Dec 2020
“Saint John Paul II & Polish Shrines and Saints” lecture by Dr. John Hittinger
Dr. John Hittinger, the Director of the St. John Paul II Institute at the University of St. Thomas conducts a lecture about “Saint John Paul II & Polish Shrines and Saints” as part of “Seekers and Sages” series for the UST alumni. He explains in detail the geopolitical situation of Poland during the life of Karol Wojtyła and his philosophy that was inspired by Polish saints. Later on, Dr. Hittinger briefly describes the life and deeds of Polish saints that influenced the life of our Polish Pope, such as St. Bishop Stanislaus Szczepanowski, St. Jadwiga the King of Poland, Oblate Augustine Kordecki, St. Raphael Kalinowski, St. Brother Albert Chmielowski, St. Edith Stein, St. Maximilian Kolbe and St. Faustina Kowalska. The presenter also elaborates about the famous Shrines of the Black Madonna from Częstochowa, the Lady of Divine Mercy from Vilnius, and the Jesus of Divine Mercy from Łagiewniki.
This interesting lecture is very helpful in understanding the moral values and spirit of the Polish nation and its struggle during difficult times in the past and contemporary history.
Dr. Piotr Przybylski, 1st Vice President of PACT, shares three Polish history lectures which he presented to the students of the John Paul II Institute of the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas USA in April 2020. The lectures describe the military conflicts of Poland with neighboring empires and show Polish contribution in the creation, support, and development of the United States of America. They encompass the period from the 1st Commonwealth in the early 17th century, through the Polish fight on independence during its 19th-century partitions and the 20th-century world wars to the fall of communism and 1st democratic elections in 1989. At the end of the second part, Prof. John Hittinger, Director of the John Paul II Institute, presents the philosophy of Karol Wojtyla and his influence on ending the Cold War when he was Pope John Paul II.
Dr Piotr Przybylski, I Wiceprezes Polsko-Amerykańskiej Rady Teksasu, przedstawia trzy wykłady z historii Polski, które w kwietniu 2020 r. wygłosił studentom Instytutu Jana Pawła II Uniwersytetu Św. Tomasza w Houston w Teksasie. Wykłady opisują konflikty zbrojne Polski z sąsiednimi mocarstwami, jak rόwnież ukazują polski wkład w tworzenie, wspieranie i rozwój Stanów Zjednoczonych Ameryki. Obejmują one okres od I Rzeczypospolitej początku XVII wieku, przez walkę o niepodległość Polski podczas zaborόw i wojny światowe XX wieku, aż po upadek komunizmu i pierwsze demokratyczne wybory w 1989 roku. Na zakonczenie drugiej prezentacji, prof. John Hittinger, dyrektor Instytutu Jana Pawła II, przedstawia filozofię Karola Wojtyły i wpływ na zakończenie zimnej wojny, jaki miał jako papież Jan Paweł II.
Enjoy these slides from Dr. Przybylski’s lecture:
Polish History Part I
Polish History Part II
Below are the full-length videos of Dr. Przybylski’s lectures.
They are best viewed in full screen.