Biographical connection to social justice
An immediate question when addressing this topic is what is social justice? Various definitions exist but in this case, a religious definition is most appropriate. Social justice is the ideology for fair and equal distribution of wealth, opportunities and privileges amongst society. It is a notion that is desirable for all yet unlikely to be achieved due to human tendencies to have personal success, materialistic possession and selfish desires. Equality can only be achieved when humans put into practice the golden rule of the book of Matthew; which states to put others ahead of oneself.
Kolbe is neither a famous nor internationally inspirational figure of aspiration for society yet his personal display and contribution of social justice presents an ideal role model for all humans. Kolbe was born and raised in a double income family, where both his mother and father worked to earn money. Poland at the time was a financially stable nation and Kolbe’s family lived in mild prosperity. When Kolbe was an adolescent, the First World War crushed Poland, following the invasion of Kaiser Wilhelm’s German army. Many were slaughtered and this demonstrated to Kolbe how social justice didn’t exist across the world. War, as an act of violence and aggression contradicts the idea of social justice to a large degree. This is mainly because social justice involves each human life having equal value and opportunity to succeed. War often results in taking away of life, which is of course, an unfair and disappointing prospect in such a contemporary and advancing society.
As an ordained priest, Kolbe disliked the idea of belonging to a parish and being part of a congregation. He believed it was restricting his ability to work toward social justice in worse off communities in other parts of Poland and internationally. Thus, after several years working in a parish, Kolbe began to travel all across Poland and neighbouring nations, in the hope of improving living conditions and removing evident corruption. The main goal for Kolbe was to introduce the freedom of speech and the press in particular nations. He opened newspapers in Poland, Western Europe and even extended to Japan where Kolbe was a figure of inspiration.
Social justice entails all humans being allowed equal opportunities and freedoms within society, an idea which Kolbe attempted to pursue. He believed that social class, race or gender should not dictate whether or not one can state their own opinion freely and have it heard by all. Kolbe worked with the under privileged members of society, the disabled and socially isolated. He attempted to have society recognise them as equals rather than being ostracised by a range of various people. Kolbe saw how society treated particular people and recognised the evident division amongst social life. Some people were simply loved by all and given everything in life, often through family inheritance. Others were forced to work long hours for little achievement and this was truly an unfair reality all across the world. This was one thing that Kolbe perceived whilst working in Poland and Japan and encouraged him to pursue social justice.
Another reason for Kolbe pursuing social justice was an event he experienced later in life, only months before his death. He was once more working in Poland, which was now occupied by Nazi Germany and was forced to deal with the horrors of war. Kolbe could not understand why Jewish people were persecuted and thus chose to act on this injustice, protecting them and sheltering them from the grasp of the Gestapo (German secret police). The Nazi’s, who were a fascist party, understood that indoctrination and brainwashing was the only way to encourage support for their cause. One of the most efficient ways to create a Fascist society was to eliminate all opposition, thus curtailing the freedoms of speech, religion and the press. Kolbe disliked this as it limited social justice and equal opportunities within the world. He decided to open and publish various newspapers all across Europe and Asia where he constantly published articles discussing a range of perspectives of Nazism and the world war, rather than a fake opinion which occurred in German papers.
Unfortunately, these actions, along with Kolbe sheltering Jewish people, placed him on the German’s list of wanted criminals. Once he was located and caught, Kolbe possessed little chance of escaping severe punishment, something he however feared little. One of his final pursuits of social justice was when Kolbe resided as a prisoner in Auschwitz concentration camp. Kolbe immediately saw that many of those who were convicted actually had committed no crime and done no harm to those around them. It was clear to him that in this particular society, one was judged based on who they were rather than what they had done. Kolbe attempted to establish good relations with his gaolers and displayed little spite or anger for his unjust conviction. He often divided his food up with those who were hungry and preached the word of God to the prisoners who were losing faith in their deity.
