Tadeusz Isakowicz-Zaleski
Encyclopedia
Tadeusz Isakowicz-Zaleski (Armenian
: Թադևոս Վարդապետ Իսահակյան-Զալեսկին, in Latin script: Tadevos Vartapet Isahakian-Zaleski) is a Polish
Roman Catholic
and Armenian Catholic priest, author and activist. Born in 1956, in Kraków
, Isakowicz-Zaleski was an activist of the anticommunist student opposition n Kraków in the late 1970s, became a Solidarity chaplain
in Kraków's Nowa Huta
district in the 1980s, and later an avid supporter of the lustration
of the Polish Church
. On 3 May 2006, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, one of Poland's highest Orders, subsequently in 2007, he was awarded the Order of the Smile and Polish Ombudsman
s Order of Paweł Włodkowic.
In 1985, he was twice tortured by Poland's communist-era secret police (SB), and some twenty years later in 2006, he started researching the secret police archives kept by Poland's Institute of National Remembrance
to discovered that 39 Archdiocese of Kraków priests had collaborated with then regime between 1944 and 1989, this resulted in the much publicized 'Church Spy scandal' in Poland, where till then Polish Church
was only known for its role in battling communism and preserving traditional and national values both during the partitions of Poland and in the communist era. Subsequently in 2007, he published his controversial book, "Księża wobec bezpieki na przykładzie archidiecezji krakowskiej" (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police) on priests who cooperated with communist secret services. He is subject of a documentary 'Poland's Turbulent Priest', shown on BBC World News in 2009, about his struggle with the communist regime and the Polish church.
to a Polish father and an Armenia
n mother. Since high school years he was engaged in several Roman Catholic youth organizations. After graduating, he entered a Seminary
in his native city, which did not prevent him from being called for service in the Polish Army. He served in the years 1975-1977 in Brzeg
. In the late 1970s, after returning to the seminary, he joined the anticommunist student movements, such as Student Committee of Solidarity. He co-published a Samizdat
magazine Cross of Nowa Huta
, also in 1977 he debuted in Tygodnik Powszechny
with his poems.
In 1980, Isakowicz-Zaleski became engaged in the Solidarity movement; three years later he was ordained and ordered to continue studies at the Papal Armenian Collegium in Rome
. Unfortunately, he was not allowed to leave Communist Poland
, because of his underground activities. Isakowicz-Zaleski began working in Krakow’s district of Nowa Huta, where he celebrated holy Mass
for the workers and for the fatherland in the Maximilian Kolbe
parish in Mistrzejowice. Throughout the 1980s, he was repressed, and the Communist secret service agents twice brutally beat him. Both incidents happened in 1985, and came in the wake of the notorious 1984 murder of fellow Solidarity priest Jerzy Popiełuszko, the first attack occurred in April at his mother home, where after being gagged, the agents burned a V sign - the victory sign of the outlawed Solidarity trade union, which he supported, on his chest with a cigarette, later in December of the year, he was attacked again, this time at his presbytery
and Isakowicz-Zaleski’s ordeal was later used by Polish director Maciej Gawlikowski, in his 2006 film To Intimidate the Priest.
In 1988, as a priest of the workers, he participated in the strike in Nowa Huta’s Lenin Steel Mill. At the same time, he began helping the poor and the handicapped, together with nuns from local convents. In 1987, he co-founded charitable Foundation of Brother Albert Chmielowski. Currently, he is director of the Foundation, which owns a shelter in the village of Radwanowice
in the suburbs of Krakow.
In 2006, after months of research at Institute of National Remembrance
, he drafted a book on the collaboration between Catholic priests and government agents. But Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz of Kraków denied him the permission to publish it, unless it is vetted in advance by archdiocesan officials. On May 3, 2006, father Zaleski was awarded one of Poland's highest Orders, the Polonia Restituta
(Order of Polish Rebirth) by President Lech Kaczyński
. In November 2006, he received an apology from the nation's Catholic primate, Cardinal Józef Glemp of Warsaw
for earlier criticizing his research into collaboration between the clergy and the Communist-era secret police.
