Education as Integral Evangelization According to Blessed Marcelina Darowska (1827–1911)

Education, understood as the process of forming the human person in their integral dimensions—spiritual, intellectual, moral, and social—occupies a key place in the reflection on the evangelizing mission of the Church. This article presents education as a form of integral evangelization based on the thought and activity of the Polish religious sister and mystic Blessed Marcelina Darowska (1827–1911). The initial part outlines the development of the concept of “integral evangelization” in the teachings of the Catholic Church and its relation to personalist pedagogy. The following section presents the figure of Blessed Marcelina Darowska and her educational initiative, situated in the 19th-century socio-historical context of partitioned Poland. The main section of the analysis focuses on Darowska’s concept of education as the formation of the whole person, encompassing the discernment of talents, intellectual, religious, and social development, and preparation for responsible family and civic roles. It also considers to what extent this vision of education can be identified as an expression of integral evangelization in accordance with the criteria of contemporary Church teaching. This article further presents the development of Blessed Marcelina’s educational work and its impact on forming generations of women conscious of their identity. The conclusion offers a reflection on the relevance and potential of this educational method in the context of contemporary social and religious challenges, particularly in the work of new evangelization.