2. Eric, Jerzy and William
Eric Liddell
Eric Henry Liddell was born in Tientsin, China, on January 16, 1902, to James Dunlop Liddell and Mary Reddin. His original name of Henry Eric Liddell was rejected because of what the first letter of each name put together would represent. Even then, apparently acronyms were around as were horrible spellers. More important, Eric‟s mom and dad were quite religious, initiating their missionary career in China at the turn of the twentieth century. Eric‟s older brother Robert was born in Shanghai two years before. Their sister Jenny was born in China in October 1903. The three children were the only ones in Siaochang who weren't Chinese.
The family traveled to Southampton, England, in early 1907 just as Eric was getting over a case of dysentery. Before they left, a missionary friend took note of the young lad and mentioned, that boy will never be able to run again. Robert and Eric were enrolled in the missionary school in the Blackheath section of England at Eltham College. The rest of the family had gone back to China. The pair played rugger, which most of us know as rugby. Eric defied the guy who said he would never run again.
In China, the government was overthrown as Sun Yat-sen replaced empress Tz‟u-hsi. In 1914, Mary, Jenny and Ernest, who was born two years before in China, arrived in London around the same time as World War I. Jenny began attending school at Walthamstow, but then left for school in China probably due to the war. Before she left, Eric mentioned that his schoolwork wasn't that great, but he could run.
At Eltham, Rob was a runner, too. For 1918, he and Eric finished in the top two spots in final track events: quarter mile, hurdle race, 100 yards, cross country, high jump, long jump. Rob went on to Edinburgh University while Eric advanced as more of a leader: school prefect, cricket and rugby captains. He ran the 100- yard dash in 10.2 seconds, a record for him and one that stood at the school for 80 years. He also captured the Senior Track Athletics Championship in 1919, which his brother had done a year before. He also impressed the school with his humility and character. He began going to Bible study classes at Eltham and started visiting the sick at the medical mission in Islington. Almost a year passed without Eric doing any running but he set his mind on following A. P. Cullen, a teacher at Eltham, to China as a teacher in Tientsin. Soon, he started running again. He joined Rob at Edinburgh University.
On June 18, at the Scottish Inter-Varsity Sports meet, he won both the 100-yard and 220-yard dashes and repeated the feat at Hampden Park in Glasgow at the Scottish Amateur Athletics Association Championship, posting a 22.6 second time in the 220- yard event, a Scottish AAA record. Eric would repeat his winning ways numerous times in the days that followed, even in 440-yard races. Rob was at medical school at Edinburgh University and he and Eric lived in the Edinburgh Medical Missionary Hostel in a really happy setting. Rob was a member of the Glasgow Students‟ Evangelical Union (GSEU) when David P. Thompson, a student from Glasgow, was searching for a speaker. Aware that Eric had never done that before, he asked him if he could say a few words about his faith. Eric agreed.
On April 6, 1923, he found that God had granted him a gift, besides that of running. Not that much of a speaker, he still inspired listeners and gained their attention. A week later, he spoke to 600 students and soon he joined the GSEU. Eventually he would speak to thousands who listened to the famous athlete and his words of faith. Because of his success on the track, Eric had his thoughts on the 1924 Olympics in Paris. He had one test that he needed to succeed at, though.
Winning a 440 race in the summer of 1923 would result in his being on the team from Great Britain. The event started and within seconds J. J. Gillies sent him flying, not only down, but also away from the track. It may have been accidental, but I doubt it. Two officials yelled out, Get up, get up! Eric did, needing a great effort to catch up to the other runners. Slowly he passed the second last one, and then the person ahead of him. His arms were like windmills and his fists punched the air. He lifted his legs high and soon he was ten yards away from Gillies. The crowd was cheering, even those who weren't Scots. He gave it all he had. He passed J. J. and won the race. He would be going to Paris.
When the star runner found out that the heats for the 100- meter race were to be held on a Sunday, he said, I’m not running, in order to keep the Sabbath holy as the fourth commandment instructs. Eric was entered in the 200- and 400-meter events, but neither the 4 x 100 nor 4 x 400 relays because both heats were also on a Sunday. In the semifinal 200-meter race, Charley Paddock finished first, edging Eric by a tenth of a second and the latter wondered if he had enough strength to repeat his effort in the final. Eric didn't begin well and didn't finish in first. He managed to be the first Scot to ever win a medal in the Olympics, doing so by ending up in third place and winning the bronze. The next day was the 400-meter run.