In Feb 2007, he finally published his controversial book, "Ksieza wobec bezpieki na przykladzie archidiecezji krakowskiej" (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police) on priests who cooperated with communist secret services
.
of Armenian Catholic parish
in Gliwice
since 1 December 2009. Between 2001 and 2009 he was the national clergyman and national chaplain
of the Armenian community of Poland. He popularizes knowledge about the history and culture of Armenia
itself, as well as about the rich history of the Armenian minority in Poland
. He initiated cooperation between older and newer waves of Armenian immigrants. Father Zaleski, who is related to the Catholic Armenian Rite archbishop of Lviv
, Izaak Mikolaj Isakowicz, also promotes the erection of a monument in Krakow to commemorate Armenian Genocide
.
, Albania
, Chechnya
and Ukraine
. In September 2007, Polish Ombudsman
awarded him the Order of Pawel Wlodkowic
for courage in fighting for basic values and truths, against the opinions of the majority. He was also awarded the Order of the Smile. Since 2007, he has been cooperating with the Gazeta Polska
weekly. Isakowicz-Zaleski runs the Brother Albert Foundation.
(formerly inside pre-1939 eastern Polish territory
), has for years been fighting to commemorate the Polish victims. In 2008 he unsuccessfully appealed to the Government of Poland, stating that it should officially condemn the Volhynian Genocide. He stated that political correctness in Poland makes it impossible to mention these tragic events. In 2008, he wrote a book Subdued Genocide in Kresy
, in which, among others, he describes fate of his family and the village of Korosciatyn
near Monasterzyska (area of Ternopil
), which was destroyed by Ukrainian nationalists and its inhabitants were murdered. He frequently criticizes not only members of the Polish Government, together with president Kaczynski, but also Roman Catholic hierarchy, such as Primate Jozef Glemp and Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, claiming that they have neglected sufferings of Poles in Western Ukraine and they do not protest when Ukrainian nationalists are awarded orders.
) to study the documents. Subsequently he found some five hundred pages of material on himself alone, names of fellow priests who had allegedly spied on him, and also a video of himself being gagged and beaten by thugs. He was swiftly able to identity several clergymen who had informed on him. Most crucially, evidence suggested that four figures who had risen to bishop status by 2005 were themselves past informers.
In February 2006, Zaleski came up with the idea of revealing the names of priests from the Archdiocese of Kraków, who had been secret informers of the Communist secret service
. As he himself had been victimized by Communist agents, he obtained access to his files, kept by the Institute of National Remembrance
, as an injured party. Thus, he appealed publicly for all the priests who had served as secret agents for the Security Service to step forward and reveal themselves causing a furor.
In August of the same year, Zaleski revealed that he had sent letters to priests registered as secret collaborators. His activities were harshly criticized by the Krakow Curia
and Zaleski received an order from his superiors to refrain from making public statements about this subject. Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz stated that Isakowicz-Zaleski had received a permit to conduct research exclusively into the repression that he himself faced under communism. Dziwisz condemned his "irresponsible and harmful" activities in a public letter, warned him to stop "throwing accusations", and finally ordered him to be silent
Nevertheless Zaleski did not give up saying that the church "must repent for the misdeeds of compromised priests". However, he admitted in an interview given to the Wprost
Weekly, that in the fall of 2006 he was in a personal crisis and considered resigning from the priesthood. He checked files of secret police and discovered that 39 Krakow priests had collaborated with the regime. Four of them are now bishops. "The whole tragedy is that the church had 16 years to take care of the problem, and it didn't do a thing" - stated Zaleski, adding that the Church "didn’t want to hurt the pope, but actually, more harm was done by keeping silent".
On February 28, 2007, Znak publishing house issued Zaleski’s book Ksieza wobec bezpieki na przykladzie diecezji krakowskiej (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police, ISBN 978-83-240-0803-2), in which he addresses the topic of the extent to which Poland’s Roman Catholic Church was infiltrated by communist security. In November of the same year, Zaleski was awarded the Prize of Jozef Mackiewicz
. The book sparked huge public attention, with people signing up at bookstores to make sure they would get a copy. Zaleski himself decided to give up the royalties for charity.
