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Come on.

Good dog.

A LIFE FOR A LIFE

Hey!

That'll do for today.

Right turn!

Fall into line!

Caps...

off!

At the double, quick march!

Hurry!

Over there!

Find!

- He's gone. - Shut up!

Clear off!

Hide!

Over there! They can see you here.

Come on, get changed. Hurry!

Come on, give me your rags.

Here, put these on!

A freight train to Kielce is due soon.

It slows down here.

- Will you manage to jump on? - I have to.

Jump on the last car.

Don't get off at a station. They are heavily patrolled.

And remember, you've never seen me!

Hey! Arms out straight in front!

Like that!

Head up high, my dear fellow.

He's asleep!

Hurry, the signal could go up any minute!

Hey!

Hey, there's someone here!

Jesus and Mary! It's a body.

- He is still alive. - What's the matter?

He's from the camp. Let's get him off the wagon.

I'll give you a hand.

Just what we needed.

- Did you have to saddle us with him? - Why? What do you mean?

Do you want the Germans to kill him?

Put him on the cart.

Caps...

off!

I'll wait until noon. If the swine's not found by then...

you'll all be punished.

The Lagerf�hrer says he'll wait until noon.

If he's not found by then you'll all be punished.

What should we do with him?

- Let him eat first. - He can't stay here!

They'll bum down the farm and kill us all!

Not bad, is it?

Let him eat first.

Just help yourself.

- Where are you from? - Silesia.

- But I can't go back there. - Why not? You've no family?

- I don't know if they are still alive. - You must have some friends.

Yes, but...

Silesia is full of Germans. There's nowhere to hide.

Couldn't I stay here for a few days?

- He can't stay, those men saw him. - They'll keep quiet.

- You believe that? - Let him rest first.

Jesus and Mary, your good nature! You will be the end of us all!

No, no, no! Go and tell him he has to leave!

Do you see that spire?

That's a monastery. They won't look for you there.

Go and ask them if they'll take me in.

What for? So that they know that you were hiding here?

I've risked enough already.

You know the score! Ten of you will die in the hunger bunker for him.

We will find the swine in any case, but I'll make all of you pay!

All of you!

The whole block!

The Lagerf�hrer says ten of you will die in the hunger bunker for him.

But he'll be found in any case.

Three steps forward!

Three steps forward!

No! Don't!

I've come here because I need help.

Confess your sins, my son.

I escaped from the camp, from Auschwitz.

Hundreds die there every day.

Even I will also be responsible for someone's death.

Why should I believe you?

Go and pray for a while...

Then follow me to the sacristy.

I could help in your workshop.

I worked for my uncle before they arrested me.

He was a carpenter, but he made furniture too.

But you can't just turn me away!

You might as well hand me over to the Germans. You can't do that!

Do you really think we can't do that?

Not if you practise what you preach!

You say we can't. But do you realize what a risk we'd be taking with you?

How do we know what you'll do when they catch you and interrogate you?

- What would you give away? - Nothing. How can I convince you?

Didn't you see how many priests there were in Auschwitz?

They greatly outnumber engineers, doctors or teachers.

Oh, well, you are right. We can't turn you away.

You can stay until we can supply you with forged papers.

- Then you'll have to leave. - And go where?

- We'll sort something out. - Why can't I stay here?

Because you are not the only one we cannot refuse help.

We'll have to take this young man in for a while.

Praise the Lord!

I have an identity card for you.

Forged, but as good as genuine.

Does that mean I must leave?

That's for the Father Guardian to decide.

The parish priest says that it's getting dangerous round here.

They are deporting more and more people.

- Did he say anything else? - No. Nothing.

He talked about our brother in the camp.

About something that happened last August or late in July.

Ten people were to die in the hunger bunker

and this Franciscan monk, Brother Kolbe, offered to take the place of one of them.

- Perhaps you knew Brother Kolbe? - No.

But didn't you escape in August?

Or was it in late July?

