The Polish Catholic Church has a special place in modern global history, as it played a significant role in shaking the Soviet system. Poland remains crucial as the political and logistical leading supporter of Ukraine in its war effort against Russia. Still the direction of this Church, which makes so much of its national identity, is uncertain.
The recent general assembly of Polish bishops (Gdańsk, October 13–15) addressed primarily several contentious issues in the national context: migration, the abuse commission, religious instruction in schools, and parish catechesis. Important commemorations included the 60th anniversary of the historic letter from the Polish bishops to the German bishops on mutual forgiveness and the approval by the Second Vatican Council of the declaration Nostra aetate (dialogue with the monotheisms and, in particular, with Judaism), to which was added the centenary of the Diocese of Gdańsk.
Declining support
The sharp division that has cut through the country for a couple of decades — between Enlightenment secularism and autocratic, pro‑Catholic traditionalism — has put the Church in difficulty, as heir to a vast reservoir of trust tied to the end of the communist regime.
The rapid erosion of support is evidenced by sociological research and by the number of assaults on clergy. According to the IBRiS polling institute, adults’ trust in the Church fell by 4 points in one year: from 30% to 26%, with an additional 21% described as “almost” distrustful.
The relative volatility of opinions is confirmed by a survey conducted by the Church’s prestigious statistical institute, which involved about a thousand priests. The results presented at the OSCE conference (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) in Warsaw on October 14 report that 49.7% have suffered some form of aggression (41% verbal, 34% online). Eighty-one percent of respondents do not report incidents of aggression due to distrust of the State and fear of bureaucratic procedures. Ninety-six percent attribute the media as a primary source of disesteem toward the clergy and the Church, and 91% point to the growing ideological conflicts in Polish society. Seventy-two percent cite the abuse issue as a reason for distancing. In 2024, two priests were killed.
Recent measures that limit the autonomy and credibility of Catholic information sources also count against the Church, in particular the respected news agency KAI, whose leadership resigned in protest. (see SettimanaNews).
Defending migrants
Public demonstrations testify to a tense social context against immigration. Thousands marched in Warsaw on October 11 under the slogan “Poland remains Polish,” led by Jarosław Kaczyński, head of the opposition party PiS and seen as close to the majority feeling among the bishops.
Widespread irritation also extends toward Ukrainians who fled the war. After three years, their presence (one and a half million people) is considered an unbearable burden, prompting the pro-European government of Donald Tusk to request and obtain suspension of the EU migration pact.
The bishops deserve credit for significant resistance to xenophobic pressures. The final declaration of the assembly states:
“The bishops recall the need for a Christian attitude of hospitality toward newcomers, in particular refugees and migrants […]. In full respect for and support of applicable security principles, their integration into the host society remains the most appropriate response to the words of the Savior.”
They reaffirm the call “to strongly oppose all manifestations of economic exploitation of refugees and migrants for political purposes and particular interests, fomenting xenophobic sentiments in society.”
According to the media, the xenophobic push was further fueled by the election of conservative Karol Nawrocki to the presidency of the republic.
One episode confirms the episcopal direction: Bishop Krzysztof Zadarko of Koszalin resisted popular demonstrations and a municipal council vote against the Foreigners’ Integration Center, which was intended to provide legal, language, educational, as well as material and psychological assistance to migrants. There is no aggression against the local population:
“I do not see threatening demonstrations of foreigners or Muslims as we are led to believe to frighten us. I see instead unsettling marches full of words, statements, and slogans charged with hatred and confrontations. This should unquiet us […]. In accordance with the teachings of the Church, we remind everyone that every migrant, every foreigner, is obliged to respect our laws, our rules, our culture, our welfare, and our language.”
The lame commission
The bishops are on the defensive regarding clerical abuse and, in particular, the problematic and complicated launch of the independent investigative commission that should cover research from the 1970s onward. It had seemed ready with the victims’ consent and positive public expectation. (see SettimanaNews).
