On January 8, 1894, in the Kingdom of Poland, then a part of the Russian Empire, Raymund Kolbe, who would later become St. Maximilian Kolbe, was born. During World War II, he was a Polish Conventual Franciscan friar who died as a martyr in the Auschwitz concentration camp.
Maximilian Kolbe, often known as the Apostle of Consecration to Mary, was a prominent proponent of the Immaculate Virgin Mary. A vision he had of the Virgin Mary when he was 12 years old had a significant impact on most of his life.
"That night I asked the Mother of God what was to become of me. Then she came to me holding two crowns, one white, the other red. She asked me if I was willing to accept either of these crowns. The white one meant that I should persevere in purity, and the red that I should become a martyr. I said that I would accept them both."
Kolbe and his older brother Francis joined the Conventual Franciscans a year after Kolbe's vision. After being permitted to enter the novitiate in 1910, Kolbe was given the religious name Maximilian, and in 1911, he made his first vows.
Kolbe graduated with a degree in philosophy from the Pontifical Gregorian University at the age of 21. By the time he was 28, he would also have a Ph.D. in theology.
The Militia Immaculata (Army of the Immaculate One) was founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe after he saw protests against Popes St. Pius X and Benedict XV. He intended to use Mary's intercession to work for the conversion of sinners and opponents of the Church, specifically the Freemasons.
He received his priestly ordination in 1918 and proceeded to advocate for Mary in all of Poland. Over the following years, Kolbe started publishing. He established the "Rycerz Niepokalanej" (Knight of the Immaculate) monthly journal. Along with starting a new Conventual Franciscan monastery and running a religious printing press, he also established Niepokalanow, which grew to be a significant center for religious publication.
Kolbe also established monasteries in India and Japan. The Japanese monastery continues to play a significant role in the Japanese Roman Catholic Church even today.
Kolbe had to leave for Poland in 1936 due to ill health, and when Germany invaded in World War II, he was one of just two brothers left in the monastery. He established a makeshift hospital to provide care for the sick. Kolbe was imprisoned after his town was taken, but he was freed three months later.
Kolbe continued to labor in his monastery, offering refuge to refugees, including hiding 2,000 Jews from German persecution. Kolbe refused to sign a document that would have acknowledged him as a German citizen with German lineage. Kolbe's monastery once more served as a publishing business and produced numerous anti-Nazi German publications after obtaining authorization to continue his religious publishing.
The monastery was shut down on February 17, 1941, and Kolbe was detained by the German Gestapo and transferred to the Pawiak prison. He was sent to Auschwitz three months later.
Kolbe, who never gave up his priesthood, endured a great deal of abuse. Men were picked to starve to death during the end of their second month in Auschwitz in order to deter escape attempts. Kolbe offered to step in for the man with a family even though he was not selected.
Kolbe reportedly led the captives in prayer to Our Lady during his final days and maintained his composure. After two weeks of dehydration and malnutrition, he was the only member of the gang to still be alive. He received a fatal shot of carbolic acid from the guards. According to the legends, he raised his left arm and patiently awaited his demise.
On August 15, which also happened to be the Assumption of Mary feast day, St. Maximilian Kolbe's remains were cremated after he passed away on August 14.
Kolbe, who was acknowledged as the Servant of God, was canonized on October 10, 1982, by Pope John Paul II after being beatified as a "Confessor of the Faith" by Pope Paul VI on October 17, 1971. Kolbe was dubbed a martyr by Pope John Paul II rather than a confessor.
Kolbe is frequently pictured injecting a needle into an arm while wearing jail garb. His feast day is observed on August 14 and he is revered as the patron saint of pro-life movements, families, prisoners, and drug users.
Other Saints of the Day
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Saint Werenfrid
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