- Who was the man whose life was saved? - I don't know.

Maybe G�recki, the lawyer, would know.

Do you think I could go and see him?

Why not? You have your identity card.

- Will he agree to see me? - I'll talk to him and fi nd out.

I'd be very grateful.

So it was you.

Yes, I am the one who escaped.

And we stood there during roll call and prayed...

that you'd be caught before long.

Did you know what would happen in the camp?

Once I had to stand there like that too.

I lived through three roll calls.

The opportunity occurred by chance.

And that's why ten men had to die in the hunger bunker.

What if you'd had an opportunity like that?

I would have escaped too.

This monk, Kolbe, did you see what happened?

Not too well.

Father Kolbe was in another unit.

That's why I stood further away, in the third, or maybe the second row.

When he stepped forward...

Fritsch reached for his revolver as if to shoot.

Why didn't he?

I don't know.

I expect he was taken aback.

No prisoner had ever dared to do that before.

What did they say?

I don't know, they were too faraway.

But others must have heard.

Apparently, Kolbe asked Fritsch if he could take the place

of the crying man and go to the hunger bunker instead.

- Why? - I don't know.

Fritsch wanted to know who he was

and Kolbe said he... he was a priest

And Fritsch agreed to thst?

Who was the man who was saved?

I don't know.

I don't know. I was released soon afterwards.

- Maybe there's others who know more? - It's unlikely.

Soon there won't be any others.

We are all doomed. Nobody will survive this for long.

I've not got much longer to live.

There won't be any survivors in the camps. Nobody will keep the memory alive.

Unless you do.

- Me? - Go to Niepokalan�v Monastery.

Why?

To tell them everything I told you. They ought to be informed.

- By me? - Who else?

The Father Guardian of Alvemia Monastery does not understand our plight.

When Brother Kolbe was still here,

we had flourishing workshops.

With printers, bookbinders, mechanics and carpenters.

We were able to shelter numerous wanted men. Even Jews.

But that's all over.

- I... - The Germans are watching us all the time.

Your being here is a great risk.

My papers are foolproof.

In Alvemia, I worked as a carpenter for a whole year.

- The brothers were satisfied with my work. - Yes, they write here

that you are a good craftsman.

But we have no work for you here.

- Why didn't you stay there? - People began asking questions.

Do you think no-one will ask questions here?

Brother Anselm will take care of you. We'll try and fi nd you something nearby.

Here's some cold water for you.

If you would like warm water, you must go to the kitchen.

- Have you always been here? - No, not at all.

I joined the order just before the war.

Then you were present when Kolbe was arrested?

Yes.

I was a novice then.

He had a premonition, you know.

It was as if he knew.

Maybe he did know.

Well...

The night before he was arrested, he woke up one of the brothers.

It was after midnight.

Forgive me, Brother Filemon, would you be so kind as to pray with me?

My mind is uneasy.

In the morning, before breakfast, the porter called him to the phone.

Father Maximilian speaking. Yes?

I understand.

Yes, thank you.

Dear brothers...

the Gestapo will be here soon.

They are on their way. Don't be afraid.

Let each of you attend quietly to his work.

Everything is in God's hands.

Whatever happens, it is Our Lord's will.

Attend to your work quietly.

Hello.

Would you like to have a look round the monastery?

Have a look round?

Why not?

Please.

- What's that? - Our parish magazine.

"Knight of the Immaculata". We were granted permission.

Can I offer you something?

- A cup of coffee, perhaps? - Be quiet!

- Bartosik! - Here.

- Pazewski! - Would you please get him?

Nasin!

- Cislak! - Get him as well please.

And Kolbe!

I suppose you know how he died?

Of course.

We try to collect all relevant facts.

In as much as news can get out.

It means a great deal to us.

To our order.

You want a saint of your own, don't you?

Do you think the world doesn't need saints?

How should I know?

Where are your saints when people slaughter each other?