The process was abruptly interrupted, and the new episcopal preparatory group, led by Bishop Sławomir Oder, was restarted, albeit building on the previous work. A report containing the statute and procedural documents was presented to the bishops at the assembly. The historical‑scientific character of the future commission is confirmed, with a view to promulgating guidelines for pastors and communities.
With the consent of the Legal Council (which had previously rejected the document) and the assembly, the text will be submitted to religious brothers and sisters, pending hoped-for approval next March, after which commissioners should be appointed.
The operation’s current credibility is very low, and Oder is blamed not only for secrecy about collaborators (as before) but above all for excluding contact and cooperation with victims. The commission risks being born late and “lame.” The leadership of the St. Joseph Foundation, which oversees all research and training activities on the subject, was also renewed.
Religious instruction: on the barricades
On religious education, the clash with the government is white-hot (qui).. The final declaration speaks of “illegitimate and unjust changes to the organization of religious education lessons in schools approved by the Ministry of National Education.”
The proposal to reduce instruction from two to one hour per week, to place it at the start or end of lessons, to combine classes according to those opting in without recognizing it as a curricular subject, has exacerbated the confrontation.
The alternative subject for non-participants (particularly in high schools), health education, was strongly criticized by the bishops, who urged parents not to choose it. They supported — and Parliament approved — a bill favoring religious instruction, which was to be submitted to a popular referendum.
The dispute also opened a clash with the Constitutional Court, which twice struck down the new ministerial regulation. However, the court’s legitimacy is contested by the government due to “political” appointments (censured by European bodies) made by the previous governing majority.
The bishops sought to support religious teachers (some of whom face job loss) and to frame the discussion not on ideological and organizational grounds, but on pedagogical and educational ones.
Necessary memories
This pastoral attention is particularly evident on the pastoral front. “Missionary Disciples” is the title of a new pastoral program focused on Christian formation, with two main areas of activity: formation in faith and relationship with God, and building a life of communion and mission.
Less prominence was given to the memory of the letter exchanged at the end of the Council by the Polish and German episcopates, one of the strong points for the beginning of true reconciliation between the two peoples. The problem unfortunately reemerges, both politically (secular, powerful Germany is perceived as a threat) and on the Catholic side (indicative is the harsh and unjustified criticism by the then-president of the Polish bishops, Mons. S. Gądecki, of the German synodal process in February 2022 (qui).
Also understated was the memory of Nostra aetate, a key text for the debated remembrance of Polish antisemitism whose roots seem to be producing new shoots. (qui).
Gdańsk: an emblematic diocese
A separate note is due to the place and occasion of the assembly: the 100th anniversary of the Diocese of Gdańsk. A time and place that well encapsulate the pivotal and dramatic points of the country’s and the Church’s history.
After World War I, Gdańsk was defined as a city-state under the protection of the League of Nations. With a large German majority, the territory included parts of the German and Polish dioceses. It was recognized as an autonomous diocese in 1925 and was led primarily by German clergy, who marginalized the Polish minority (approximately 10%).
Under Nazism, the German predominance became looming, especially after the military occupation of Poland. Bishop K. M. Splett tried to navigate the situation, but, while helping clandestine Polish priests, he worked for Germanization and was condemned by a court after the communist victory.
A. Wrońka, the “patriotic” priest J. Cymanowski, and Mons. E. Nowicki applied themselves to rebuilding the diocese after World War II.
During the 1970 workers’ uprising, the bishop sided with the strikers, and his successor, L. Kaźmierczak, worked hard on forming seminarians and clergy, as well as building churches and parishes, fully supporting the 1980 strikes.
Mons. T. Gocłowski tied himself closely to Solidarity and Lech Wałęsa. As a representative of the episcopate, he participated in talks between the opposition and the authorities that led to the establishment of the “round tables” and the transformation of the political regime. A fascinating and glorious history marred by his successor, Sławoj Leszek Głódź, who was removed from office and then canonically sanctioned in 2021 for various abuses.
The current bishop, the Pallottine Tadeusz Wojda, is president of the episcopal conference.
