Studia Pastoralne
Rocznik Wydziału Teologicznego UŚ

Christian everyday life of lay persons as presented in the writings of father Franciszek Grudniok (1920–1998)
Summary
Franciszek Grudniok’s writings show several aspects of Christian life. Saying prayers and conducting religious practices, which lead to holiness in everyday life, are the major ones. A prayer is described as the foundation of Christian life. Listening to the Word of God and obeying it in everyday life is a special kind of prayer. The author presents a great value of the Word of God in the course of Christian development. An important aspect in Christian life is proper experience of Eucharist and confession as the basic sacraments. These two factors let people develop spiritual life. Next, the paper presents Grudniok’s view on human suffering. It is shown as a kind of mystery which is difficult to describe. The topic was familiar to Franciszek Grudniok. He wanted to present suffering as a treasure of spiritual life. Finally, several forms of spiritual life suggested by Franciszek Grudniok to lay persons are presented. Spirituality of St. Mary, Eucharistic spirituality as well as the spirituality of various Saints are shown in the paper.

Contemporary Christian spirituality in Poland. Description, attempt to eveluate, perspectives
Summary
Today’s times exhibit the important transformations in Polish christianity. It’s easy to see a leaving from the faith transmitted by the tradition and customs (folk faith). It’s not always the change in direction the faith chosen and consciously experienced. Some catholics do not practise the faith, limiting it to external rites which have more to do with a culture than a real faith (rites Christmas or Easter). It’s true a lot of catholics or other christians (orthodox, lutherans, reformed) limit their faith to piety’s rites without the connecting with their life (their faith is Sunday service only).
In the Catholic Church you may have noticed two trends. First there are misusages in folk piety, many a time deformed theologically.
Second trend, ever more increasing in Poland and other Catholic countries, it’s the charismatic and evangelistic renewal of the Church, often connected with pentecostal experiences. It is associated with the charismatic awakening in the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council and it fits to the evangelical model of the renewal of the Church and the Papal call to the new evangelization.
New times bring new practices which more than once are more expected and popular than traditional devotions in churches (the rosary, the service in first Tuesday and passion devotions). You can indicate the following pastoral activities: evangelizations, meetings with prayer for healing, worship concerts, charismatic prayers. At the same time you can noted an increased interest in Bible, a reading the word of God everyday and the necessity personal declaration Jesus as the Saviour and the Lord.
This new religious culture converts an image of the Church, religion, faith. The Church becomes nearer to apostolic community. Those spiritual phenomena and practices insist on an appropriate theological, sociological evaluation and quite often psychological too. Anyways this charismatic and evangelistic spirituality contributes to the creating of the conscious and deeper implemented faith.

ORDO PAENITENTIAE: „MANUAL” OF SPIRITUALITY FOR CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY. CONTENTS YOU GIVE TO METHODOLOGIES
Summary
There are different ways and perspectives with which one can approach the liturgical book in order to grasp the full potentials and values contained therein. The author examines the Ordo Paenitentiae especially considering it as a „handbook” of spirituality for the Christian community. The goal is one of truly living the forgiveness and reconciliation. For this a set of pedagogical, theological, liturgical and pastoral attentions are to be activated before the celebration, but also during and after, so that the whole Christian life is sustained by a constant attitude of penance, which finds its synthesis really in its celebration.

CARING FOR A LANGUAGE IN THE LITURGY AS MANIFESTATION OF CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY
Summary
A contact with a liturgical language and preaching the Word of God during the liturgy is not only a contact with a teaching word of God, but most of all with the word that has a power to transform those who celebrate the liturgy. Dynamics of this impact differs from the dynamics of a human language, since the language of the Bible is equipped with the salvific power. It is not about the effectiveness analysed in the context of literature or psychology, but but in the context of the Holy Spirit, who in the act of proclamation of the Word of God acts on the faithful and sanctifies them. This sanctifying action of the Holy Spirit reaches its climax precisely in the liturgy (see: SC 10), however its is not limited to the very celebration. Hence the spiritual life of the faithful is not limited solely to their participation in the liturgy (see: Constitution on the sacred liturgy 12), but extends its interaction to every day Christian life modelled on the road composed of the Word of God, transferred as the spiritial food in the liturgy, which is the font of life of the whole Church and her activities (see: SC 10). This is why all the forms of care for a word, which creates – apart from symbols and gestures – one of the major pillars of the liturgy celebrated by the Church is, as the matter of fact, a manifestation of a care for Christian spirituality. The Word of God proclaimed during the liturgy that comes from His mouth (see: Mathew 4:4) should become one with everyday life attitudes of Christians, so that the visible effect of the symbiosis (inevitable for matured faith) was spirituality of followers of Christ – pilgrims who all their earthly lives search for things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1). This is why the Word of God should be given an appropriate attention in the broadly understood meditation, reflection and discussion, since the dependancy between the care for a language in the liturgy and the Christian spirituality is interactive.