Testimony as a moral category – a way to imitate Christ in the life and martyrdom of Blessed Bishop Michał Kozal

Abstract

In the encyclical letter Veritatis splendor St. John Paul II stated that “Through the moral life, faith becomes "confession", not only before God but also before men: it becomes witness”. Referring to the testimony of love Jesus gave while dying on the cross, the Pope further explained that it is "model and means for the witness of his disciples, who are called to walk on the same road (…) Charity, in conformity with the radical demands of the Gospel, can lead the believer to the supreme witness of martyrdom” (VS 89). He adds that “martyrdom is an outstanding sign of the holiness of the Church” (VS 93). The testimony given by a disciple of Christ appears here as a moral category describing and characterizing the life of a Christian. Calling a believer to imitate Christ, becoming his disciple, realizing the call to holiness means calling to testimony through moral life. His most radical manifestation is martyrdom. This relationship is perfectly visible and has been confirmed by the example of life and the martyr's path, which Blessed Bishop Michał Kozal went through prisons and camps, to the concentration one in Dachau, where he suffered a martyr's death. The likeness to Jesus, which is an internal requirement of the Lord's disciple, is normative: it becomes the principle of the moral life of Christ's witness. His faith, his stand for Jesus is to become a testimony.