Westminster Record - August 2015 by RCWestminster

Parish Profile

Westminster Record | August 2015

The Polish Heart of Islington By Chris O’Callaghan The Record returns to Islington this month following our profile of Copenhagen Street parish in July’s edition. However, we do so with good reason. With our friends at Youth Ministry taking an editorial lead to look ahead to World Youth Day in Krakow next year, it seems apt to visit one of the three Polish parishes of the Diocese. The Church of Our Lady of Częstochowa sits in a quiet road behind Islington High Street, just a stone’s throw from the parish church of St John the Evangelist. The church was built by the Swedenborgians, a religious sect who could no longer support the building and a pastor by 1930; and so it was bought by the small Polish community of the area. Cardinal Bourne was present when it was consecrated and devoted to Our Lady and St Casimir, the patron saint of Lithuania, in October that year. The simple ragstone front of the building hardly prepares you for the beauty of its interior. Upon entry your eyes are immediately drawn to the main altar and the large reproduction of the icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa, painted by Marek Święcicki, which hangs proudly as she surveys the church and its people in front of her. The original icon is housed in the Sanctuary of Jasna Góra in Częstochowa

itself and has been associated with Poland for around 600 years. Its history before then is shrouded in myth and legend, but it is known that the icon arrived in Poland in 1382. During a month-long siege of the Sanctuary by the Swedes in 1656, the people inside prayed to the icon for protection and victory; and against the superior numbers of the invaders, the monks and local volunteers defeated the Swedes. This led King John II Casimir Vasa to crown Our Lady of Częstochowa as Queen of Poland in April 1656. Surrounding the icon are votive offerings, which include medals donated by soldiers after the Second World War, badges and lockets. The two most interesting items are the sword below the icon, which was presented to the church by General Władysław Sikorski, and a silver eagle above which was donated by Władysław Raczkiewicz, President of the Polish Government in Exile from 1939 to 1947. Below the icon is a painting of the Last Supper by Adam Bunsch, who also designed the remarkable stained glassed windows of the church. Bunsch, originally from Krakow, was an established artist who came to London after the war’s end. His memory and experience of the war is etched into these windows depicting the Polish

One of Adam Bunsch’s stained glassed windows

The view from the pews with the icon of the Black Madonna and painting of the Last Supper within the reredos

involvement and victory over the German aggressors. During the war the church was the only free Polish church in Europe and the place of worship for the exiled government and the numerous soldiers, sailors and airmen based in London. Bunsch’s work reflects the pain that the Polish nation and people suffered from 1939 to 1945. Most strikingly this is shown in the window to the left of the altar, which shows soldiers stabbing a man to death. Similar depictions can be seen in the Stations of the Cross made by J.Z. Henelt, where the soldiers wear helmets similar to those of the German Army. Other interesting items around the church include a small statue of the great Polish Pope, St John Paul II, incorporating a relic of his blood; a votive candlestand donated to the church in 1950 by Pope Pius XII in memory of the countries which could not express their Catholic faith freely behind the Iron Curtain; plaques dedicated to former Rectors of the church, Polish war leaders and those who built the church; and the Sanctuary lamp marking Christ’s presence in the Tabernacle, which was donated by the airmen of 303 Squadron who fought valiantly in the Battle of Britain.

The modern situation of the parish is a far cry from the wartime reminders on its walls. The church welcomes around 1,000 people each weekend for Mass, with a congregation of older Poles who survived the war and stayed in London and a new, younger generation who have come to the UK after Poland’s entry into the European Union in 2004. Marek, my host, tells me this is a ‘life church’, a second home to many people and the centre of the community. Below the church is a hall for social events, with a bookstore and an industrial kitchen which serves 100 meals every weekend after the Masses. As well as the church, the site is also home to the Polish Catholic Mission in the UK, which oversees Polish priests and churches nationally. Currently there are 125 Polish priests in the UK working in 87 parishes and offering Mass in an additional 215 churches. At the most recent count in October last year around 59,000 people were attending Mass in Polish across the country. This year sees the church celebrate 85 years of Catholic worship. In October there will be a Mass to mark this occasion celebrated by Bishop Wiesław Lechowicz, an Auxiliary from

the Diocese of Tarnów. The parish also joined in celebrations marking the 1,050th anniversary of the baptism of Poland on 6 June. The church of Our Lady of Częstochowa is one of the most interesting, both historically and visually, in the diocese. The windows, the icon and the assorted other significant items mean that with every turn of the head there is something else interesting to ask about. As the parish history book summarises: ‘It is a beautiful church with an interesting history and well worth a visit’. I certainly found it so.

Statue of Pope St John Paul II

Founded: 1930 Mass Times: (Sat 6pm), 9, 11, 12.30pm, 3.30pm, 7pm Address: 2 Devonia Road, Islington, N1 8JJ Telephone: 020 7226 9944 Website: www.parafia-devonia.org.uk Page 7