You keep telling fairy stories from the pulpit.

There are no saints in real life. It's every man for himself.

I can't quite believe in that tale about your Kolbe, sorry.

Anyone who was in Auschwitz would find it incredible.

There, you only care about surviving another day.

- But you made the effort to escape. - It was chance, sheer chance!

I never would've had the courage otherwise. I was buried in a landslide by chance.

It was fate.

Maybe it was the fate that we call God...

and which guided Father Maximilian.

I'll take you to the carpenter tomorrow morning.

He will look after you. He is a good man.

He's been working for us since the beginning.

He built this place with Father Maximilian.

Come.

Fill the glasses.

- Are you boozing again?! - What do you mean, boozing, Zoska?

It's Jan's name day! That calls for a drink!

- Won't you join us? - Stop it!

If it's his name day, there should be something hearty.

I have to set the table now.

- Marylka! - She keeps you in order!

Yes, she does.

The Germans are taking a beating in Africa.

I tell you, next year it will all be over.

- To victory! - Yes.

- What was he like? - Who? Maximilian?

The Reverend Father Guardian, I should say.

He was not easy to get on with.

He was a difficult man.

Come on.

Sit down.

Do you know how Father Kolbe got the land for the monastery?

He'd just got back from Japan...

and was looking for a site in Poland to build a monastery.

This was his favorite spot.

So he started by putting up a statue of Our Lady in a prominent position.

Then he paid a visit to the estate of Prince Drucki-Lubecki

to ask for the price of the land,

although he didn't have a penny to his name.

I'm afraid there's nothing I can do.

That's the price.

It's the same price that I would have asked from any buyer.

I am very sorry.

I know, the sum is fair.

But we can't afford it.

- Our order is poor. - Well, then, I can't help you.

- What do we do with the statue? - If you have no objection, it can stay there.

So that people can pray to Our Lady. That's the most important thing.

I see. Does this mean the statue is...

...a gift? - You are welcome to it.

Fair enough.

Then let me donate the land.

Consider it a gift and start building your monastery.

Now we are quits.

Thank you.

That was qu-quite a bargain!

Such a big plot... for a little statue!

Kolbe was a w-wily old fox!

- No, anything but a wily old fox! - Naive, then?

Naive? I don't know. No, not that either.

Pushy, perhaps?

No, not that either.

I rather think... he was a man who had faith.

True faith.

And that's why he had such an effect on people.

Sorry. My brothers, I'll keep it brief today. I have a sore throat.

There is something I would like you to remember

until the end of your days.

Remember that as Knights of the Immaculata,

our love, our hearts must not be open to ourselves alone,

to family, friends,

and fellow countrymen.

We must find room in our hearts for all men,

for the whole world.

Simply because all men...

are our brothers.

I would like to express a thought that is very dear to my heart.

I want you to remember and live by it.

To be genuine, love of one's fellow men...

must include total... and unconditional...

forgiveness.

He achieved incredible things.

He was a real man.

Very hard...

on himself and others.

Anyone else in his place would have long since dropped dead.

He had no right to be alive, according to his doctors.

He had only one lung left. He was often feverish and was coughing blood.

But he didn't let it bother him.

From mornng to night - nothing but work...

and prayer.

He himself mixed the whitewash and carried bricks.

He didn't go easy on himself or on others.

It was only... during his second trip to Japan

that the rules were relaxed.

We were even allowed to sweeten our coffee.

And the novices...

were at least given permission to play volleyball.

Youngsters need to have some relaxation.

Is it true that he was murdered in Auschwitz?

He was starved to death...

because of some bastard...

who escaped.

Dear brothers,

we have heard further details

of the terrible suffering and martyr's death of our brother and role model,

Maximilian Maria.

We have the testimony of someone just back from Auschwitz

that, from the hunger bunker for many days,

the sound of voices...

raised in prayer and hymns to Our Lady could be heard.

Let Brother Maximilian...

be a consolation and an example to us all in our hour of trial.

