Sr. M. Malgorzata

Servant of God, Sr. Maria Malgorzata of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Agony in the Garden (Ludwika Banas) was born on April 10, 1896 in Klecza Dolna near Wadowice in a farming family. Her parents bequeathed a deep faith to her, sincere piety and strong moral principles. She was 20 when she undertook work in a hospital in Wadowice, led by the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth. On February 15, 1917 she entered the Congregation and fulfilled simple, ordinary duties in the different congregational homes. In 1934 she was sent to Nowogrodek. During the World War II (1939-1943) she was working in a local hospital. She was the only sister out of the group of twelve who avoided arresting and execution by Nazis on August 1, 1943.

Sr. M. Malgorzata located the remains of the eleven martyred sisters; she was present at the exhumation of their remains and witnessed their transferal to the gravesite near the parish church. She interpreted the fact of her rescue as the sign of God's will to remain in Nowogr�dek (at present Belarus) in order to look after the church and to offer help to the local people. In the hardship of the war years and the occupation, conscious of the undertaken mission, Sr. Ma�gorzata devoted herself completely to the community in Nowogr�dek. She cared for the parish church, but first of all for the presence in it of the Holy Sacrament. The local people called her "the guardian of the Tabernacle". She gathered the faithful for prayers, bedecked altars, led church services. She established spiritual and financial help for priests and secular exiled to Siberia. She repeated: "the Martyrdom of the spirit, this slow dying - I desired it".

Following a grave illness, Sr. M. Malgorzata died on April 26, 1966 in Nowogrodek and was buried in the local cemetery. The process for the beatification of Sister M. Malgorzata of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Agony in the Garden began in 2003.

God of Mercy, your Son Jesus Christ lovingly fulfilled your will and his death became the source of new life for the Church. Malgorzata Banas, a Nazareth sister of Nowogrodek, in the following of Jesus, accepted the challenges of her life and transformed them into a way of dedicated ministry to the Church. Grant that this faithful servant be counted among the blessed. May her witness of deep faith, courage and love of neighbor help us to remain faithful to Jesus and his Church. Grant our petitions through her intercession. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Please notify the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth of graces received through the intercession of the Servant of God Sister M. Ma�gorzata at the address of The Generalate or Provincial Houses.