The Theologian of Auschwitz: St. Maximilian M. Kolbe on the Immaculate Conception in the Life of the Church

A relatively large and extraordinarily important section of the writings and reportings of St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe is filled by outlines and materials for a book length study, profoundly dogmatic and eminently practical, on the mystery of the Immaculate Conception. This project, conceived as early as 1919, was in gestation for nearly ten years--at first slowly, then after 1939, more intensely--up to the time of his final arrest on 17 February 1941. On account of his subsequent martyrdom in the concentration camp of Oswiecim (Auschwitz) on the vigil of the Assumption, 14 August 1941, it remained unfinished.

No thorough study primarily dedicated to an analysis and appreciation of this unfinished work of genius has yet to be published. The present work was undertaken to honor the hero of Auschwitz and Martyr of Charity during the twenty-fifth anniversary of his canonization (2007). St. Maximilian is, in a sense, a "re-founder" of the Order of Friars Minor during the second page of its history, one who is worthy to be numbered among its great Doctors.

Author: Peter Damian Fehlner
Publisher: Lectio Publishing LLC
Published: 02/11/2020
Pages: 362
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.12lbs
Size: 9.21h x 6.14w x 0.75d
ISBN: 9781943901135

About the Author
Fehlner, Peter Damian: - "Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner, OFM Conv., was born in 1931, and passed away on 8 May 8 2018. Father Peter Damian entered the Franciscan Friars Conventual Novitiate in Middleburgh, NY in 1951; he professed his Solemn Vows on 1 November 1955. He was ordained to the priesthood on 14 July 1957 at the Basilica of St. Alessio in Rome, Italy. An avid scholar, he received a Doctoral Degree (S.T.D.) from the Seraphicum (Rome) in 1959. His dissertation was entitled "The Role of Charity in the Ecclesiology of St. Bonaventure." and he became regarded as one of the world's leading experts on the writings and theology of St. Bonaventure. Fr. Peter Damian taught dogmatic theology at St. Anthony-on-Hudson Theological Seminary, Rensselaer, NY. While there he served as the Rector and Guardian from 1970-1976. He also served as the Librarian for the Seminary and during his tenure the theological library became a world-class collection. Through the years he also held a position on the Pontifical Faculty of St. Bonaventure in the Seraphicum, Rome, Italy. In 1984, Fr. Peter Damian moved to Casa Kolbe in Rome, where he became the Assistant International Director of the Militia Immaculata, and editor of Miles Immaculatae. In this post he became renowned as a speaker at conferences, retreats, symposia, and media events - activities which would continue for the remainder of his life. In the mid-1990′s, Fr. Peter Damian transfiliated to the Franciscans of the Immaculate, a religious congregation with its origins in the Conventual Franciscans. As a friar, he continued his ministry of teaching and writing. In 2015, Fr. Peter Damian returned to his original religious Order of Friars Minor Conventual, re-professing his Solemn Vows as a humble follower of St. Francis of Assisi. Fr. Peter Damian's scholarly genius was recognized by academics at Notre Dame University, South Bend, Indiana, at a 2015 symposium dedicated to his theological writings."