Echoes of the recent celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the John Paul II Foundation in Vatican resounded during the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the Paris Foundation Chapter. The celebrations took place at the Polish Embassy in Paris on October 22, the day of the liturgical remembrance of St. Pope – the patron and founder of the Foundation.
In the beautiful interiors of the embassy we met, first of all, to honor the memory of our excellent compatriot. It was he, St. John Paul II, who twenty years ago inspired the members of the Paris Chapter of the Foundation to propagate the memory of him, pass on his teaching, thoughts and all the riches that his pontificate brought to the life of the Church and the world. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Paris Circle of the John Paul II Foundation, we want to thank God for the great gift he has given us, for Saint John Paul II.
At the invitation of the ambassador, Mr. Jan Emeryk Rościszewski and the honorary president and founder of the Paris Chapter, Mr. Henryk Rogowski, many members, friends, donors and supporters of the Foundation gathered in the embassy on a sunny Saturday afternoon. We were honored by the presence of Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik – Chairman of the Administrative Council and Father Dr. Krzysztof Wieliczko OSPPE – Administrator of the Foundation, who came from Rome especially for this occasion, as well as the envoy of the Apostolic Nuncio in Paris, Fr Marcel Smejkal, Rector of the Polish Catholic Mission in France, Fr Bogusław Brzyś, Fr Stanisław Jeż – former Rector of PMK, Monsignor Krystian Gawron – Vice-Rector of PMK. Among the participants of the ceremony there was also an ambassador – Mr. Jan Emeryk Rościszewski, a consul – Mr. Andrzej Szydło, and members of the board of the FJPII Chapter headed by Mr. Daniel Brzakowski – the current president of the Chapter and the founding president – Mr. Henryk Rogowski. The Countess d’Ornano – a long-time donor of the Foundation- was also present as well as the pastor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Paris – Fr Paweł Witkowski.
The meeting was opened by the Ambassador, who in a short greeting, among other things, said: “I am very pleased to welcome all invited guests to the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Paris JPII Foundation Chapter. I greet with particular affection Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik, Father Krzysztof Wieliczko, the Rector of the PMK in France, the President of the Chapter and all those present here. From the bottom of my heart, I thank the members and supporters of the Foundation Chapter for many years of effort to preserve the memory of the Polish Pope, and for disseminating his teaching in France. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary, I would like to congratulate Mr. Brzakowski – the President of the Chapter, Ms. Tomkiewicz, Mr. Rogowski and all the members present. I wish you success in your future activities in the new decade that has begun.” Then, Mr. Daniel Brzakowski welcomed all the venerable guests, headed by representatives of the Vatican Foundation. He expressed his thanks to the Ambassador for welcoming us to this beautiful Polish embassy. He also thanked the Consul for all his help in organizing the ceremony. He also introduced us to the course of the Jubilee celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the JPII Foundation, which took place in Rome a few weeks earlier. Expressing his thanks to the Administrative Council and the Management Board of the Chapter for their commitment, he presented the action plan of the Paris Chapter of the JPII Foundation for the coming year. If nothing stands in the way, it is planned to organize a Christmas meeting on the last Saturday of January, in April the celebration of the anniversary of the canonization of John Paul II, in June a pilgrimage to Poland and a general meeting before the beginning of the vacations. At the end, President thanked all those who contributed to the organization of the jubilee celebrations, in particular Mr. Henryk Rogowski.
As mentioned at the beginning, one of the honorary guests was Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik – Chairman of the Administrative Council of the Foundation. In his speech, thanking everyone for coming, he emphasized that we are all united by the memory of Saint John Paul II. Participating in the jubilee celebrations, he represents Archbishop Marek Jędraszewski and the Administrative Council of the Vatican Foundation. Fr Paweł briefly presented the history of the Foundation and the goals of the Foundation. He also expressed his thanks to all the donors of the Foundation, asking us to continue this beautiful work.
In the next part of the evening, we watched photos depicting the most important events from the period of twenty years of the existence of the French Foundation Chapter, prepared in the form of a diaporama by Mrs. Christiane Tomkiewicz and her brother, Mr. Claude Skrzypek. It is safe to say that it was a real “time travel”. Not only could each of us find ourselves in the photos, but also we were able in memory return to all these wonderful events, moments full of emotions and all experiences which we had for over the course of twenty years. We would like to thank the authors of these memoirs.
The artistic part featured a soloist, Mrs. Dominika Paczkowska, an opera singer from Montpellier, who sang with a beautiful mezzo-soprano, among others, “Ave Maryja” (Giulio Caccini). On the piano was accompanied by Mr. Karol Kazak. The Parisian choir “Totus Tuus” under the direction of Mrs. Urszula Szoja Cuvellier and children from the “Miriamki” schola also performed.
The culminating moment of the meeting was the presentation of commemorative medals and diplomas, signed by the Metropolitan of Krakow, Archbishop Marek Jędraszewski, to the current members of the Administrative Council and people particularly involved in the activities of the Chapter. The initiator of these awards was the honorary president, the founder of the Chapter, Mr. Henryk Rogowski. On behalf of Archbishop Jędraszewski, who, in accordance with the statutes of the Foundation, is its supreme authority, the diplomas were handed over by Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik, and the medals were presented by Fr. Krzysztof Wieliczko.
Medals and diplomas were awarded to current and former members of the Administrative Council of the Chapter: Daniel Brzakowski, Liliane Brzakowski, Christiane Tomkiewicz, Christiane Rogowski, Christiane Vincent Méalin, Dominique Vincent, Didier Hérondelle, Bernard Davoust, Elisabeth Neyraud, Jean Marcel Caserio, Florian de Załuski, Elisabeth Noster, Czeslaw Noster, Edith Kalist, Monique Valois, Claude Skrzypek, Céline Raulet, Stefan de Załuski.
Then, after a commemorative photo of all the awardees, there was an opportunity to taste and enjoy Polish dishes and drink a glass of wine. Of course, since we celebrated the jubilee, it could not do without a cake, which delighted us not only with its taste, but also with its appearance. Time passed in a very pleasant atmosphere on interesting conversations and, of course, on taking commemorative photos with guests who came to the ceremony. Saturday’s meeting at the embassy of the members of the Chapter of the John Paul II Foundation was a beautiful and solemn experience for each of us.
On the next day, Sunday, we gathered for the Eucharist in the Polish Church of the Assumption of the Mother of God in Paris. The Holy Mass with celebrated by Father Krzysztof Wieliczko, the Rector Bogusław Brzyś, Fr Stanisław Jeż and the parish priest Paweł Witkowski along with Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik, who also delivered the Word of God based on the Gospel. He also familiarized all the faithful gathered at the Holy Mass with the history of the creation and activities of the John Paul II Foundation. After the end of the Holy Mass, the members of the Foundation together with priests laid a beautiful composition of flowers in front of the monument of John Paul II, which is located at the entrance to the church.
We would like to thank Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik and Father Dr. Krzysztof Wieliczko for their presence among us, for participating in the event in the embassy and for praying during Sunday Mass. We wish you a lot of strength and God’s blessing for further activities and work for the Foundation. We would also like to thank all those who contributed to the organization of the 20thanniversary of the French JPII Foundation Chapter, in particular Mr. Henryk Rogowski.
Elisabeth and Czesław Noster
