Fr. Michał Huk (1927-2012)

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Fr. Michał Huk (1927-2012)

Fr. Michał Huk was born on August 9th 1927 in Krowica near Lubaczow.  In 1942, when he was 15, he was forced to work in Germany. He spent there three years and after the war he returned to Poland. In 1946 he entered the Salvatorian junior high school in Mikołów.

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 In 1948 he began the Salvatorian novitiate formation in Bagno, taking on a new religious name: Jozafat. On September 8th 1949 he made his first religious profession. Then he continued his education at the Minor Seminary in Mikołów. After passing the final examination he began to study philosophy at the General Study of the Dominican Fathers in Kraków. On September 8th 1953 he took his perpetual vows in Trzebinia. He was ordained to the Priesthood on June 26th 1956 by the Most Reverend Stanisław Rospond.
 In 1957-1959 he was a novice master’s assistant. He also served as an extraordinary confessor of the seminarians in Bagno. From 1960 until 1963 he studied psychology at the Catholic University of Lublin, which concluded his Master’s thesis entitled: “Znajomość ludzi” Wojciecha Mieszkowskiego na tle współczesnej charakterologii, (his promoter was Rev. prof dr Józef Pastuszka).
 Later on he worked in pastoral ministry in Bielsko-Biała (1962-1963), in Warsaw at Czerniakowska Street, at the rectoral church of St. Joseph (1963-1964). He was exempted from his duties because of ill health and moved to Krakow at Św. Jacka Street, where he served as confessor and director of candidates to the novitiate. During that time he also lectured psychology to the seminarians at the Pauline convent in Kraków (Skałka). In 1966 he was appointed a hospital chaplain and transferred to Bystra Śląska and later on to Wołów as a chaplain to the Benedictine nuns. Afterwards Fr. Huk worked for several months of 1969 at St. Michael’s Parish in Sopot. From 1970 he worked in parochial ministry in Trzebnica for two years and later as a chaplain to the Borromean Sisters and as a chaplain at a local hospital. In 1973-1990 he lectured psychology at the Salvatorian Major Seminary in Bagno and was a spiritual director of the seminarians. At the same time he began to help in pastoral work on the territory of Lower Silesia, among the faithful of the Greek Catholic Rite. In 1975 he moved to the religious house in Bagno, where he continued didactical work and, when necessary, he served in pastoral ministry in both rites: Roman and Greek. In 1978 he moved to the religious house in Wrocław, where he spent the rest of his life.
 Fr. Huk, besides his typical priestly duties, engaged in writing. He wrote a doctoral work (the promoter was prof. Stefan Kunowski) and defended it at the Catholic University of Lublin in 1977. The work was entitled Konflikty dorastającej młodzieży z rodzicami i dążenie do ich likwidacji jako problem wychowawczy, which was published in Polish in 1990 and in 2000 and in Ukrainian in 2008.
 Father Michał desired that the Society founds a religious house beyond the Eastern border of Poland. Several times he went to Ukraine, as a priest, and in 1995 he lectured psychology at the Seminary of the Diocese of Zhytomyr.
 Fr. Michał Huk passed away on Maundy Thursday, April 5th 2012, at the hospital in Wrocław. On April 10th the funeral liturgy, presided over by the Most Rev. Włodzimierz Juszczak, Ordinary of the Wrocław-Gdańsk Eparchy, was celebrated at the Greek Catholic Cathedral of St. Vincent and St. Jacob in Wrocław. In the liturgy participated priests from diverse Greek Catholic parishes with Rev. Andrzej Michaliszyn, pastor of the Cathedral.
 On the next day, at 11 a.m. followed the funeral at the parish church in Bagno. The concelebrated Holy Mass was presided over by Fr. Piotr Filas, provincial superior of the Salvatorians. In the funeral took part Rev. Julian Hojniak, mitrate and Episcopal vicar from Zielona Góra. Fr. Michał Huk was buried in the religious tomb in Bagno.

 (Fr. Wł. Węglarz SDS)