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Cardinal Glemp laid to rest

PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge 28.01.2013 12:58
The funeral mass of former Primate of Poland Cardinal Jozef Glemp was held in Warsaw's Archcathedral of St John the Baptist on Monday morning.

Cardinal
Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz (C) burning incense, during the funeral of Cardinal Jozef Glemp: photo - PAP/Bartlomiej Zborowski

The cardinal, who died on Wednesday aged 84, led the Polish Roman Catholic Church through the last years of communist rule in the country, continuing as primate until 2009, and as Archbishop of Warsaw until 2006.

“Cardinal Jozef Glemp was a primate of great breakthroughs, and he showed great composure and wisdom in the face of extreme political divisions,” declared Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop of Krakow, during Monday's funeral service, as cited by the Polish Press Agency (PAP).

“During the difficult times of communism, he stood boldly and prudently on the side of the nation, striving for freedom and complete independence from the totalitarian system,” the cardinal reflected.

Current Primate of Poland Archbishop Jozef Kowalczyk said in his homily that Glemp had been faithful to the teaching of Pope John Paul II, encouraging people “to change the world through words and dialogue, and not by the sword and firearms.”

The funeral was attended by a number of dignitaries, including President of Poland Bronislaw Komorowski, former president Lech Walesa and Tadeusz Mazowiecki, the first Polish prime minister following the collapse of communism in 1989.

"Today, with hindsight, we can see how much his sense of moderation and calm courage aided Poland in difficult times," Komorowski said.

Several prominent churchmen from abroad were also present, among them Primate of Hungary Cardinal Josip Bozanić, Primate of the Czech Republic Cardinal Dominik Duka and Archbishop of Cologne, Cardinal Joachim Meisner.

Meanwhile, on the nearby Castle Square, crowds of the faithful watched the service on a specially erected screen.

Thousands had paid their respects over the weekend, during which the cardinal had lain in state at Warsaw's Basilica of the Holy Cross.

The cardinal's final resting place is in the crypts of St. John's Archcathedral, near his predecessor Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski, who Glemp had served as private secretary.

Other prominent Poles to have been laid to rest in the crypts include the last king of Poland, Stanislaw Poniatowski, Poland's last pre-war president Ignacy Moscicki, and Nobel Prize-winning author Henryk Sienkiewicz. (nh)

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