Arguably his final act of social justice came just two weeks before his death. When prisoners apparently escaped Auschwitz, the Gestapo decided to sentence to death ten prisoners with substantial convictions as a sign of authority. Because Kolbe’s crimes were rather minor, he was not chosen for this punishment yet when a man who had been chosen cried for his wife and children, Kolbe took pity on him and volunteered selflessly in his place. After more than two weeks without food and water, Kolbe was the final prisoner to remain alive, thus displaying a miracle of its own. Kolbe noted in his final days that he felt little physical pain, only emotional pain for the lives that had been lost in vain around him. When he was given a lethal injection, Kolbe held his arm out willingly and passed away rather peacefully despite the horrific circumstances.
As a summary, the following events in Kolbe’s biography led to his pursuit of social justice:
o As a young child in Poland, seeing how his life and opportunities were far greater than others. He identified the division between rich and poor and in future years attempted to act upon it. This, along with his Marian identity was one of the major reasons why Kolbe became ordained as a priest.
o Recognising the poor treatment socially isolated people received, Kolbe attempted to work with the underprivileged and grant them the opportunity to succeed at a level equivalent to everyone else.
o Understanding how specific freedoms were either limited or curtailed during WWII to prevent a revolution via opposing parties, religions or people. Kolbe created newspapers which freely spoke truth rather than edited indoctrination.
o Both World Wars acted as persuasion to Kolbe that action was needed to eliminate death. He noticed that war did not express the required value for human life, rather taking away life without hesitation. War did not follow social justice principles, in particular that all humans had the right to live in safety and equal opportunity. Thus, Kolbe advocated against acts of warfare for most of his adult and religious life.
o Finally, life in Auschwitz was a determining factor as to why Kolbe pursued one last act of social justice. He saw how people were judged based on social class, race/ethnicity and gender rather than the crimes that they had actually committed, which for many were no crimes. Thus, when it was time to choose prisoners to starve to death, Kolbe volunteered in place of a man who had a family. This was the most important and evident act of social justice in his life.
An immediate question when addressing this topic is what is social justice? Various definitions exist but in this case, a religious definition is most appropriate. Social justice is the ideology for fair and equal distribution of wealth, opportunities and privileges amongst society. It is a notion that is desirable for all yet unlikely to be achieved due to human tendencies to have personal success, materialistic possession and selfish desires. Equality can only be achieved when humans put into practice the golden rule of the book of Matthew; which states to put others ahead of oneself.
Kolbe is neither a famous nor internationally inspirational figure of aspiration for society yet his personal display and contribution of social justice presents an ideal role model for all humans. Kolbe was born and raised in a double income family, where both his mother and father worked to earn money. Poland at the time was a financially stable nation and Kolbe’s family lived in mild prosperity. When Kolbe was an adolescent, the First World War crushed Poland, following the invasion of Kaiser Wilhelm’s German army. Many were slaughtered and this demonstrated to Kolbe how social justice didn’t exist across the world. War, as an act of violence and aggression contradicts the idea of social justice to a large degree. This is mainly because social justice involves each human life having equal value and opportunity to succeed. War often results in taking away of life, which is of course, an unfair and disappointing prospect in such a contemporary and advancing society.
As an ordained priest, Kolbe disliked the idea of belonging to a parish and being part of a congregation. He believed it was restricting his ability to work toward social justice in worse off communities in other parts of Poland and internationally. Thus, after several years working in a parish, Kolbe began to travel all across Poland and neighbouring nations, in the hope of improving living conditions and removing evident corruption. The main goal for Kolbe was to introduce the freedom of speech and the press in particular nations. He opened newspapers in Poland, Western Europe and even extended to Japan where Kolbe was a figure of inspiration.