Six runners qualified for the 400-meter event: two Americans, Horatio Fitch and J. C. Taylor; Canadian D. M. Johnson; Joseph Imbach from Switzerland; Gary Butler from Great Britain; Eric Liddell. Liddell was in the sixth lane. He was tired and Fitch had set an Olympic record with a 47.8 second run. When the race began, Eric started out in a sprint, leading the way. Fitch was right behind him and as they neared the finish line, Eric gave it all he had. He was the winner setting a record at 47.6 seconds. Eric wasn't proud of himself; he was proud of his country.
When Eric graduated on July 17 1924, his family wasn't in attendance but it was made up of Scots, professors, classmates and dignitaries. When the name Eric Henry Liddell was announced, the crowd cheered and kept it up until vice-chancellor Sir Alfred Ewing pleaded for calm. Speaking to Eric, Sir Alfred said, you have shown that none can pass you but the examiner! Laughter and more cheering followed and Ewing asked for silence once more. When the ceremony ended, he was carried out on the shoulders of students to a thanksgiving service. There he was beseeched to say a few words. He told of the words found over the gate of the University of Pennsylvania: In the dust of defeat as well as in the laurels of victory there is glory to be found if one has done his best.
Before the Olympics, Eric had his mind set on missionary work in China, but decided to spend a year at the Scottish Congregational College in Edinburgh first. That year, Annie Buchan, a nurse from Peterhead decided to be a Chinese missionary after observing Eric. Also inspired was Peter Marshall who came to America and eventually became a well-respected pastor, serving as U. S. Senate chaplain. Elsa McKechnie was only fourteen, but admired him and hoped to meet him, which she did when he visited the McKechnie home for tea. During the year Eric appeared at numerous speaking events. He also competed at track and continued his winning ways.
Traveling east, Eric took a ferry from England to France where he boarded the Trans-Siberian Railway for his 5,000-mile trip to Tientsin. Family members had been on long journeys before and that would continue. As usual, China was unstable. On arrival, Eric would see his family, do some preaching, meet some of the teachers from the Anglo-Chinese College and even relax at the gulf. Natives considered visitors to their land foreign devils, whether missionaries or traders.
Eric was appointed Sunday school superintendent at his father‟s church. One morning in 1929, while at the church, a young woman approached him, saying: Hello, Eric. You don’t remember me, do you? It was Florence MacKenzie, who he had met four years before when she was a fourteen-year old. She was there for work at the mission. She had loved him for a few years. It wasn't long before they were courting, despite their ten-year age difference. Soon Eric asked her to marry him and she agreed. They were engaged a few months after that. Like his parents, it would be a long engagement.
MacKenzie traveled to Toronto with her sister for nursing studies while Eric made his way to Great Britain. He preached and had other speaking gigs. He visited his parents and Ernest, who was in a business college in Edinburgh. Jenny was engaged to Dr. Charles Somerville with a wedding coming in the spring. On June 22, 1932, Liddell was ordained at the Scottish Congregational College. He needed to return to Tientsin. Meanwhile, Japan captured Manchuria and next was an attack on Shanghai.
He had been without Florence for a long time but was managing with all his duties. One day he read the scripture passage, lo, I am with you always and he sensed the presence of his dad. The next day he heard, by way of a telegram, that James had died peacefully in Drymen, Scotland. He couldn‟t go back for the funeral or to his family. A short time afterwards, Eric received a letter from his dad when the elder confirmed that the lad was fulfilling God‟s mission. The same day of the letter, Florence passed her exams. Two months later, she and her mother returned to China. On March 27, 1934, Florence and Eric were wed in Union Church. A year and a few months later, Florence gave birth to a little girl, whom they named Patricia.
The country was at war and Siaochang was not a safe place to be. Eric was needed there so he considered going. Florence was to remain in Tientsin. Eric left for Siaochang in September 1936. There he witnessed the military presence, disease, hunger and drought. Despite this, he felt that this is where God was calling him to be. He loved what he was doing, preaching and serving the people. This he did while hearing exploding shells and gunfire. Florence was in Tientsin with Patricia and the new baby, Heather.
One night no one showed up for the service at the church.
There was a noise outside, which made the missionaries uneasy, but it was an opium addict, who fell down on his knees. Many were surprised because they thought he was in prison. He had prayed and had been set free, though. With this congregation for Eric to preach to, the service began. Most of the time, the missionaries faced many disappointments, realizing that there wasn't much they could do. Eric took a short break and went to his family, but then returned to the war zone.
The hospital became known as a rescue mission. No one was refused help, whether bandit, friend, foe, Chinese or Japanese. Besides giving physical treatments, Eric also applied spiritual lessons. Annie Buchan created a baby clinic in order to fight against the rising infant mortality rate. A milk substitute, soya- bean milk, was shown to make a difference in saving children while not that costly.
