Andrew Bobola

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Saint Andrew Bobola
Martyr of Poland
Born 1591, Strachocina, Poland.
Died 16 May 1657, Janów Poleski, Poland
Venerated in Roman Catholicism
Beatified 30 October 1853 by Pope Pius IX
Canonized 17 April 1938 by Pope Pius XI
Major shrine Shrine of Saint Andrew Bobola, Warsaw, Poland
Feast May 16
Patronage Poland; Archdiocese of Warsaw
Saints Portal

Saint Andrew Bobola (Polish: Andrzej Bobola) (1591–16 May 1657) was a Jesuit missionary and martyr, known as "an Apostle of Pinszczyzna"[clarify] and "a hunter of souls".[citation needed]

He was born in 1591 into a noble family in Strachocina, Poland. In 1611 he entered the Jesuits in Vilnius, Lithuania. He subsequently took solemn vows in 1630 and then served for several years as an advisor, preacher, superior of a cloister, etc., in various places. From 1652 he also worked as a country missionary, in among other places Polock, Lithuania, where he was probably stationed in 1655, and also in Pinsk, Lithuania (both now in Belarus).

On 16 May 1657 he was captured in the village of Peredil, Lithuania by the Cossacks of Chmielnicki and subjected to a variety of tortures (amputated limbs, flayed skin, burn wounds, wood slivers driven underneath the fingernails, cut-off nose) and killed (in Janów Poleski).

At the beginning of the 18th century nobody knew where his corpse was buried. In 1701 Father Martin Godebski, the rector of the Pinsk college reputedly had a vision of Bobola. This caused him to order a search for the body. It was found completely undecomposed, which was widely recognized as a proof of holiness. In 1719 the casket was officially reopened and the body inspected by qualified medical personnel (five physicians and pharmacists). It was still completely undecomposed: pliable, the flesh soft.

In 1922 Bolsheviks moved the corpse to Moscow as an exhibit ("curiosity", just due to its good condition) in the Museum of Hygiene of People's Commissioners of Health. In May 1924 the holy relic - as a kind of "pay" for help during famine - was delivered to the Holy See. Since 17 June 1938 it has been in Warsaw.

Declared Blessed by Pius IX on 30 October 1853, Bobola was canonized by Pope Pius XI on 17 April 1938. His feast day is held on May 16. Since May 16, 2002 Andrew Bobola is a patron saint of Poland. and the Warsaw archdiocese.

Today some join St. Andrew with St. Peter the Aleut, a martyr for the Orthodox faith from the hands of Roman Catholics, in a special devotion for the reunion of the two branches of Christianity.

[edit] See also

  • List of saints
  • The Incorruptibles, a list of Catholic saints and beati whose bodies are reported to be incorrupt; that is, the bodies did not undergo any major decay after their burial and hence are considered to be under some form of divine protection.

[edit] Notes

It is assumed that a part of the Bobola family exists to this day under the name of Bobola , they currently live mainly in Warsaw (about 30 persons), Poland. This is a part which, precisely, seems to have been rooted in Pinsk for some time. In the 17th century, a nobleman from Pinsk underwriting himself as Bobola used the Leliwa arms, the same as Saint Andrew Bobola's ones. Nevertheless, most of them still bear the name of Bobola and are spread whole over Poland (more than 200 persons).

[edit] References


Persondata
NAME Bobola, Saint Andrew
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Andrzej Bobola
SHORT DESCRIPTION Jesuit missionary and martyr, known as "an Apostle of Pinszczyzna" and "a hunter of souls".
DATE OF BIRTH 1591
PLACE OF BIRTH Strachocina, Poland.
DATE OF DEATH 16 May 1657
PLACE OF DEATH Janów Poleski, Poland