Social justice entails all humans being allowed equal opportunities and freedoms within society, an idea which Kolbe attempted to pursue. He believed that social class, race or gender should not dictate whether or not one can state their own opinion freely and have it heard by all. Kolbe worked with the under privileged members of society, the disabled and socially isolated. He attempted to have society recognise them as equals rather than being ostracised by a range of various people. Kolbe saw how society treated particular people and recognised the evident division amongst social life. Some people were simply loved by all and given everything in life, often through family inheritance. Others were forced to work long hours for little achievement and this was truly an unfair reality all across the world. This was one thing that Kolbe perceived whilst working in Poland and Japan and encouraged him to pursue social justice.
Another reason for Kolbe pursuing social justice was an event he experienced later in life, only months before his death. He was once more working in Poland, which was now occupied by Nazi Germany and was forced to deal with the horrors of war. Kolbe could not understand why Jewish people were persecuted and thus chose to act on this injustice, protecting them and sheltering them from the grasp of the Gestapo (German secret police). The Nazi’s, who were a fascist party, understood that indoctrination and brainwashing was the only way to encourage support for their cause. One of the most efficient ways to create a Fascist society was to eliminate all opposition, thus curtailing the freedoms of speech, religion and the press. Kolbe disliked this as it limited social justice and equal opportunities within the world. He decided to open and publish various newspapers all across Europe and Asia where he constantly published articles discussing a range of perspectives of Nazism and the world war, rather than a fake opinion which occurred in German papers.
Unfortunately, these actions, along with Kolbe sheltering Jewish people, placed him on the German’s list of wanted criminals. Once he was located and caught, Kolbe possessed little chance of escaping severe punishment, something he however feared little. One of his final pursuits of social justice was when Kolbe resided as a prisoner in Auschwitz concentration camp. Kolbe immediately saw that many of those who were convicted actually had committed no crime and done no harm to those around them. It was clear to him that in this particular society, one was judged based on who they were rather than what they had done. Kolbe attempted to establish good relations with his gaolers and displayed little spite or anger for his unjust conviction. He often divided his food up with those who were hungry and preached the word of God to the prisoners who were losing faith in their deity.
Arguably his final act of social justice came just two weeks before his death. When prisoners apparently escaped Auschwitz, the Gestapo decided to sentence to death ten prisoners with substantial convictions as a sign of authority. Because Kolbe’s crimes were rather minor, he was not chosen for this punishment yet when a man who had been chosen cried for his wife and children, Kolbe took pity on him and volunteered selflessly in his place. After more than two weeks without food and water, Kolbe was the final prisoner to remain alive, thus displaying a miracle of its own. Kolbe noted in his final days that he felt little physical pain, only emotional pain for the lives that had been lost in vain around him. When he was given a lethal injection, Kolbe held his arm out willingly and passed away rather peacefully despite the horrific circumstances.
As a summary, the following events in Kolbe’s biography led to his pursuit of social justice:
o As a young child in Poland, seeing how his life and opportunities were far greater than others. He identified the division between rich and poor and in future years attempted to act upon it. This, along with his Marian identity was one of the major reasons why Kolbe became ordained as a priest.
o Recognising the poor treatment socially isolated people received, Kolbe attempted to work with the underprivileged and grant them the opportunity to succeed at a level equivalent to everyone else.
o Understanding how specific freedoms were either limited or curtailed during WWII to prevent a revolution via opposing parties, religions or people. Kolbe created newspapers which freely spoke truth rather than edited indoctrination.
o Both World Wars acted as persuasion to Kolbe that action was needed to eliminate death. He noticed that war did not express the required value for human life, rather taking away life without hesitation. War did not follow social justice principles, in particular that all humans had the right to live in safety and equal opportunity. Thus, Kolbe advocated against acts of warfare for most of his adult and religious life.
o Finally, life in Auschwitz was a determining factor as to why Kolbe pursued one last act of social justice. He saw how people were judged based on social class, race/ethnicity and gender rather than the crimes that they had actually committed, which for many were no crimes. Thus, when it was time to choose prisoners to starve to death, Kolbe volunteered in place of a man who had a family. This was the most important and evident act of social justice in his life.