Stanisław Dziwisz
| His Eminence Stanisław Dziwisz |
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|---|---|
| Cardinal Archbishop of Kraków | |
 Cardinal Dziwisz |
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| Province | Kraków |
| See | Kraków |
| Appointed | 3 June 2005 |
| Enthroned | 27 August 2005 (6 years, 181 days) |
| Predecessor | Franciszek Macharski |
| Other posts | Cardinal-Priest of San Maria del Popolo |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 23 June 1963 by Pope John Paul II |
| Consecration | 19 March 1998 by Pope John Paul II |
| Created Cardinal | 24 March 2006 |
| Rank | Cardinal-Priest |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Stanisław Dziwisz |
| Born | April 27, 1939 Raba Wyżna, Poland |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Previous post |
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| Motto | sursum corda |
| Coat of arms |  |
Stanisław Dziwisz (born 27 April 1939) is a Polish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been Archbishop of Kraków since 2005, and was created a cardinal in 2006.[1] He was a longtime and influential aide to Pope John Paul II (he was one of the few people mentioned in the Pope's will, where he was thanked for his almost 40 years of service to the Pontiff), a friend of the current Pope, Benedict XVI, and an ardent supporter of the late Pope's eventual beatification.[2]
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[edit] Early life, ordination, and priesthood
Dziwisz was born in the village of Raba Wyżna to Stanisław Dziwisz, a railroad worker, and his wife, Zofia Bielarczyk.[3] The fifth of seven children, he has four brothers and two sisters.[4] During World War II, the family hid a Jewish man in their house.[4] When the younger Stanisław was only nine, his father died after being struck by a train while crossing the railroad tracks.[4] He attended the classical Secondary School (Liceum) in Nowy Targ, passing the exam of maturity in 1957.[5]
Dziwisz then entered the Major Seminary of Kraków, where he completed his studies in philosophy and theology.[5] On 23 June 1963, he was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Kraków by its auxiliary bishop, Bishop Karol Wojtyła.[1] His first assignment was as a curate at a parish in Maków Podhalański, where he served for two years.[3] He then continued his studies at the Faculty of Theology of Kraków, specialising in liturgy and earning a Licentiate of Sacred Theology in 1967.[5] In October 1966, he was appointed by Archbishop Wojtyła, who had since been elevated to Archbishop of Kraków, to serve as his personal secretary; Dziwisz would remain in this position until Wojtyła's death in 2005.[6]
In addition to his duties as personal secretary to Archbishop Wojtyła, Dziwisz served as professor of liturgy at the Superior Catechetical Institute in Kraków, editor of the official newspaper of the archdiocesan curia, member and secretary of the Archdiocesan Liturgical Commission, and a member of the Presbyteral Council.[3] He also participated in the work of the Committee for the Holy Year (1974–1975) and of the Pastoral Synod of Kraków (1972–1978).[5]
Dziwisz accompanied then-Cardinal Wojtyła to the papal conclave of August 1978, which resulted in the election of Pope John Paul I.[4] Following the death of John Paul I only thirty-three days later, he and Wojtyła returned to Rome for the next conclave, wherein Wojtyła himself was elected pope and chose the name John Paul II. Dziwisz recalled in his book My Life With Karol, "I was standing in Saint Peter's Square, near the gate of the basilica. That's where I heard Cardinal Pericle Felici announce the name of the new Pope: It was my bishop! My bishop!"[4]
Upon the election of Wojtyła as Pope John Paul II, Dziwisz was appointed as the new Pope's principal Private Secretary, and in that capacity he moved to the Vatican with the new Pontiff. Dziwisz served as Private Secretary to the Pope throughout the entirety of John Paul II twenty-seven year Pontificate. During the first twenty years of his service in the Vatican, Dziwisz held only the title of principal private secretary, and remained a priest. In 1998, however, he was given the additional status of Adjunct Prefect of the Papal Household, and was raised to the Episcopate.
In 1981, he earned a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree from the Faculty of Theology of Kraków, with a thesis entitled: "The Cult of Saint Stanislaus, Bishop of Kraków, until the Council of Trent".[4]
[edit] Bishop
Dziwisz was appointed titular bishop of San Leone and joint head of the Prefecture of the Papal Household on 7 February 1998. He was ordained a bishop on 19 March of that year, the principal consecrator being Pope John Paul II, and the co-consecrators Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Cardinal Sodano and the then Cardinal-Archbishop of Kraków Franciszek Cardinal Macharski. John Paul II elevated Dziwisz to the rank of archbishop on 29 September 2003, still having the titular see of San Leone.
[edit] Adjunct Prefect of the Papal Household
He was best known as a member of the Prefecture of the Papal Household and for his nearly forty years in service as private secretary to Pope John Paul II. John Paul and Dziwisz were said to have a father-son like relationship. Dziwisz slept in a bedroom next to that of John Paul's, was always near him during Mass, and was with him almost every waking moment. During John Paul's papacy, he became one of the most influential voices in the Vatican.
According to Jason Berry, Dziwisz was a staunch supporter of Marcial Maciel, the founder of the Legion of Christ who was accused of sexual abuse in 1998, and this support from Dziwisz, Pope John Paul II and cardinals Angelo Sodano and Eduardo Martínez Somalo, was the reason the proceedings against Maciel were halted in 1999. Berry writes: "Maciel spent years cultivating Dziwisz's support. Under Maciel, the Legion steered streams of money to Dziwisz in his function as gatekeeper for the pope's private Masses in the Apostolic Palace".[7]
According to the New York Times (27-4-2010) Dziwisz was also instrumental in blocking a full investigation into the abuse case of Hans Hermann Cardinal Groer.
