Psychospołeczne aspekty pielgrzymowania do Rzymu

Psychosocial Aspects of Pilgriming to Rome

Summary: In his paper the author deals with sime social and psychologic aspects of the new phenomen, that of Poles pilgriming to Rome. According to pilgrims registers, a dynamics of those pilgrimages was shown, in the 1988-1993 period, that of the transformation of Poland. The pilgrimage to Rome were differentiated, depending the diocese (the most intense was a traffic from the Cracow Archdiocese) and the year (the greatest number of Polish pilgrims was registered in 1991). In the second part of this paper, anthropological motives of pilgriming are discussed, next - the motives, based on the author's own research. The five basic ones are as follows: a meeting with the Pope John-Paul II, a sightseing of monuments in Rome, a request for favours, a willing to strenghten the pilgrim's belief, a thanksgiving for the God's favours. A retrospective analysis of the principal experiences proved during the pilgrims' stay in Italy showed an absolute domination of the first motive - that of a contact with John-Paul II. Important was also that with the monuments of Christianity and sites connected with the history of Poland. The Roman experiences were so unique, that 60 % of the pilgrims cannot compare them with anything they had survived, at least with such the events like a marriage, the pilgrimage to Lourdes or an election of the cardinal Wojtyła for the Pope. After a presentation of main statistical regularities and the analysis of numerous relations, the author gives the following conclusions: 1) the dynamics and a character of Poles' pilgriming to Rome are determined by the transformations in Poland and the changes of the present pontificate style, 2) the motives of the pilgrimage are differentiated and only partially can br penetrated by a psychology, 3) the meeting of Poles with John-Paul II are the unique psycho-social-religious phenomenon.

Peregrinus Cracoviensis, 1995, z.1, s. 33-44.

Instytut Geografii i Gospodarki Przestrzennej UJ

Pełny tekst (150 KB)