Sprawa wznowienia stosunków dyplomatycznych ze Stolicą Apostolską w latach 1986-1989
The question of resuming relations with the Apostolic See in 1986–1989

Summary/Abstract: The year 1986 saw a change in the line taken towards the Church by the authorities of the Polish Peoples’ Republic. Gaining ground among General Jaruzelski’s associates was the idea of seeking a resumption of diplomatic relations with the Apostolic See. Pope John Paul II’s authority offered a chance that meetings with him would impart to Jaruzelski an international credibility, and there were also expectations of getting the country out of its post-1981 international isolation, and also winning the financial institutions’ support for planned economic reforms. This proposal was not backed by some Church hierarchs who stuck to the stringent conditions which Cardinal Wyszyński described as a prerequisite for resumption of full diplomatic relations. Only after the crises of 1988 did the authorities show readiness to finally settle the question of the Church’s freedom in Poland in line with its demands.

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