“The inspiration of all his life was the Immaculate, to whom he entrusted his love of Christ and his desire for martyrdom. In the mystery of the Immaculate Conception, that magnificent supernatural world of God’s grace offered to man was revealing itself to his soul. The faith and deeds of Father Maksymilian’s whole life indicate that he understood his cooperation with God’s grace as a war (“militia”) under the sign of the Immaculate Conception. The Marian feature is particularly expressive in Father Kolbe’s life and sanctity. He also marked all his apostolate with this mark, both in his homeland and on missions. Both in Poland and Japan, the center of this apostolate were the special “cities of the Immaculate” (Polish “Niepokalanów”, Japanese “Mugenzai no Sono”).