In the summer of 1939, he returned to Tientsin for some more time off. Japan was in charge of the area, having pushed heroin as well as cheap goods on the Chinese. Before long, the Liddell family would sail across the Pacific to get away from the strife. Their destination was Hawaii, to be followed by Vancouver and finally Toronto. Florence and the girls stayed in Toronto with her relatives and Eric headed for Scotland, where he would visit his mom, Jenny, Charles and Ernest. World War II was starting in Europe. In early 1940, Florence, Patricia and Heather arrived in Scotland.
They returned to China later that year. In Siaochang the Chinese were forced to demolish their own villages and build roads for the Japanese. Casualties kept coming to the hospital, more than before. Food and supplies were scarce. Eric continued preaching and doing all he could to help. In early 1941, two weeks notice was offered to the missionaries for them to depart. Florence soon discovered she was pregnant and she and the girls departed for Canada, once more. Maureen was born that September.
Eric and others were sent to the internment camp at Weihsien. At first it was very difficult, but the captives made the best of the situation, even making it somewhat civilized and hospitable. Unfortunately, Eric‟s health suffered even as he inspired others. He was diagnosed with malnutrition, sinusitis and influenza. He exhibited characteristics of a neurological problem, with his right leg paralyzed, but somehow, he rallied. On February 21, he returned to the hospital and then to the church. Coughing and choking at the same time, he was taken to the hospital, where he proceeded into a convulsion, followed by a coma. He died that day and was finally entered into the presence of God.
In 1980, Eric was honored with the Eric Liddell Centre in Edinburgh as an inspiring hero for his life as a Christian. A memorial headstone was placed on his grave in Weihsien in 1991 with the words, they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary. The United States Episcopal Church celebrates a feast day in Liddell‟s honor on February 22.
Jerzy Popiełuszko
Władysław and Marianna Kalinowska Popiełuszko were the parents of five children in the farm town of Okopy in Poland. Jazdia was the first but died on Christmas Eve before her second birthday. The second child was Teresa and the first son was Jozef, who was destined to take over the farm for his father. Marianna was pregnant for the fourth time in early 1947 when monks arrived and mentioned a mission of one week at Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Suchowola. She attended every evening, and though the Nazis were gone, matters appeared grimmer. She prayed the rosary, promising God that one of her children would be a priest. The child born on September 14, 1947, was sickly and named Alfons after his uncle. He did survive, wasn't meant to be a farmer and chose books over games. Stanislaw followed as the fifth child. They all helped out on the farm.
From the age of seven, Alfons served the Mass at Sts. Peter and Paul at 6:30 am. He didn't like the name so he told others to call him Alek. Some called him Alexander and he never complained. Just after he started school, the students were to be immunized against smallpox. The sight of the needle resulted in crying by the children but he got the shot without any fuss. A few months after that Alfons had to use a nail for chestnut carving. He was careless and it came out the other side of his hand. The blood didn't bother him but his teacher almost passed out. She took him to the nurse where the nail was pulled out by a doctor, whom he thanked.
In school, Alfons wasn't popular but got along with everyone. The books he read were treatises on Maximilian Kolbe, lives of the saints, sermons and other religious matter. Alek was impressed by the life of Kolbe. In 1964, he headed out to Niepokalanov, the site of a friar community, where he saw the friary and then returned home. He also visited the seminary of St. John the Baptist in Warsaw, applying for admission in a year. He was accepted there in 1965. Marianna was happy with his decision and prayed that God would protect him and keep him from harm.
In Warsaw, Alfons discovered that his name was slang for a pimp. He entered the seminary of St. John the Baptist in June 1965. Built in the 1700s by the Carmelites, it was dark and airless, but untouched by the Nazi regime. It didn't take long before the lad seriously considered abandoning his moniker, replacing it with Jerzy. Students may have been fortunate to be in a room with only one other person, but most likely each had a bed with a dozen or more seminarians. A new term brought housing lotteries and someone who had two roommates before could wind up with nineteen. Jerzy accepted it all without complaining.
In late 1956, Władysław Gomułka led the government and considered seminaries as places of business, so taxing them was in order. His cronies weren't fond of the church and seminarians had little meat and few vegetables, most nourishment coming from the families of the students. Those at St. John the Baptist had to procure odd jobs such as office cleaners and road sweepers. This was in addition to the required studies, writing and delivering sermons to colleagues. Popiełuszko was familiar with double duties since he had managed them at home.
