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On June 15 at the Divine Mercy Shrine of Łagiewniki in Poland, Fr. Michał Rapacz was beatified by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.
Bl. Rapacz was killed "in hatred of the faith" on May 12, 1946, by the communist regime, which at the time had commanded him to leave his parish and abandon public ministry.
Strengthened by the Eucharist
VaticanNews highlighted Cardinal Semeraro's homily, in which he spoke of how Bl. Rapacz's life was centered on the Eucharist.
Father Rapacz's example that we can follow shows how "the Eucharist was the foundation of his life as a man of God...Spreading love for Christ present in the consecrated Bread...was for him the only effective antidote to atheism, materialism and all those worldviews that threaten human dignity." And it is "from the gift of Jesus on the altar" that this parish priest of Płoki "drew the greatest love, the love that does not remain paralysed in the face of hatred, violence and everything that causes fear."
His example is meant to be a beacon to the world, and how the Eucharist can be a source of strength for all of us:
"Nourished by the Eucharistic Bread, we too can say our 'yes', which is the commitment to make and live radical, courageous, even difficult choices. He said this 'yes' is a different way of responding to evil by doing good, becoming builders of peace and embracing the ideals of that high standard of Christian life that the Saints, with their witnesses, help us see," by offering themselves "with generosity in service to the least, the poor, the marginalized, the smallest and most defenseless."
According to the Catholic News Agency, "The Mass also marked the end of a Eucharistic congress in the Archdiocese of Krakow. "
Bl. Rapacz is not the only martyred priest from Poland's communist era, as Bl. Jerzy Popiełuszko is one of the better known priests who publicly opposed the atheistic communist agenda.
