SOBOROWE INSPIRACJE I ICH RECEPCJA W NAUCZANIU I DZIAŁALNOŚCI KATECHETYCZNO-PEDAGOGICZNIEJ KS. JÓZEFA GRYGOTOWICZA
CONCILIAR INSPIRATIONS AND THEIR IMPLEMENTATION IN THE CATECHETICAL AND EDUCATIONAL MINISTRY OF FR. JÓZEF GRYGOTOWICZ

Summary/Abstract: Monsignor Józef Grygotowicz, a priest of the Archdiocese of Białystok from1974 to 2008, played a significant role in the education and formation of catechistsin the spirit of the Second Vatican Council. As a student, catechist, andlater as a teacher and educator of catechists, he was shaped by both internaland external ecclesiastical factors before, during, and after the Council. Initially,his family served as a catechetical environment. During his school years, heencountered catechesis that was methodologically structured and rooted inthe achievements of pedagogical and psychological sciences. At this time,catechetics was reduced to a methodological framework focused on pedagogicalprinciples within its subject. Consequently, although catechesis in schoolsgained certain educational merits, it did not fully achieve its broader spiritualand pastoral objectives.The Second Vatican Council introduced a shift from an intellectualistic-anthropocentric approach to pastoral care and catechesis to a personalistic,theocentric, and christocentric perspective. In line with the Council’s visionof the Church as a community engaged in the triple mission of Christ, catecheticswas classified as a theological discipline, pursued within the spirit of personalism,and catechesis was redefined as a form of ecclesial catechumenate. While studying at the Catholic University of Lublin under the guidance ofthe eminent pastoral theologian Fr. F. Blachnicki, Monsignor Grygotowiczembraced the ideas of the Second Vatican Council regarding catechesis andgained pastoral experience within the „Light-Life Movement” (Ruch Światło-Życie), founded by Blachnicki. He also became acquainted with the formationalpedagogy of the New Man, grounded in the theological principlesof the Council. Following his studies, he was entrusted with the formation ofcatechists – priests, religious, and laity – in his home diocese. In his teachingand educational endeavors, he embodied the ideals of the Council, promotingcatechetics as a theological discipline, with a focus on its kerygmatic dimension.The theoretical foundations of his educational approach were drawnfrom ecclesiology, portraying the Church as a community and the catechistas a herald of the Word of God. He educated catechists – priests, religious,and laity – systematically in the ecclesial spirit, often employing methods andforms developed within the „Light-Life Movement,” emphasizing the value ofan ecclesial community built upon the light of the Word of God, the experienceof God’s presence in liturgy, and fraternal love expressed through service.

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