As far as being at the top of the class in studies, Jerzy didn't stand out but made up for it with his enthusiasm and reverence for God as well as country. As before, his health was not much different from what it had been and he was small of stature. Stanislaw Malkowski also attended the seminary and viewed Popiełuszko as friendly, sincere, open but ordinary, which was expected because of his peasant background. A couple decades later, Stanislaw and Jerzy would be united in their opposition to Communism.
Before being at the seminary for a year, Popiełuszko was drafted into the army. No breaks were given to the Church. With those studying for the priesthood at drill, the government used the time to discourage the young men from continuing their vocations. They also set out to guarantee that seminarians wouldn't spread the Word of God to the other recruits. Having a single seminarian in a barracks was one solution, but it failed at times because the men from St. John fostered good relations with the others, leading them in Bible readings and prayers. There were classes in catechism, too. On the other hand, one seminarian was told, Remember, father, your collar won’t protect you here. This admonition didn't affect Jerzy, whose physical courage even then would become a part of him in the 1980s.
Jerzy was a peace loving person and he saw the ugly side of Communism when he had an assignment in northern Poland in the city of Bartoszyce. From then on he was an opponent of the system and spoke out against oppression. Since his first Holy Communion, Popiełuszko wore a scapular medal proclaiming his devotion to the Blessed Mother. A sergeant inquired as to what he had on his neck. Jerzy told him and the sergeant demanded that he remove it but Popiełuszko refused. Defeated, the sergeant said, get out of here immediately, Popiełuszko. Jerzy stood out in the rain for a few hours because of the incident, but his scapular was still around his neck.
The army didn't help Jerzy‟s health, as he went through dizzy spells. After entering the hospital, he was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. Part of his thyroid was removed, but somehow it gave him strength. With it, he passed his finals and was ordained on May 28, 1972, in St. John‟s Cathedral. He was joined by over twenty-nine other seminarians who became priests that day, listening to the sermon of Cardinal Wyszynski. They were about to begin doing their work.
Jerzy was assigned to Holy Trinity in Zabki, but Father Tadeusz Karolak and Popiełuszko had clashes. In the summer of 1975, he was transferred to Mother of God, Queen of Poland, in Anin, not far from Warsaw. Here, he didn't fit in either and less than three years later he found himself at Infant of Jesus Church in Zoliborz. Within months, he collapsed while saying Mass and soon went to a parish with less stress, St. Anna, an academic church. He changed it into a gathering place for young people. In another move for his health, the curia of Warsaw brought him to St. Stanislaw Kostka in May 1980, which was usually assigned to clergy when they were about to retire. That‟s one thing he didn't do. In a few months, Solidarity would embrace the country.
The spelling of the organization in Polish is Solidarność, which arrived on August 31, 1980. The Communist authority in the country weren't pleased with the Church in Poland and certainly not with Pope John Paul II, the first Polish pope. Even before being named pope, Karol Wojtyla wrote a poem that Jerzy quoted about the worker. It asked, what makes you think that man can tip the balance on the scales of the world? The Polish Union, Solidarity, answered the question, insisting man could, provided there was spiritual guidance. At first, Solidarity had a membership of about ten million and would only grow larger as the Church and the people all embraced it. In the early twenty-first century, membership still numbered in the hundreds of thousands. Needless to say, this activism in the 1980s didn't sit well with the commies.
A better name couldn‟t have been picked for the group. In August 1980, the union, led by Lech Walesa, struck on behalf of the workers in Gdansk. The government appealed to patriotism with a hint of change along with some repression. The Church supported the union, advocating the rights of the laborer, including that of worship, truth, private property, bread and a fair wage. Protests were going on in the Silesian coal mines and at the Warsaw steelworks, Huta Warszawa. Popiełuszko was part of the movement, even if he only preached peace in St. Stanislaw Kostka.
Father Henryk Jankowski celebrated Mass for the workers at Gdansk. Another priest was sought to do the same at Huta Warszawa. Most refused to go there, but Jerzy became the priest of Solidarność. He went to the foundry having his doubts about being accepted. He shouldn‟t have worried as he was greeted by smiling, crying and cheering people. He thought it was for him but then realized it was for the Church. It was for both as he became the first priest entering through the front gate and the first to say Mass at Huta Warszawa.
He knew somewhat of the problems the workers were experiencing, having heard their confessions. The constantly changing work shifts of the men were wrecking havoc on marriages, not to mention health problems. The community was demoralized and fragmented. He was really needed there. He had much to do, including comforting the families and embracing them with spirituality. He also had to teach them exactly what Christ had taught regarding social justice.
