Mariavitism: Mystical, Social, National
A Polish Religious Answer to the Challenges of Modernity

This afternoon I defended my Master thesis at the Tilburg University, thus concluding the programme “Christianity and Society”. The word “defended” doesn’t really correspond with reality, I dare say, for it was rather unlikely that someone would seriously question me on a topic that, beyond Poland, has barely been written upon at all – the rise and crisis of young Mariavitism. Yet when I chose this topic my intention wasn’t only to acquaint the English reader with the history  of this religious movement which played an important role not only in the history of the church in Poland but also in my own spiritual biography. I wanted also to try and place Mariavitism in a broader context of 19th century revival movements in Roman Catholicism which, each in its own way, attempted to confront the challenges of modernity. If this interests you, the thesis is available here . We have also written about Mariavitism on our blog and you can read those posts