Maria Karłowska

The turning point of her life occurred in November 1892. During one of her charity visits, she happened to meet a young prostitute named Franke. Deeply moved by the moral, social, and physical distress of this woman and her companions, Maria understood that her vocation was to dedicate herself entirely to the upliftment of these marginalized and exploited women. She began her apostolate directly on the streets, in prisons, and within the venereal disease ward of the Poznań hospital. Faced with the lack of structures to welcome these women who wished to change their lives, she sought a stable refuge. Thanks to the generosity of Countess Aniela Potulicka, who donated a property in Winiary (near Poznań) to her, she was able to open a first shelter. To structure and perpetuate this work, Maria founded a new religious congregation on September 8, 1896: the Sisters of the Good Shepherd of Divine Providence. On June 20, 1902, Maria and her first companions pronounced their solemn vows, adding a fourth specific vow: to devote themselves entirely to the rehabilitation of prostitutes and women in difficulty. Under her leadership as Superior General, the institute developed rapidly. The sisters opened rehabilitation centers, vocational schools, clinics, and model farms (notably in Pniewite and Topolno) to offer the residents social reintegration through work. In 1928, the Polish state awarded her the Gold Cross of Merit for her exceptional social action. Exhausted by a long illness, Maria Karłowska passed away on March 24, 1935, at the convent of Pniewite, surrounded by her sisters.

The reputation for holiness of Maria Karłowska, already very vivid during her lifetime, spread rapidly after her death. The informative process for her beatification officially opened on March 17, 1965, in the Diocese of Chełmno (the competent forum being today Toruń). On July 11, 1995, Pope John Paul II signed the decree recognizing the heroic nature of her virtues, conferring upon her the title of Venerable. A miracle attributed to her intercession was the subject of a rigorous canonical investigation. After validation by the medical commission on June 27, 1996, and by the theologians on December 6, 1996, the official decree recognizing this miracle was approved by Pope John Paul II on April 8, 1997, definitively opening the way for her beatification.

Maria Karłowska was solemnly proclaimed blessed on June 6, 1997, by Pope John Paul II in Zakopane, Poland, during his apostolic journey to his native country. She was beatified at the same time as Mother Maria Bernardina Jabłońska. Her liturgical memorial is set for March 24, the day of her birth into heaven (dies natalis), in accordance with the Roman Martyrology.

The spirituality of Blessed Maria Karłowska is deeply rooted in devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. She assigned to her congregation a rule of life centered on the imitation of Christ, the Good Shepherd. Pope John Paul II described her as a "true Samaritan" for her boundless dedication to the people most rejected by the society of her time. Today, the Sisters of the Good Shepherd of Divine Providence continue her work in Poland, Italy, and Kazakhstan, working with women in difficulty, single mothers, and marginalized people. Her relics rest in a reliquary at the sanctuary of the motherhouse in Jabłonowo Pomorskie.