Popiełuszko was there for the strikers as well. He joined the medical academies when they protested for a higher education bill. Students were as active in the movement as others, posing red banners in the familiar Solidarity script. Just to be in the presence of the strikers was enough, as Karol Szadurski explained:
During a strike every boy carries some fear in him because nobody knows how it will end. But when one finds out that a priest has come – as I found out that he had arrived in the Huta – then one sees that one has nothing to fear, that one is on a higher moral plane.
The movement was gaining too much power, which the authorities couldn‟t handle. Spying was happening and soldiers appeared at the churches. Eventually, Jaruzelski suspended Solidarność. This was done to restore order even though matters weren't in disorder. The commies were losing control as workers, religious and all the people were being watched. Reform in Poland was happening, but the higher ups wanted no part of it.
On December 13, 1982, a bomb was tossed into Jerzy‟s tiny apartment, tied to a brick. It was meant for him, but fortunately no one was hurt. He soon had people guarding him at all hours. The Secret Police tried various tactics. Some police agent was chased away from Popiełuszko‟s car by his defenders. At first Jerzy thought he wasn't under watch, but he soon knew that he was being targeted. Even preaching at Mass wasn't safe. The secret police tried various tactics, including one involving vodka that would disgrace him and force him to leave St. Stanislaw. That didn't work. Another that failed was planting Solidarity pamphlets and munitions in his apartment. There were other attempts on his life.
In Okopy, Jerzy‟s mom and dad turned on the news on Octber 20, 1984. The night before, Marianna had difficulty falling asleep. She had a dream that one of her sons was being maimed and tortured. The youngest, Stanislaw, was sleeping at home while Jozef was in West Germany on business, soon to return to Poland. Keeping track of the other son, the priest, was an impossible task.
Popiełuszko died on October 19, 1984, but it was not related to his run-down condition or other health problems. He was kidnapped and cruelly, brutally murdered. He was with his driver, who was also hurt but somehow managed to get away. Despite what happened to him, Jerzy also tried to flee, but was beaten and dumped in the Reservoir near the Vistula River.
According to Father Andrzej Przekazinski:
Solidarity helped Jerzy find those people who made him feel needed, who accepted him and his ideas, and who became his greatest friends. Even today we can see how those people loved him. It was a genuine friendship and love for him. He and they were attracted to each other. Jerzy was not just a passive member of Solidarity, he was one of the spiritual founders of the movement.
There wasn't a policeman in sight at Jerzy‟s funeral, but 400,000 people, the largest gathering in Poland since John Paul II‟s last visit. Addressing the mourners, Lech Walesa said, rest in peace. Solidarity is alive because you have given your life for it.
Over the years, Poland has been taken over by various countries from all directions. Though it‟s fiction, James Michener‟s book, Poland: A Novel, treats of much of the strife, historically. The events of late 1984 seemed to repeat what had been going on for years. Solidarity wasn't dead, though. In 1989 agreement between the government and Solidarity members led to semi-free elections in Poland.
In Popiełuszko‟s memory, Andrezej Panufnik composed the Bassoon Concerto in 1985. That same year the 1985 French film, To Kill a Priest, based on Jerzy‟s life came out and in October 1985, the documentary drama The Deliberate Death of a Polish Priest was showcased at the Almeida Theatre in London. Two other movies, Popiełuszko and Jerzy Popiełuszko: Messenger of the Truth came out in 2009 and 2013 respectively. You can read more in The Priest And The Policeman: The Courageous Life And Cruel Murder Of Father Jerzy Popiełuszko, the 1987 book by John Moody and Roger Boyes. There are monuments to him in Chicago next to St. Hyacinth Basilica and near St. Hedwig Church in Trenton, New Jersey. You can find a part of McCarren Park in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, named after him and Popiełuszko Court in Hartford, Connecticut. Popiełuszko was beautified on June 6, 2010 in Warsaw, with Marianna present.
William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce was born in Hull on the coast of Great Britain on August 24, 1759, to merchant Robert Wilberforce and Elizabeth Bird. He was their only son and the family was rich, including his grandfather William who prospered in the maritime trade, even being mayor of Hull. As you might guess, England may have been Christian, but most of the people there were so in name only. The Wilberforces attended church, but weren't practicing Christians and classified those who took religion seriously as either Methodists or enthusiasts.
Called Billy when he was young, his father died before his tenth birthday and Elizabeth, who was sick and didn't think she‟d survive, sent him off to live with his aunt Hannah and her husband at Wimbledon. Had Elizabeth known that they were devoted Methodists, Billy would have stayed with his grandparents. The lad enjoyed his time with his aunt, uncle and their frie