Letter of Reconciliation of the Polish Bishops to the German Bishops as a Step Towards Normalizing Polish-German Relations Cover Image

Orędzie biskupów polskich do biskupów niemieckich jako krok do unormowania stosunków polsko-niemieckich
Letter of Reconciliation of the Polish Bishops to the German Bishops as a Step Towards Normalizing Polish-German Relations

Author(s): Adam Wójcik
Subject(s): History, Recent History (1900 till today), Theology and Religion, WW II and following years (1940 - 1949), History of Religion
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu w Białymstoku
Keywords: Letter of Reconciliation of the Polish Bishops to the German Bishops; Polish-German relations; cardinal Stefan Wyszyński; Bolesław Kominek

Summary/Abstract: The issue of Polish-German reconciliation after 1945 and the actions of both parties to reach an agreement are undoubtedly related to the activities of the Catholic Church in Poland and of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński, who led it. Letter of Reconciliation of the Polish Bishops to the German Bishops is a symbol of forgiveness and the will to rebuild relations between the Polish and German nations. The step taken by the leaders of the Church in Poland towards the German side contributed to the normalization and, with time, of establishing mutual Polish-German relations. The aim of the work is to show the essence of the Polish bishops letter and showing the reaction of both sides to the actions taken by the church hierarchs. At work, Polish-German relations are quite fast before the publication of the Polish Orbis to German bishops, as well as the situation after the publication of the letter. The article presents the process of preparing the letter in chronological order, as well as the ideas that guided the authors of the breakthrough work. The article presents what problems after the publication of Lub, the Catholic Church in Poland and its leadership had to face. There were also shown responses to propaganda and anti-church trust in people towards the Church and Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński. The work shows how important a moment in the history of Polish-German relations is the publication of the letter of the Polish bishops, which is to become the basis for the improvement and, over time, the establishment of relations between neighbors. The work describes a topic repeatedly raised by other authors, but contains new information, developed over the years, about the essence of this important work.

  • Issue Year: 20/2021
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 121-136
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: Polish