and conferences delivered. As a method, an analysis of his most important statements on the subject mentioned above was adopted, and they were arranged according to the scheme of the book left by Fr. Kolbe. Thus, the relationships of Mary with the whole Trinity and with the individual Divine Persons were discussed in turn.
The research indicated that the fundamental relationship between Mary Immaculate and the individual Persons of the Holy Trinity is rooted in love. The most significant expression of this relationship is seen through Mary’s obedience and her commitment to doing God’s Will. This vision of building a relationship with God (enriched by the detailed guidelines provided in the various sections of the article) can also be useful in the 21st century for fulfilling the tasks set by Pope Francis and the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for the Church.
Keywords:
Holy Trinity, God the Father, Son of God, Holy Spirit, Mary Immaculate, St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe, relationships, love, doing God’s WillReferences
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Uniwersytet Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego w Warszawie (Polska)
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5894-2541