[edit] Death of John Paul II
As the health of John Paul declined, some speculated that Dziwisz, as one of John Paul's most trusted aides, may have been preparing the faithful for the worst. The Rome newspaper Il Messaggero reported that he mentioned his concern to another Polish priest. According to Vatican sources he told the priest, "Pray for the pope, because he's getting worse." [1]
On 31 March 2005 John Paul's condition became so serious that Archbishop Dziwisz administered the Anointing of the Sick to the Pope. Before the death of John Paul, Dziwisz was reported to have helped him write a message to his staff not to grieve, that he (John Paul) was happy and that they should be too.
When John Paul died on 2 April 2005, Archbishop Dziwisz was at his bedside. According to rules created by John Paul, Dziwisz packed his belongings and vacated the papal apartments before they were sealed by the Camerlengo. It was believed that John Paul had hoped to appoint Archbishop Dziwisz as Archbishop of Kraków and elevate him to become a Cardinal Priest, a post and title the pope had held. A vacancy did not however occur before John Paul's death. It was Pope Benedict XVI who named Dziwisz to the post of archbishop of Kraków, and later elevated him to cardinal.
During the Mass of Requiem on 8 April for John Paul, Archbishop Dziwisz had the honour of placing a white silk veil over the face of the Pope before the body was lowered into three separate caskets. It was the symbolic last act of service of Archbishop Dziwisz as papal secretary for John Paul.
[edit] Archbishop of Krakow
On 3 June 2005, Benedict XVI appointed Dziwisz as successor to the retiring Cardinal Macharski as Archbishop of Kraków. It had been suggested that John Paul II had been grooming Dziwisz for the position and was merely waiting for Macharski to retire before making such an appointment. Benedict XVI is believed to have made the appointment in fulfilment of one of the last wishes of John Paul II.
| Styles of Stanisław Cardinal Dziwisz |
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|---|---|
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| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Kraków |
[edit] Cardinal
At the consistory of 24 March 2006, Archbishop Dziwisz was raised to the cardinalate, becoming the Cardinal-Priest of the Titulus S. Mariae de Populo. It is customary to name the bishops of certain important episcopal sees, such as Kraków, to the College of Cardinals. Dziwisz had also been mentioned as the possible secret cardinal in pectore appointed by John Paul II in 2003, but the pope took this secret to the grave. Dziwisz's elevation to the cardinalate will allow him to participate in any upcoming papal conclaves until his 80th birthday in 2019.
In May 2006, Pope Benedict named Cardinal Dziwisz to be a member of the Congregation for Catholic Education and the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.
[edit] Views
[edit] The Passion of the Christ
Dziwisz himself became embroiled in controversy over his role in a papal endorsement of The Passion of the Christ.[8]
[edit] Information on cooperating clergy
Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz has forbidden a priest from revealing information on clerics cooperating with communist secret services.[9]
[edit] Funeral of Lech Kaczyński
In April 2010, Dziwisz decided that president Lech Kaczyński would be buried in the Wawel cathedral, a decision that led to protests throughout Poland. Dziwisz later claimed that the idea was that of Jarosław Kaczyński, not his own.[10]
[edit] Books
- A Life with Karol, Doubleday, 2008. ISBN 978-0385-52374-5
[edit] Bibliography of the Cardinal Dziwisz (in polish language)
- Kronika Parafii Raba Wyżna T. I, 1835 – 1993, oprac. M. Pietrzak, Kraków – Raba Wyżna 2011.
- T. Chmura, Z Raby Wyżnej przez Kraków na Watykan. Curriculum Vitae księdza biskupa Stanisława Dziwisza, [w:] „Analecta Cracoviesnia” XXX – XXXI 1998 – 1999, s. 9 – 22.
- Gmina Raba Wyżna, zebrał i oprac. E. Siarka, Kraków – Michałowice 2004.
[edit] Resources
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Stanisław Dziwisz |
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Stanislaw Cardinal Dziwisz". The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church. http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bdziwisz.html.
- ^ Israely, Jeff (2002-06-10). "The Man Behind the Pope". Time Magazine. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1002610,00.html.
- ^ a b c "KS. KARDYNAŁ STANISŁAW DZIWISZ". Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kraków. http://www.diecezja.pl/en/typography-mainmenu-33/ks-kardyna-stanisaw-dziwisz.
- ^ a b c d e f Dziwisz, Stanislaw (2008). A Life With Karol: My Forty-Year Friendship with the Man Who Became Pope. Doubleday.
- ^ a b c d "DZIWISZ, Stanisław". The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. http://www2.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios2006.htm#Dziwisz.
- ^ "DZIWISZ Card. Stanisław". Holy See. http://www.vatican.va/news_services/press/documentazione/documents/cardinali_biografie/cardinali_bio_dziwisz_s_en.html.
- ^ http://ncronline.org/news/accountability/money-paved-way-maciels-influence-vatican
- ^ The Passion of the Christ
- ^ Cardinal censures curious cleric
- ^ http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/Wiadomosci/1,80708,7777653,Kardynal_Dziwisz_o_pochowku_na_Wawelu__Wysluchalem.html
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Franciszek Macharski |
Archbishop of Kraków 2005–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Hyacinthe Thiandoum |
Cardinal-Priest of San Maria del Popolo 2006–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Jacques Maurice Faivre |
Titular Archbishop of San Leone 1998 - 2005 |
Succeeded by Víctor Manuel Ochoa Cadavid |
| Preceded by N/A |
Adjunct Prefect of the Prefecture of the Papal Household 1998 - 2005 |
Succeeded by N/A |
