Stosunki Polski ze Stolicą Apostolską i kwestia konkordatu z 1993 roku (prezentacja książki)

Abstract

The relations between Poland and the Holy See and the question of the concordat of 1993. A presentation of a book “The Concordat between the Holy See and the Republic of Poland 1993/1998”

During the course of John Paul II’s pontificate the moral authority of the Holy See considerably increased in the world, the consequence of which was the considerable development of diplomatic relations with the Vatican. In 1918 Poland began to regulate the relations with the Holy See through concordats. Unfortunately, soon after the Second World War there began a period of unfriendly and frequently hostile policy of the authorities toward the Church. With the passing of years the authorities of the People’s Republic of Poland arrived at a conclusion that the Catholic faith in Poland is a force to be reckoned with. Therefore the representatives of state authorities conducted talks with the Vatican, and the representatives of the Holy See made contacts with the authorities of the Polish Bishops’ Conference and the Office of Religious Denominations. The emergence of the social movement known as “Solidarność” [Solidarity] and a whole array of phenomena which took place in the 1980s brought about the change of the system in our Fatherland and facilitated the construction of a democratic state. This in turn brought about the establishment of diplomatic relations with the Holy See, the appointment of the ambassador of Poland at the Holy See and the appointment of the apostolic nuntio in Poland. On 3 April 1993 negotiations began about the elaboration and arrangement of the text of the concordat. The text that was agreed upon was accepted by the Council of Ministers and the Holy See, and it was signed on 28 July 1993. The ratification and the exchange of ratification documents took place in 1998. The principal aim of Archbishop Kowalczyk’s book is not to conduct an exegesis of the content of specific paragraphs of the concordat (this issue is treated in other publications), but to show the reader the way both entities of international law went through negotiations which lead them to the formulation of the specific paragraphs of this agreement.