A Polish bishop urges Poles around the world to cherish their national heritage.
“We want to realize that we are a community, that we are one family, that we remember ourselves, and that we are vigilant not to diminish the heritage we share, the wealth we have received from previous generations,” said Bishop Wiesław Lechowicz, Delegate of the Polish Episcopal Conference for the Pastoral Care of Polish Emigration, on the occasion of the Day of the Polish Diaspora and Poles Abroad, celebrated on May 2.
Bishop Lechowicz recalled that May 2 is connected with May 3, when the Feast of Our Lady, Queen of Poland is celebrated and the Day of Prayers for Polish emigration falls.
“Everyone knows the words of the Jasna Góra Appeal: ‘Mary, Queen of Poland, I am with you, I remember, I keep watch.’ I think that these words also contain the meaning of celebrating these days, this memory of the Polish diaspora and Poles abroad. We want to realize that we are a community, that we are one family, that we remember ourselves, and that we are vigilant not to diminish the inheritance we share, the wealth we have received from previous generations,” the bishop emphasized.
Bishop Lechowicz emphasized that in these words – I am, I remember, I keep watch – “there is also a task for those who left our country to confirm with their attitude, behavior, and cooperation that they are Poles, that they remember about their heritage, their history, and they are vigilant not only to preserve them but also to multiply them ”.
There are roughly 20,000,000 people of Polish ancestry living outside Poland, making the Polish diaspora one of the largest in the world and one of the most widely dispersed. Reasons for the displacement include border shifts, forced expulsions, resettlement by voluntary and forced exile, and political or economic emigration.
Substantial populations of Polish ancestry can be found in their native home region of Central Europe and in many other European countries as well as in the Americas, Australasia, and South Africa. There are also smaller Polish communities in most countries of Asia and Africa.
