Signs of the times for the Church in Poland at the beginning of the 21st century
Krzysztof Pawlina
Akademia Katolicka w Warszawie, Polska (Poland)
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3855-6720
Abstract
Ecclesia semper reformanda est – the Church is always in need of reform. Interpreting the signs of the times becomes a condition for the renewal of the Church. One of these signs is the challenge with the language of faith's proclamation, which has lost its ability to speak to people. Therefore, collaboration between faith and culture is necessary. Culture becomes a vessel for what is transcendent. Another sign of the times is the overactivity in pastoral ministry, accompanied by a decline in prayer. The expansion of administration and bureaucracy flattens the essence of the Church. Pope Benedict XVI seemed to see the strength of the Church's influence elsewhere—not solely in the quantity of pastoral initiatives or administrative structures. According to the Pope, avoiding activism means preserving consideration, perspective, insight, profound reflection, and time for interior communion with God, so that matters may be pondered, discerned, and resolved with and through Him. From the depths of being, Christ, who comes, can be translated in a manner that makes Him present within the horizon of a secularized world. In the context of the signs of the times, the family emerges as another sphere requiring strengthening, even the restoration of its identity. The traditional model of the family is being questioned. The mere desire of people to be together does not equate to a sacramental union. Marriage and family are no longer understood as divine institutions. The family is being reduced to a purely horizontal dimension. Thus, to strengthen the family, it is insufficient to merely affirm that it is the basic unit of society. God Himself is the Creator of marriage. Therefore, if we seek to repair or build, we must not forget the foundations.
Keywords:
Culture, Family, Church, Signs of the TimesReferences
Dąbrowska, J. (2023). Czy Kościół w końcu zejdzie się ze sztuką współczesną? Pobrano z: https://klubjagiellonski.pl/2023/01/29/czy-kosciol-w-koncu-zejdzie-sie-ze-sztuka-wspolczesna/ (24.01.2025).
Google Scholar
Franciszek. (2013). Otworzyli drzwi Kościoła na przyszłość i zachowali Tradycję. Gość Niedzielny, 30 lipca.
Google Scholar
Główny Urząd Statystyczny. (2024). Sytuacja demograficzna Polski do 2023. Warszawa: Główny Urząd Statystyczny.
Google Scholar
Grzybowski, J. (2022). Potęga kultury. Kielce: Wydawnictwo „Jedność”.
Google Scholar
Hodge, S. (2017). Krótka historia sztuki. Warszawa: Alma-Press.
Google Scholar
Jan XXIII. (1963). Pacem in terris. Watykan.
Google Scholar
Kowalczyk, S. (2005). Filozofia kultury. Lublin: Wydawnictwo KUL.
Google Scholar
Mierzwiński, B. (2001). Specyfika polskich znaków czasu. [W:] J. Ostrowski (red.), Duszpasterstwo a wyzwania XXI wieku (s. 63–94). Kielce.
Google Scholar
Nowy prefekt Kongregacji ds. Duchowieństwa: Odnowa Kościoła przyjdzie przez świętość kapłanów. (2021). Pobrano z: https://pch24.pl/nowy-prefekt-kongregacji-ds-duchowienstwa-odnowa-kosciola-przyjdzie-przez-swietosc-kaplanow/ (23.01.2025).
Google Scholar
Pawlina, K. (2002). Kandydaci do kapłaństwa trzeciego tysiąclecia. Warszawa: Wydaw. Sióstr Loretanek.
Google Scholar
Pawlina, K. (2019). Pokolenie polskich milenialsów. Studium socjologiczno-pastoralne. Verbum Vitae, 35: 357–384.
Google Scholar
Pawlina, K. (2020). Powołania kapłańskie AD 2020. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Collegium Bobolanum.
Google Scholar
Pawlina, K. (2023). Kościół w czasach turbulencji. Referat na sympozjum „Duchowe zmagania Ignacego Loyoli” – tekst w posiadaniu autora.
Google Scholar
Seewald, P. (2016). Benedykt XVI – Ostatnie rozmowy. Rzym.
Google Scholar
Sobór Watykański II. (1967). Gaudium et spes. W: Konstytucje, dekrety, deklaracje (s. 537–618). Warszawa: Pallottinum.
Google Scholar
Stone, I. (2015). Pasje utajone. Warszawa: Muza.
Google Scholar
Authors
Krzysztof PawlinaAkademia Katolicka w Warszawie, Polska Poland
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3855-6720
Rev. Prof. Dr. habil. Krzysztof Pawlina, PhD is a theologian, full professor and rector of the Catholic Academy in Warsaw (since 2020), chairman of the College of Deans of Faculties of Theology (since 2016), secretary of the Scientific Council of the Polish Bishops' Conference (since 2017), former chairman of the Committee of Theological Sciences of the Polish Academy of Sciences (2020-2024), and currently deputy chairman of the same committee (since 2024) (e-mail: kpawlina@wmsd.mkw.pl).
Statistics
Abstract views: 5PDF downloads: 3
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Krzysztof Pawlina
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
