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Martyrdom in Poland

IN 1944, when German troops were quickly withdrawing and the battlefront was nearing a town in the eastern part of Poland, the occupation authorities forced civilians to dig antitank trenches. Jehovah’s Witnesses refused to participate. Stefan Kirył, a young Witness​—baptized only two months previously—​was forced into a working brigade but boldly took the same neutral stand. Various measures were taken to break his integrity.

They tied him naked to a tree in the marshland so that he would fall victim to gnats and other insects. He endured that and other tortures, so they let him alone. However, when a high-ranking officer inspected the brigade, somebody told him that there was a man who would by no means obey his command. Stefan was ordered three times to dig the trench. He even refused to take a spade in his hand. He was shot dead. Hundreds watching the scene knew him personally. His martyrdom became a witness to the great strength that Jehovah can supply.

Unexpected Martyrdom

“One day in June 1946, before we met to go by bicycle to some isolated territory, a young brother, Kazimierz Kądziela, visited us and talked to my father in a low voice. My father sent us on our way, but he did not go with us, which surprised us. We were to hear the reason later. Upon returning home, we learned that the previous night the Kądziela family had been savagely beaten, so my father had gone to take care of severely wounded brothers and sisters.

“When I later entered the room where they were lying, the sight moved me to tears. The walls and ceiling were spattered with blood. People swathed in bandages were lying on the beds, beaten black and blue, swollen, with broken ribs and limbs. They were hardly recognizable. Sister Kądziela, the mother of the family, was terribly battered. My father was assisting them, and before he left he uttered significant words: ‘Oh, my God, I am such a healthy and capable man [he was then 45 years old and had never been ill], and I have not had the privilege of suffering for you. Why should it happen to this elderly sister?’ Little did he know what awaited him.

“As the sun set, we returned to our home two miles [3 km] away. A group of 50 armed men had surrounded our house. The Wincenciuk family was brought in too, so there were nine of us there. Each of us was asked the question: ‘Are you a Witness of Jehovah?’ When we answered yes, we were beaten. Then, taking turns, two of those butchers beat up my father while asking him if he would stop reading the Bible and preaching it. They wanted to know whether he would go to church and confess his sins. They taunted him, saying: ‘Today, we will ordain you bishop.’ My father did not say a single word, did not utter a single moan. He endured their tortures, quietly as a sheep. At daybreak, about 15 minutes after the religious bullies had gone, he died, beaten to a pulp.