Prison photograph of Father Władysław Bukowinski (Public domain)
Blessed priest Władysław Bukowiński, called the apostle of Kazakhstan, was born on Poland’s Eastern Borderlands. Arrested in 1940 by the Soviets, he miraculously avoided the 1941 prison massacre. Arrested again in 1945, he was sentenced to 8 years in a labour camp. During his sentence, he continued hiss priestly service, keeping it secret from the camp authorities. After serving his sentence, he didn’t return to Poland. He stayed in Kazakhstan, where he continued his work as a priest among the local people. He married, baptised, and heard people’s confessions in a small house, to which the faithful traveled from as far as 400 kilometers away. For his activity, he was arrested again in 1958.