And now let us pray for Brother Maximilian...

in communion with his spirit.

Hail Mary, full of grace The Lord is with thee

Blessed art thou amongst women

And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Pray for us sinners

Now and in the hour of our death

Amen

Glory be to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning is now

and ever shall be, world without end

Amen

All right.

Mark it.

You say he drove people hard.

Why are you so interested in him?

I simply want to understand him.

Well, you know how it is.

Monastery or not, there's a lot to do.

Too little money and too little time, so everybody has to get down to it.

- Did people fear him? - Yes, they were afraid.

But not of any ordinary punishment.

You see, Kolbe's way... was different.

If someone did something wrong or overstepped the mark,

he took the sin upon himself

and did penance by prayer and fasting.

Who wouldn't have felt ashamed by that?

Most people would have preferred a boot up the backside.

I wouldn't have cared about his fasting.

You don't know what you are saying.

When Kolbe fasted, he made the culprit feel... a swine.

- That was bullying! - I wouldn't say that.

Of course, there was an element of bullying

but a kind of... holy bullying.

Holy?

It was just his way of making you sweat.

I wouldn't know. But what are you getting at?

He gave up his life for another. Why did he do that?

Maybe the other man wasn't worth the sacrifice?

That's the whole point.

Which of us has the right to weigh up...

a man's worth?

Every life derives from God...

and Kolbe knew that.

Hail Mary, full of grace

The Lord is with thee

Blessed art thou amongst women

And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus

"It is a very simple task - to labor and tire oneself out...

"until one is considered half-mad... even by one's peers...

"to finally die from exhaustion...

"from exhaustion... for Our Lady."

Isn't that a beautiful ideal to live by?

Is it normal to want to die?

Maybe it is inconceivable...

to want to die for another.

Poets dreamed of such a dream.

So? Was Kolbe a poet?

No, he wasn't a poet, but he... he was so full of love

and that makes a man a poet.

Where does such love come from?

I don't know.

Father Kolbe's love...

was a gift of grace.

It was his mother's upbringing as well.

My mother also gave me a religious upbringing.

She wanted me to be a devout Catholic too

but for all that I didn't become one.

Father Kolbe was blessed with a special grace

even as a young boy.

Have you asked Our Lady what you can do for her?

I have.

- And what did she say? - She asked if I truly desired her.

- Desired her? - Yes.

But she wore two crowns. One white and one red.

What does that mean?

The white crown means I shall stay chaste and the red one means martyrdom.

- Is that what Our Lady said to you? - Yes.

And I said that was what I wanted.

- What happened then? - She disappeared.

It was in church.

- I expect you made it all up. - No!

I saw her and talked to her.

Come, let us pray together.

We'll pray and then you can go out to play with the other boys.

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace

The Lord is with thee

Blessed art thou amongst women

And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Pray for us sinners

Now and in the hour of our death

Amen

Glory be to the Father

The Son and the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now

And ever shall be, world without end

Hail Mary

Full of grace

The Lord

Is with thee

Do you live here?

Yes. Why?

What about Herr Rudolf Tyc, the foreman at the Kleofas mine?

Never heard of him. Some Germans lived here before us.

What Germans?!

Frau Banasik, where is my family?

- Hannes! - Where are my parents?

Ha-Hannes! Hannes is back!

What happened to them?

Sit down.

Just sit down.

Well...

They took away all the Silesian rebels.

Lousy informers tipped them off.

It was just after they'd arrested you.

My whole family is dead?

I still can't believe it...

Hannes!

Mother of God!

What about my brother?

He's given no sign of life, otherwise we'd surely have heard.

You can stay here for a while.

If you stay, you can...

help me with the shop.

Stay here! I mean...

You can stay with us.

After all... we used to be good neighbors.

Yes, I know.

Hannes, wait!

Do you have to leave so soon? You've no-one left.

Here.

Thank you.

Hey!

