Blessed Bronislava (
Life of the Saints and Blesseds)
Life of the Saints and Blesseds)
Bronislava (1203-1259), who entered the Norbertine nuns of Zwierzyniec at the
young age of 16, impressed the people of her time by her life of prayer and
her deep devotion to the Holy Cross as well as by her energetic assistance to
people in need. The people saw Bronislava as their patroness and invoked her
as such, calling her their “Angel of Consolation” because she helped
the sick, and distributed food, medicine and clothing to the needy. During the
Tartar invasions in Krakow and during the plague, she often withdrew into the
solitude of the hill of Sikornik where she entrusted her cares and each of her
fellow men to the mercy of God. It is recounted that Jesus told her in a vision:
“Bronislava, because my Cross has been your cross, my Crown will also
be your crown.”
Since her death in 1259, the cult of Bronislava has spread among the people of Poland and far beyond (through prayer, pilgrimages, images, and churches dedicated to her patronage) and Pope Gregory XVI confirmed her cult as a Blessed in 1839. The efforts of the Polish bishops toward the canonization in 1947 came to a standstill under Communist rule. In 2002 the Norbertine nuns seized the initiative once again and since that time the Historical Commission has been working under the direction of Cardinal Franciszek Macharski and Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz (from 2005). The Vice-Postulator is Sr. Paula Torczynska, OPraem, of Krakow. The postulator asked on June 6, 2005 for the opening of the diocesan process (supplex libellus). We hope that a reported miracle will receive the approval of the doctors!