Armenian language
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
: Թադևոս Վարդապետ Իսահակյան-Զալեսկին, in Latin script: Tadevos Vartapet Isahakian-Zaleski) is a Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and Armenian Catholic priest, author and activist. Born in 1956, in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Isakowicz-Zaleski was an activist of the anticommunist student opposition n Kraków in the late 1970s, became a Solidarity chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
in Kraków's Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta - is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland, . With more than 200,000 inhabitants it is one of the most populous areas of the city.- History :...
district in the 1980s, and later an avid supporter of the lustration
Lustration in Poland
Lustration in Poland refers to the policy of limiting the participation of former communists, and especially informants of the communist secret police , in the successor governments or even in civil service positions.-1992–1997:...
of the Polish Church
Polish Catholic Church
The Polish Catholic Church is an Old Catholic denomination in Poland which belongs to the Union of Utrecht. It is a member of the World Council of Churches and the Polish Ecumenical Council. It is not affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church nor is it in communion with the Pope. In 2009 the...
. On 3 May 2006, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, one of Poland's highest Orders, subsequently in 2007, he was awarded the Order of the Smile and Polish Ombudsman
Polish Ombudsman
The Polish Ombudsman is an independent central office of the Republic of Poland. The office was first established on January 1, 1988. Its functioning is regulated by the Constitution and an act of Polish parliament from July 15, 1987...
s Order of Paweł Włodkowic.
In 1985, he was twice tortured by Poland's communist-era secret police (SB), and some twenty years later in 2006, he started researching the secret police archives kept by Poland's Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance — Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a Polish government-affiliated research institute with lustration prerogatives and prosecution powers founded by specific legislation. It specialises in the legal and historical sciences and...
to discovered that 39 Archdiocese of Kraków priests had collaborated with then regime between 1944 and 1989, this resulted in the much publicized 'Church Spy scandal' in Poland, where till then Polish Church
Polish Catholic Church
The Polish Catholic Church is an Old Catholic denomination in Poland which belongs to the Union of Utrecht. It is a member of the World Council of Churches and the Polish Ecumenical Council. It is not affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church nor is it in communion with the Pope. In 2009 the...
was only known for its role in battling communism and preserving traditional and national values both during the partitions of Poland and in the communist era. Subsequently in 2007, he published his controversial book, "Księża wobec bezpieki na przykładzie archidiecezji krakowskiej" (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police) on priests who cooperated with communist secret services. He is subject of a documentary 'Poland's Turbulent Priest', shown on BBC World News in 2009, about his struggle with the communist regime and the Polish church.
Life
Father Isakowicz-Zaleski was born in KrakowKraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
to a Polish father and an Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n mother. Since high school years he was engaged in several Roman Catholic youth organizations. After graduating, he entered a Seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in his native city, which did not prevent him from being called for service in the Polish Army. He served in the years 1975-1977 in Brzeg
Brzeg
Brzeg is a town in southwestern Poland with 38,496 inhabitants , situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship on the left bank of the Oder...
. In the late 1970s, after returning to the seminary, he joined the anticommunist student movements, such as Student Committee of Solidarity. He co-published a Samizdat
Samizdat
Samizdat was a key form of dissident activity across the Soviet bloc in which individuals reproduced censored publications by hand and passed the documents from reader to reader...
magazine Cross of Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta - is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland, . With more than 200,000 inhabitants it is one of the most populous areas of the city.- History :...
, also in 1977 he debuted in Tygodnik Powszechny
Tygodnik Powszechny
Tygodnik Powszechny is a Polish Roman Catholic weekly magazine, focusing on social and cultural issues. Established in 1945 under the auspices of Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha, Jerzy Turowicz was its editor-in-chief until his death in 1999. He was succeeded by priest Adam Boniecki.-History:The...
with his poems.
In 1980, Isakowicz-Zaleski became engaged in the Solidarity movement; three years later he was ordained and ordered to continue studies at the Papal Armenian Collegium in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. Unfortunately, he was not allowed to leave Communist Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
, because of his underground activities. Isakowicz-Zaleski began working in Krakow’s district of Nowa Huta, where he celebrated holy Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
for the workers and for the fatherland in the Maximilian Kolbe
Maximilian Kolbe
Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe OFM Conv was a Polish Conventual Franciscan friar, who volunteered to die in place of a stranger in the Nazi German concentration camp of Auschwitz, located in German-occupied Poland during World War II.He was canonized on 10 October 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and...
parish in Mistrzejowice. Throughout the 1980s, he was repressed, and the Communist secret service agents twice brutally beat him. Both incidents happened in 1985, and came in the wake of the notorious 1984 murder of fellow Solidarity priest Jerzy Popiełuszko, the first attack occurred in April at his mother home, where after being gagged, the agents burned a V sign - the victory sign of the outlawed Solidarity trade union, which he supported, on his chest with a cigarette, later in December of the year, he was attacked again, this time at his presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
and Isakowicz-Zaleski’s ordeal was later used by Polish director Maciej Gawlikowski, in his 2006 film To Intimidate the Priest.