Don't I know you?

What's your number?

We were in the same unit.

What happened to you?

I was taken to work for IG Farben in Germany.

I managed to run away.

You were very lucky.

Very few got away from Auschwitz.

Do you remember, when we were there someone escaped?

It must have been in 1941.

No.

Come on.

But we survived.

Did you find your family?

My parents were killed. There's my brother... I don't know what happened to him.

Maybe he is with the Polish Army in Italy helping the Allies.

So you do have somebody.

I'm quite alone.

What are your plans?

I don't know. What about you?

How can we go on living after what happened?

Sometimes I think...

...maybe I shouldn't have escaped and... - Stop it! That's crazy.

You're bound to try and stay alive.

But later you begin to think about those left behind.

- Did you know that Franciscan monk? - Who?

Back in 1941.

Kolbe.

Of course.

Of course, I knew him very well.

We were in the same labor unit for a time.

I remember us working together.

I remember it very well.

Once I saved his life, I think.

It's incredible that he survived so long under those circumstances.

He was very sick.

Tuberculosis - he was forever coughing up blood.

Yet he would give away his ration of bread. You know what that meant.

At fi rst, I didn't know who he was. Only later did I fi nd out that he was a priest.

He used to hear confession in the evening.

Who was the man whose place he took?

I don't know, I wasn't present at the roll call.

I was in sickbay with dysentery. When I got out it was all over.

I heard different versions.

There was a young boy, fifteen years old, at the most.

His name was Piotrek, I think.

According to some, he was the one.

Did he survive?

I've no idea.

I didn't see him when the camp was liberated.

Stop!

Hey, you!

- I'm neither religious not wealthy, but... - I've not come to ask for charity.

Are you Herr Wieslaw Olsz�nski?

- Yes, what is it? - Are you coming?

- In a minute. - Sorry, it's not a good time.

We are just celebrating my name day.

Another time then, perhaps. God be with you. Goodbye.

Wait.

What is it about?

Well, just a moment...

You did once write...

in your newspaper...

about your experiences in Auschwitz.

You wrote...

that you only survived by a miracle.

Yes, without a doubt.

It was a miracle.

- Although I don't believe in miracles. - That's why I've come to see you.

As a member of the Friars Minor Conventuals...

Excuse me, it's one of my readers.

This way, please, Father.

- Brother. - This way, please, Brother.

So you are interested in the miracle I wrote about in my article?

Yes.

I am afraid I must disappoint you. I was simply lucky enough to survive.

If I used the word miracle, it was only as a manner of speaking.

Do you know what the chances of survival were?

Practically nil.

We were all intended for the gas chambers.

I assure you I wanted to tell the truth.

Yes.

We Franciscans are gathering all the information we can

about the death of our brother,

Father Maximilian Maria Kolbe, who was...

I won't be long. Just a minute.

Father, don't give him absolution!

I heard about him.

He took someone's place in the hunger bunker.

Yes.

I wasn't in Auschwitz until after that.

I see.

I thought...

Everybody at Niepokalan�v thought that you might be the one -

the man saved by Father Maximilian.

But in this case...

Perhaps you know... who it was?

No. I don't even know if the story is true.

And now may I ask you something in exchange?

How was it possible that the Holy Catholic Church

never took an official stance on Hitler's death factories?

Maybe the church was not firm enough in its official condemnation,

but surely thousands of murdered priests

and Father Kolbe's death speak for themselves.

- One forthe road? - No. You must stay and celebrate!

- Have a drink! - Don't be shy!

What did that Franciscan want?

He thought that I was the man whose life was saved by some priest in Auschwitz.

- Kolbe? - Yes.

The Catholic Church obviously needs a new saint.

- If it's true, then he really is a saint. - A saint!

There were no saints in the camp! The camp was where you waited to die.

What do you know about it?

A saint!

You can't have read what he wrote before the war...

in "Knight of The Immaculata", the "Little Daily".

