By born into post-war and post-democracy Poland
from an early age Jerzy Popieluszko felt the weight
of growing up in the shadow of the iron curtain
in a Soviet satellite state
In 1966, at the age of 19
he was forced into military service
where he was met with threats, indoctrination
bullying, beatings, and temptations
they tried anything they could to break him
for in this young man was detected faith in
something greater than the government
but he could not be shaken
In 1972 he was ordained a priest
rather frail in stature and speech
they said Father Jerzy was a pastor
who had the smell of the sheep
he devoted himself to ministering
to holding the torch for the believing
to being a support for the grieving
and a source for the seeking
but as his faith was deepening
the regime was growing more oppressive
any opposition to their rhetoric was meticulously muzzled
as was freedom of conscience and expression
the economy was strangled
schools and factories were shuttered
freedom of worship was forsaken
in favor of state-flavored atheism
and not a word of dissent could be uttered
they said communism was progress
and the church was an obstacle to it
in 1981 an underground, anti-authoritarian movement was created
they called it Solidarity
its aim — peaceful civil resistance to the administration
a large contingent of this movement were religious
and when they gathered for Mass
they needed a chaplain
Jerzy was only one to volunteer
he sacrificed his time, his safety, and his health
to strengthen his congregation, to give them hope
channel their anger, and purify their hatred
to encourage them to not give in to fear
soon, 20,000+ would gather to hear his
unauthorized words of redemption, love, and spirit
his messages were recorded
and spread through all of Eastern Europe
via clandestine cassette tapes
but this of course
made him even more of an enemy of the State
a State that was bent on controlling
not only the actions
but the minds and the character of the people
thus, the entire Solidarity movement was declared illegal
the country was put under Martial Law
and any suspected to be involved
were subject to searches, raids, and lockdowns
after sham trials and forged circumstance
thousands were forced into internment camps
still, he persisted
the humble chaplain continued to champion
the cause with conviction
despite his escalating exhaustion, fatigue, and sickness
the government called his sermons
“seances of hate”
they called him “The most dangerous man in Poland”
dangerous
for declaring the dignity of the individual
dangerous
for asserting that God was sovereign
dangerous
for revering mother Mary over mother Russia
dangerous
for subverting the narrative
so they portrayed him as a terrorist
though his message was never one of violence or revenge
they called his information misinformation
because to their truth, he would not bend
there could be no minister of truth
in the Ministry of Truth
and so the crosshairs narrowed
Father Jerzy was constantly harassed
in suffocating surveillance
he learned that the eye from Moscow never closes
they bugged his phone and
tossed bombs through his apartment window
random speeding cars would target him at crossroads
this persecution pervaded for months
until finally, on an icy night in October 1984
as he was being driven toward a morning service
his car was forced to pull over
three shadowy figures converged on him with nightsticks
and by time they finished
their cowardice had crafted from Jerzy
an unrecognizable crimson caricature
his blood on their hands
with despicable rigor
they fettered his feet with stones
and dropped him from a bridge into the Vistula river
half a million mourned at his funeral
but even more than his martyrdom
his refusal to submit galvanized his countrymen
his courage fortified them with strength and hope in what they could all do
they persisted
and though their exemplar was felled
a few years later the Berlin wall would fall too
For Poland, the long march to liberation ended when
the leader of Solidarity was elected president
in the country’s first free election
since before the Cold War
today, pilgrimages are still made
to the grave in Warsaw where Father Jerzy was laid to rest
at its foot an eternal flame burns
in remembrance
and as a reminder
that you can kill a man that speaks truth
but you can’t kill the truth