In 1988, as a priest of the workers, he participated in the strike in Nowa Huta’s Lenin Steel Mill. At the same time, he began helping the poor and the handicapped, together with nuns from local convents. In 1987, he co-founded charitable Foundation of Brother Albert Chmielowski. Currently, he is director of the Foundation, which owns a shelter in the village of Radwanowice
Radwanowice
Radwanowice is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Zabierzów, within Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately west of Zabierzów and north-west of the regional capital Kraków....
in the suburbs of Krakow.
In 2006, after months of research at Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance — Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a Polish government-affiliated research institute with lustration prerogatives and prosecution powers founded by specific legislation. It specialises in the legal and historical sciences and...
, he drafted a book on the collaboration between Catholic priests and government agents. But Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz of Kraków denied him the permission to publish it, unless it is vetted in advance by archdiocesan officials. On May 3, 2006, father Zaleski was awarded one of Poland's highest Orders, the Polonia Restituta
Polonia Restituta
The Order of Polonia Restituta is one of Poland's highest Orders. The Order can be conferred for outstanding achievements in the fields of education, science, sport, culture, art, economics, defense of the country, social work, civil service, or for furthering good relations between countries...
(Order of Polish Rebirth) by President Lech Kaczyński
Lech Kaczynski
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński was Polish lawyer and politician who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość...
. In November 2006, he received an apology from the nation's Catholic primate, Cardinal Józef Glemp of Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
for earlier criticizing his research into collaboration between the clergy and the Communist-era secret police.
In Feb 2007, he finally published his controversial book, "Ksieza wobec bezpieki na przykladzie archidiecezji krakowskiej" (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police) on priests who cooperated with communist secret services
Sluzba Bezpieczenstwa
Służba Bezpieczeństwa Ministerstwa Spraw Wewnętrznych , or just SB, was established in the People's Republic of Poland in 1954...
.
Armenian Community in Poland
Reverend Isakowicz-Zaleski is a pastorPastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of Armenian Catholic parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
in Gliwice
Gliwice
Gliwice is a city in Upper Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Gliwice is the west district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – a metropolis with a population of 2 million...
since 1 December 2009. Between 2001 and 2009 he was the national clergyman and national chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
of the Armenian community of Poland. He popularizes knowledge about the history and culture of Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
itself, as well as about the rich history of the Armenian minority in Poland
Armenians in Poland
Armenians in Poland have an important and historical presence going back to the 14th century. According to the Polish census of 2002, there are 1,082 self-identifying Armenians in Poland,, although Armenian-oriented sources cite estimates as high as 92,000....
. He initiated cooperation between older and newer waves of Armenian immigrants. Father Zaleski, who is related to the Catholic Armenian Rite archbishop of Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
, Izaak Mikolaj Isakowicz, also promotes the erection of a monument in Krakow to commemorate Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
.
Charity and Helping the Disabled
In 1997, Archbishop Franciszek Macharski named Father Zaleski honorary canon of the Krakow Archdiocese in appreciation for his charity-related activities. However, Zaleski, who is known in Krakow for his charity works resigned from this post in 2006, protesting allegations aimed at him. Together with Janina Ochojska, he was a participant in several humanitarian convoys to such countries as the former YugoslaviaYugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. In September 2007, Polish Ombudsman
Polish Ombudsman
The Polish Ombudsman is an independent central office of the Republic of Poland. The office was first established on January 1, 1988. Its functioning is regulated by the Constitution and an act of Polish parliament from July 15, 1987...
awarded him the Order of Pawel Wlodkowic
Pawel Wlodkowic
Paulus Vladimiri was a distinguished scholar, jurist and rector of the Cracow Academy who defended Poland and native non-Christian tribes against the Teutonic Knights and its policies of conquest....
