Exhibition “The Priest Who Was Not Afraid”

Fr. Gerard Bratek was born on December 29, 1933, in Nowy Wiśnicz, into the large family of Maria and Baltazar Bratek. In 1956, he graduated from the Major Seminary in Tarnów. He spent the first years of his priesthood (1957–1960) in Ropczyce, focusing primarily on pastoral work with children and youth; he taught catechism, organized choirs, altar server groups, and rosary circles, and initiated excursions, theatrical performances, and sporting events. He also supported the expansion of St. Anne’s Chapel in Chechły—a project deemed illegal by the communist authorities. When religious instruction was removed from schools, he taught it at the local Catechetical Center. Consequently, on October 5, 1960, he was arrested by the militia and spent approximately seven weeks behind bars. The Security Service (Służba Bezpieczeństwa) regarded him as one of the most defiant clergymen. After his release, he was sent to Nowy Sącz. He first served at St. Margaret’s Parish, and from 1963, he led a new rectorate at the chapel of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (the "White Convent"). There, he established pastoral facilities, a rectory, and a classroom for religious instruction, laying the foundations for what would later become the Parish of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. Throughout his time in Nowy Sącz, he was kept under surveillance by the security apparatus.

On June 22, 1966, the priest sustained serious injuries in a road accident; he passed away on June 29 in a hospital in Nowy Sącz. The priest was laid to rest in the cemetery on Rejtan Street. Crowds of the faithful attended the funeral rites on July 2.
On June 21, 2026—the 60th anniversary of the clergyman’s death—a commemorative plaque was unveiled in the Church of Our Lady Immaculate.