A load of obscure rubbish.

Chauvinism, bigotry, anti-Semitism.

Corrupting public opinion!

But in the end he laid down his life for another.

We don't even know if it's true. The camp was full of incredible rumors.

And even if it is true... then it was an unusual form of suicide.

Priests don't commit suicide.

- So he didn't run at the perimeter fence. - Why are you so prejudiced against him?

Prejudiced?

I loathe everything this man stood for.

Supposing he'd saved you?

Do you know who Lagerf�hrer Fritsch was?

He was a devil.

And a devil wouldn't have allowed such a deal.

May I ask you something?

Yes, go ahead.

You reprieved a prisoner.

You allowed another man to take the place of a condemned man.

And you want to know why?

- Yes. - They will die one way or another.

But the timing, my dear fellow...

the timing is for me to decide.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

Deliver us from evil.

Have mercy upon us.

Good evening.

I came to tell you something.

Yes?

Go on, just say it.

I came to say goodbye.

What?

- You can't be serious, Hannes! - I'm going away.

How? Nobody is allowed to leave Poland.

I put my name down for repatriation to Germany. My surname could be German.

You... to Germany?!

- From there, I will go to America. - You, son of a Silesian rebel,

and a partisan in his own right?

All those generations who fought the Germans

and you want to disgrace the memory

of your grandfather and father?!

I don't give a shit.

I want to start a new life and forget the past.

It's Auschwitz...

you want to forget.

But that's impossible. You can't.

They write here...

that they have found the guy...

whose life Father Kolbe saved.

He was...

a regular sergeant called...

Gajowniczek.

Listen.

You were in Auschwitz.

What's all this about Kolbe and...

some Gajowniczek?

I don't know.

It has nothing to do with me.

It's a political issue.

The Church is making money from it. He is a candidate for beatification.

Churches are full of his pictures and people are praying to him.

- What of it? - We have to do something about it.

I am absolutely convinced that we can find somebody

who would have done the same in a comparable situation -

a doctor, dying for a patient,

or better still, a teacher who died for his pupils.

Or the other way round.

I've never heard of any such case.

If you look around hard enough, you're sure to find somebody.

I won't go looking for anybody. I won't be involved.

Comrade Olsz�nski...

as a Party member you are obliged to accept Party discipline.

I must warn you that your attitude could have serious consequences.

My attitude and its consequences are entirely my own business.

"We who survived the Holocaust

"see more clearly than previous generations

"that history or fate of individuals is either an absurd or meaningless game of chance

"or based on the assumption that human life is the creation of a higher power.

"I consider its existence an absurd hypothesis."

The difference between martyr and confessor

cannot be ignored.

You have lectured us on how the concept of martyrdom implies

a martyr's death for one's faith.

It cannot be interpreted otherwise.

Clearly, Father Kolbe should have not qualified as a martyr.

He did not die in defence of his faith...

...but in defence of another man. - And...

It was an act of heroism, inspired by religious faith

and therefore a confession of faith.

That qualifies him as a confessor.

Excuse me, Excellency, but that's casuistry.

Does a cruel death inspired by...

...religious belief not qualify as death in defence of one's faith?

We must respect certain traditional formulations.

Real life is more than empty formulas.

- Our age has seen no precedents. - Sure.

Great individuals in the struggle against totalitarianism.

We'd have a surfeit of saints.

By the way, I went to Moriches today and had the papers checked.

Brown's business is solid. Affirm with traditions, founded by his father.

I could buy it in your name. You'd easily pay me back over five years.

- Why does he want to sell? - He is old and wants to retire.

And he has no heirs.

Well, you'd better marry and get some heirs yourself.

Will you find me a wife?

- But make sure she's like you. - You deserve someone better.

Definitely not.

That's why I don't bother looking.

Why do you make yourself out to be worse than you are? That's nonsense.

Sometimes everything seems nonsensical.

Come on, it's time for some food.

I'll just watch the news.

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

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