This report from Vatican Radio:
Pope Francis today joined with the Church in Poland in marking the 1,050th anniversary of the “baptism of the nation.”
Speaking to Polish pilgrims during the Wednesday general audience, Pope Francis asked God to bless the Polish people both at home and abroad.
“Together with the pastors and faithful, I give thanks to God for this historic event, which over the centuries has formed the faith, the spirituality, and the culture of your country, in the community of peoples whom Christ has invited to participate in the mystery of His death and resurrection,” Pope Francis said.
“Give thanks to the Lord – according to the words of Saint John Paul II – for the gift of having been – over 1000 years ago – baptized in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit; to be baptized in the water which, through grace, perfects in us the image of the living God; the water which is a wave of eternity: a spring of water welling up to eternal life (Jn 4:14),” the Holy Father continued.
“I ask God that the present generation and future generations of Poles remain faithful to the grace of baptism, giving witness to the love of Christ and the Church,” Pope Francis said.
A joint session of both chambers of the Polish Parliament will meet in Poznań on Friday to mark the acceptance by Polish ruler Mieszko I of Christianity in 966, which is considered the foundational event of the nation.
