18/05/2026
Today, May 18, we celebrate a special day for all Marian Fathers and you, our Dear Apostles of Divine Mercy and friends. The day when we remember the saint Father Stanislaw Papczyński.
It was on May 18, 1631 in the rural village of Podegrodzie in southern Poland that the future saint, founder of the Marian Order, was born.
Here he was baptized in the parish church of St. James the Apostle and received his first basic education, continuing later in various Jesuit and Piarist centers. The reason why Fr. Stanisław changed places of education was the armed conflicts in which the Polish state was involved, resulting in the closure of schools and universities. During that time, the future Founder of the Marian Fathers developed a serious illness from which he was miraculously healed.
Another important stage in the life of Fr. Stanisław was his entry into the Piarist Order, where, after several years of study and formation, he took his vows and was ordained a priest in 1661. As a Piarist for several years he taught rhetoric, published books, and was a teacher, preacher and confessor.
Ultimately, convinced that God was calling him to found a new order, he seized this opportunity and left the Piarist Order in 1670 to begin efforts to establish the Marian Order. The struggle for the bishop's approval and later for papal approval, for the new order, lasted nearly 30 years. Shortly before the death of the Founder approval was granted.
The time when the Congregation of Marian Fathers was established was for Father Stanisław and the time of listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit and discerning whether the work he had undertaken was really God's will. The difficulties that followed did not discourage him but motivated him even more to pray and trust in God's Providence.
Father Stanisław read that the charism that God bestowed on the order is devoting and spreading the veneration of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, praying for the dead and dying, as well as preparing them for death and pastoral aid in parishes. The beatification process of Br. Stanisław was interrupted by the difficult historical and political situation in Poland and was not completed until the 20th century. His beatification took place in Poland in 2007, and his canonization in Rome in 2016.
The Founder of the Marian Order earned himself the nickname "Father of the Poor". And also, today his figure reminds us that they cannot be indifferent to people who are spiritually, morally or materially neglected.
His special devotion to Mary Immaculate also invites us to discover in everyday life the primacy of God's grace and His Providence over every human being. The miracles that God performs through the intercession of Father Stanisław are also important, such as the resurrection of a child in his mother's womb during pregnancy or the healing of a woman whom the doctors did not give a chance to survive.
These stories show us that it was God who chose the time of beatification and canonization of Fr. Stanisław, making him a patron of the conceived life and parents who want to have children and encounter various related problems. Nowadays, the memory of the dead, the accompaniment of people leaving this world and support for people who are experiencing mourning, which the Founder of Marianas very intensively practiced, do not lose their relevance.
The figure of St. Stanisław and his work is given to the Church today as a gift from God. Therefore, praying for his intercession and imitating his deeds will bring enrichment to our daily lives.
We also invite you to join us in this prayer every day from Monday to Friday from 2:30 p.m. at our Divine Mercy Chapel in London (1 Courtfield Gardens, London W13 0EY).
We also invite you to read fascinating testimonies of graces received through the intercession of Saint Father Stanislaw:
THE MIRACLE RECOGNIZED BY THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS IN THE BEATIFICATION PROCESS OF FR. STANISLAUS PAPCZYNSKI In 2000, Mrs. N. of Poland was expecting her first baby, but a miscarriage occurred. In February of the following year, she became pregnant again. On March 22, she experience...
