The funeral of the Rev. Miroslaw Drozdek, custodian of the well-known Marian Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima “na Krzeptowkach”, a close friend of John Paul II and chaplain of Solidarnosc in the 1980s, took place at Zakopane at the end of May. Father Drozdek was one the founders of the sanctuary at Zakopane, conceived as an ex-voto for the salvation of John Paul II, attributed to Our Lady of Fatima, on 13 May 1981, following Ali Agca’s attempt on his life. In February last year, a Polish weekly had accused Father Drozdek of having collaborated with the Communist secret services in the 1980s. The priest, mortified by the accusation, had categorically rejected it and, to protect his good name, had brought a suit of defamation against the journalist who had written the article in question. The court permitted an out-of-court settlement, as proposed by the journalist, who declared he had no intention to make accusations, but merely to pose certain questions in public. Father Drozdek died of an incurable disease.
