On September 26-27, 2025, the 6th Annual Ecce Homo Saints and Blesseds Festival took place in Nowe Skalmierzyce, Poland. Speaking during the event, Lucas OTERO, the Deputy Head of Mission of the Peruvian Embassy in Poland stated: “Today we meet to remember two religious figures from Poland who left an indelible mark in Peru. Like the current Pope, Blessed Zbigniew STRZAŁKOWSKI and Michał TOMASZEK chose to dedicate their pastoral mission to our country, proclaiming the Gospel and serving local communities with complete dedication.”
The diplomat recalled that these two missionary-martyrs from Poland, the first to be beatified, “lived during one of the most difficult periods in Peru’s history, when the terrorist violence of Shining Path [a Maoist guerrilla group] particularly affected rural communities, spreading fear and suffering.” At the same time, he emphasized that “in the face of danger, they bravely chose to stay with their parishioners, bringing them comfort, prayer, and aid.” On August 9, 1991, the friars were brutally murdered in Pariacoto by Shining Path guerillas, becoming martyrs and giving their lives for the communities they served.
The Deputy Ambassador of Peru in Poland continued: “The story of Blessed Zbigniew and Michał unites our two peoples and demonstrates values common to the societies of Peru and Poland: solidarity, faith in God, and love for others. It is thanks to these values that Peru managed to overcome the scourge of terrorism and today is moving toward development marked by justice.” The festival also invited director Krzysztof TADEJ, who screened his documentary about the friars from Poland who were martyred in Peru entitled: Życia nie można zmarnować (Life Cannot Be Wasted). It has aired several times on Polish television and is still available online at:
https://vod.tvp.pl/filmy-dokumentalne,163/zycia-nie-mozna-zmarnowac,334835.
The screening was followed by a meeting with the director himself.
The central event this year was the introduction of the relics of Blessed Zbigniew and Michał into the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Nowe Skalmierzyce. During the three-day festival, two Conventual Franciscans from Crakow—the Church historian Friar Zdzisław GOGOLA and the promoter of the Pariacoto martyrs’ cult, Friar Jan HRUSZOWIEC—gave a presentation of the lives of the blessed friars and the events that followed their martyrdom. The opening Mass of the festival was presided over by the Most Reverend Zbigniew CIEŚLAK, Episcopal Vicar of the Diocese of Kalisz, Poland. The closing Mass was presided over by the Minister Provincial of the Province of St. Anthony and Bl. James of Strepar in Poland (Cracow), Friar Mariusz KOZIOŁ. Pope Leo XIV sent a special letter to the festival, conveying his spiritual solidarity with the organizers and participants, and bestowing his apostolic blessing on all.
The Ecce Homo Saints and Blesseds Festival was more than a religious event. Visitors to the Festival’s Kolejarz Social Activity Center could enjoy Peruvian dances performed by dancers from the Sieraszewski Dance Studio, listen to the tales of traveler Marek Fiedler, view a photography exhibition, or attend a concert by the Los Compañeros group (Latin American and Andean music). The Mayor of Nowe Skalmierzyce, Jerzy Łukasz WALCZAK, publicly thanked the organizers, especially Friar Zbigniew KRÓCZYŃSKI and Maria BEDNARCZYK-ANTCZAK, for allowing people to “gain an insightful perspective on the culture of a country as distant as Peru, through faith, history, and art.”
The festival is held annually by the Corpus Domini Parish at the behest of Maria BEDNARCZYK-ANTCZAK. In previous years, it honored such figures as St. Albert CHMIELOWSKI, Blessed Edmund BOJANOWSKI, Blessed Mother Elżbieta Róża CZACKA, St. Rafał KALINOWSKI, and St. Maximilian Maria KOLBE.
Friar Jan M. SZEWEK
