Cyrocki/The Mariavites, 5. Reforms in the Church of Mariavites

The fifth chapter discusses the reforms introduced by archbishop Kowalski in years 1922–35, which shocked Polish society at the time. Because of the sheer mass of data, it was not be possible to discuss all the changes in full detail. Therefore, three the most significant have been chosen, which are: marriages between priests and nuns; ordination of women; and the people’s priesthood. The main reason why these three have been chosen is because all of them were inseparably linked to the idea of the Kingdom. Moreover, this chapter analyses how Maria Franciszka and Kowalski were perceived after 1921. In both cases, the reception of their personalities changed with time due to studies of the Apocalypse, ancient sources and Polish Romantic literature.