| In July 1941, an officer of Auschwitz arbitrarily chose 10 men to be starved to death in reprisal for the escape of one inmate. One of the men, Francis Gajowniczek, cried out for his wife and two children. The 47 year old Father Maximilian Kolbe offered to take his place. Consigned to a basement cell, Kolbe survived about two weeks without food or water.
He cared for the agonies of the others, consoling them with hymns and prayers. He was the last to perish. The Nazi's, in need of the hut, injected carbolic acid into his arm to complete the reprisal.
On October 10, 1982, John Paul II canonized Fr. Kolbe who died for his faith and to save another man's life. The Pope has ranked him with the martyrs.
Among the 150,000 people in St. Peter's Square stood a tall, gray-haired Polish peasant. At the end of the three-hour ceremony, the Pope left the altar area and walked to this old man. It was the 82 year old Gajowniczek, the man for whom Kolbe gave his life. The Pope, his face marked by emotion, embraced the man and kissed him.
A Jewish survivor who recalls Kolbe from the camp, testifies: "I was a 13 year old orphan then. Kolbe used to wipe away my tears. Because of the death of my parents, I had been asking, ‘Where is God?' and had lost faith. Kolbe gave me that faith back. He was like an angel."
Acts tells us that the apostles were full of joy, "that they had been judged worthy of ill treatment for the sake of the Name." (5:41) Belief in Christ involves pain at one time or another, and even a martyr's death in some cases. The apostles where whipped for preaching the Gospel. (Acts 5:40) All of them, save John, would face a martyr's death, like Fr. Kolbe.
Cowards die a thousand deaths; the brave but once. The crunch of conscience moves people to inspiring acts. During the Mexican War, Henry David Thoreau went to jail rather than pay for a war that was expanding slave holding territories.
His friend, Emerson, also a slavery opponent, visited Thoreau. "Henry, why are you here?" Thoreau retorted, "Waldo, why are you not here?" No one said it would be easy to stand up and be counted. Least of all, Jesus. "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. If anyone declares publicly that he belongs to me, I will do the same for him before my Father in heaven." (Matthew 10:28 – 32)
Mark Twain once observed that many people are bothered by passages in the Bible that they do not understand. His own view stated "I always notice that the passages in Scripture that trouble me most are the ones I do understand."
Jesus foresaw that his followers would be taken to court and persecuted for preaching and practicing the Good News. (Mark 13:9-11)
It is not difficult to understand what Jesus is saying about the consequences of belief in him. But it is most challenging to be beaten and jailed like Peter and the Apostles or starved to death as was Kolbe, the "Angel of Auschwitz."
It is not our minds that need clarification about the central teachings of Jesus. It is our wills that need the strength to perform what those teachings tell us. We know well what Jesus is saying. What we require is the moral fiber, acquired by grace and lifelong spiritual discipline, to make his words a living reality. The boldness of common men and women inspire and astonish us. May it also lead us to action.
PRAYER
Holy Spirit, the source of moral courage and boldness, infuse your holy power into our souls that we may witness deeply to Christ. Teach us to understand the central message of Jesus and embolden us to bring that message alive in our lives. Amen
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