for courage in fighting for basic values and truths, against the opinions of the majority. He was also awarded the Order of the Smile. Since 2007, he has been cooperating with the Gazeta Polska
Gazeta Polska
Gazeta Polska is a Polish right-wing/conservative weekly, founded in 1993. Its current editor-in-chief is Tomasz Sakiewicz. Its most known contributors include: Piotr Lisiewicz, Jacek Kwieciński, Eliza Michalik, Robert Tekieli, Krystyna Grzybowska, Maciej Rybiński, Jacek Łęski, Piotr Semka, Jerzy...
weekly. Isakowicz-Zaleski runs the Brother Albert Foundation.
Massacres of Poles in Volhynia
Reverend Zaleski, who lost several members of his family in a campaign of ethnic cleansing of Poles in modern Western UkraineMassacres of Poles in Volhynia
The Massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia were part of an ethnic cleansing operation carried out by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army West in the Nazi occupied regions of the Eastern Galicia , and UPA North in Volhynia , beginning in March 1943 and lasting until the end of...
(formerly inside pre-1939 eastern Polish territory
Kresy
The Polish term Kresy refers to a land considered by Poles as historical eastern provinces of their country. Today, it makes western Ukraine, western Belarus, as well as eastern Lithuania, with such major cities, as Lviv, Vilnius, and Hrodna. This territory belonged to the Polish-Lithuanian...
), has for years been fighting to commemorate the Polish victims. In 2008 he unsuccessfully appealed to the Government of Poland, stating that it should officially condemn the Volhynian Genocide. He stated that political correctness in Poland makes it impossible to mention these tragic events. In 2008, he wrote a book Subdued Genocide in Kresy
Kresy
The Polish term Kresy refers to a land considered by Poles as historical eastern provinces of their country. Today, it makes western Ukraine, western Belarus, as well as eastern Lithuania, with such major cities, as Lviv, Vilnius, and Hrodna. This territory belonged to the Polish-Lithuanian...
, in which, among others, he describes fate of his family and the village of Korosciatyn
Korosciatyn Massacre
The Korosciatyn massacre took place on the night of February 28/29, 1944, during the province-wide wave of massacres of Poles in Volhynia in World War II. Korosciatyn, which now bears the name of Krynica and is located in western Ukraine, was one of the biggest ethnic Polish villages of the...
near Monasterzyska (area of Ternopil
Ternopil
Ternopil , is a city in western Ukraine, located on the banks of the Seret River. Ternopil is one of the major cities of Western Ukraine and the historical region of Galicia...
), which was destroyed by Ukrainian nationalists and its inhabitants were murdered. He frequently criticizes not only members of the Polish Government, together with president Kaczynski, but also Roman Catholic hierarchy, such as Primate Jozef Glemp and Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, claiming that they have neglected sufferings of Poles in Western Ukraine and they do not protest when Ukrainian nationalists are awarded orders.
Lustration of Polish Clergy
In 2005, during the 25th Anniversary Celebrations of Solidarity, Zaleski was tipped off that there was a pre-1989 secret police file on him in Krakow, by then under new Polish law, one could view one's own file, as well as those who informed on you. He sought permission from the IPN (Institute of National RemembranceInstitute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance — Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a Polish government-affiliated research institute with lustration prerogatives and prosecution powers founded by specific legislation. It specialises in the legal and historical sciences and...
) to study the documents. Subsequently he found some five hundred pages of material on himself alone, names of fellow priests who had allegedly spied on him, and also a video of himself being gagged and beaten by thugs. He was swiftly able to identity several clergymen who had informed on him. Most crucially, evidence suggested that four figures who had risen to bishop status by 2005 were themselves past informers.
In February 2006, Zaleski came up with the idea of revealing the names of priests from the Archdiocese of Kraków, who had been secret informers of the Communist secret service
Sluzba Bezpieczenstwa
Służba Bezpieczeństwa Ministerstwa Spraw Wewnętrznych , or just SB, was established in the People's Republic of Poland in 1954...
. As he himself had been victimized by Communist agents, he obtained access to his files, kept by the Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance
Institute of National Remembrance — Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a Polish government-affiliated research institute with lustration prerogatives and prosecution powers founded by specific legislation. It specialises in the legal and historical sciences and...
