A Living Rosary Crusade in a Death Camp

In 6th Grade at the now closed Holy Trinity RC Parish in Niagara Falls, NY, the principal asked me to be an “Our Father” for a Living Rosary at the Fatima Shrine in Lewiston, NY. My parents, considering it an honor, were very happy to participate. They even changed prior plans.

That October Sunday afternoon, I dressed, as instructed, in school clothes: slacks, shiny black shoes, long-sleeve white shirt, and “HTS”, Holy Trinity School tie. My father drove Mama, Ciocia, and myself in his Buick Skylark to the local shrine, or “Outdoor Cathedral.”  [FYI This WNY shrine long-preceded the now defunct, TV-evangelist’s statue-meditation garden of the Crystal Cathedral across from Disneyworld California. In 2011, the Catholic diocese bought the closed media complex for their cathedral (!)]

On arriving we encountered an immense mass of youth and parents from all Niagara County Catholic Schools. I spotted our principal, Sr Daniel, FSSJ, with a bevy of 10 girl-classmates. Each girl had a white rose. Sister gave me a red one.

We were led to our “decade-place” around the immense Rosary pool in front of the globe-basilica, each standing near a huge lantern-bead.  After each “Hail Mary” a girl passed her flower to the right.  During the “Our Father,” a fragrant bouquet of ten roses landed my hands. Adding my red rose, I proceeded to the life-sized Crucifix at the head of the heart-shaped pool. Placing our school’s floral prayers in one of six vases around the Cross, I bowed and returned to my spot.

Later, in college at the PolAm seminary in Michigan, evening vigil lights replaced roses. A flame passed among person-beads. Brilliant prayer-light surrounded the campus square. As a priest, I experienced similar memorable Living Rosaries.

That’s what I thought a Living Rosary was, at least until I met Dr Eileen Lyon, Professor of Modern History at Fredonia State University.  She revealed her unique research on prisoners of the heaviest, labor-quarry, German death camp in Gusen, Austria. On witnessing the brutal death of a new, priest-prisoner, the men of the camp secretly designed an unimaginable Living Rosary crusade.

Camp prisoners were far from country bumpkins. They were professionals, international lawyers, principals, priests, police, some athletes from the 1936 Olympics. Hitler sought to eliminate all Polish professionals and leaders. “Sub-human” Poles, “taught only to count to seven,” were his slave labor force. My uncle Czesław, a WWII elementary school boy said, “There was nothing beyond seventh grade for Poles.” Nazis wanted hard-working, dumb Poles. Resistors were shot. See pic above: prisoners tied to quarry rail car pulling rocks out of the earth.

A series of brutal deaths dealt out by Nazi butchers gave birth to almost 200 clandestine cubes, turning Gusen into an exceptional prayer camp. The last killings involved US pilots. St Casimir’s trustee, Ron Stachura, has been recreating replicas of these cubes, with most astonishing contents. Pix below.

Until Dr Lyon, I never heard of a Living Rosary in a Death Camp. Personally, this bead-cube Living Rosary crown is deeply inspiring, and most unique. Participating prisoners risked their lives daily.

  

Their Rosary was divided in secrecy. They united in resilient hope, crowing their Queen each day with beads of prayer. True knights, they defeated their captors in a tough spiritual battle. Learn about them, Saturday, Oct 5, 2019, 9:30am-2pm at St Casimir Social Hall 1833 Clinton St, Buffalo 14206 at "Crowns of Resilient Hope".

Upset about abusing power and people in the RC Diocese? Hear how these practicing Catholic men, survived trauma. Worked as beasts of burden, they shared a daily Living Rosary. If this doesn’t move you, your heart is as hard as the granite they quarried.

I will discuss how Polish knights and kings crowned their scarred Queen. Discover how to live the Rosary in your family, through October and beyond. Bring a teenager or 20something, who has everything, even more than they need. They often lack inspiration, hope, and meaning in life. And…I don’t think the Bills are playing that Saturday morning.