, as an injured party. Thus, he appealed publicly for all the priests who had served as secret agents for the Security Service to step forward and reveal themselves causing a furor.
In August of the same year, Zaleski revealed that he had sent letters to priests registered as secret collaborators. His activities were harshly criticized by the Krakow Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
and Zaleski received an order from his superiors to refrain from making public statements about this subject. Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz stated that Isakowicz-Zaleski had received a permit to conduct research exclusively into the repression that he himself faced under communism. Dziwisz condemned his "irresponsible and harmful" activities in a public letter, warned him to stop "throwing accusations", and finally ordered him to be silent
Nevertheless Zaleski did not give up saying that the church "must repent for the misdeeds of compromised priests". However, he admitted in an interview given to the Wprost
Wprost
Wprost is a weekly newsmagazine in Poland. It was founded on December 5, 1982 as a regional magazine in Greater Poland, but since 1989 it has been distributed nationwide. The editorial office is currently located in Warsaw. Wprost is an opinion weekly focused on politics and society. Marek Król is...
Weekly, that in the fall of 2006 he was in a personal crisis and considered resigning from the priesthood. He checked files of secret police and discovered that 39 Krakow priests had collaborated with the regime. Four of them are now bishops. "The whole tragedy is that the church had 16 years to take care of the problem, and it didn't do a thing" - stated Zaleski, adding that the Church "didn’t want to hurt the pope, but actually, more harm was done by keeping silent".
On February 28, 2007, Znak publishing house issued Zaleski’s book Ksieza wobec bezpieki na przykladzie diecezji krakowskiej (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police, ISBN 978-83-240-0803-2), in which he addresses the topic of the extent to which Poland’s Roman Catholic Church was infiltrated by communist security. In November of the same year, Zaleski was awarded the Prize of Jozef Mackiewicz
Jozef Mackiewicz
Józef Mackiewicz was a Polish writer and commentator. He staunchly opposed communism, referring to himself as "anticommunist by nationality".- Life and career :...
. The book sparked huge public attention, with people signing up at bookstores to make sure they would get a copy. Zaleski himself decided to give up the royalties for charity.
Publications
- "Oblezenie" (Siege, 1981) - poems, published as samizdat under pseudonym Jacek Partyka
- "Wspomnienia" (Recolletions, 1985) - poems, published as samizdat under pseudonym Jan Kresowiak
- "Morze Czerwone" (Red Sea, 1988) -poems, published as samizdat under pseudonym Jan Kresowiak
- "Slownik biograficzny ksiezy ormianskich i pochodzenia ormianskiego w Polsce w latach 1750-2000" (Biographical Dictionary of Armenian Priests in Poland 1750-2000, 2001)
- "Arcybiskup ormianski Izaak Mikolaj Isakowicz "Zlotousty" : duszpasterz, spolecznik i patriota 1824-1901" (Armenian Archbishop Izaak Mikolaj Isakowicz, 2001)
- "Wiersze" (Poems, 2006)
- "Ksieza wobec bezpieki na przykladzie archidiecezji krakowskiej" (Polish Priests and the Communist Secret Police, 2007)
- "Moje zycie nielegalne" (My illegal life, 2008)
- "Przemilczane ludobojstwo na Kresach" (Subdued Genocide in KresyKresyThe Polish term Kresy refers to a land considered by Poles as historical eastern provinces of their country. Today, it makes western Ukraine, western Belarus, as well as eastern Lithuania, with such major cities, as Lviv, Vilnius, and Hrodna. This territory belonged to the Polish-Lithuanian...
2008)
See also
- Lustration in PolandLustration in PolandLustration in Poland refers to the policy of limiting the participation of former communists, and especially informants of the communist secret police , in the successor governments or even in civil service positions.-1992–1997:...
- Sluzba BezpieczenstwaSluzba BezpieczenstwaSłużba Bezpieczeństwa Ministerstwa Spraw Wewnętrznych , or just SB, was established in the People's Republic of Poland in 1954...
- Massacres of Poles in VolhyniaMassacres of Poles in VolhyniaThe Massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia were part of an ethnic cleansing operation carried out by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army West in the Nazi occupied regions of the Eastern Galicia , and UPA North in Volhynia , beginning in March 1943 and lasting until the end of...