Recently, a friend invited me to a special private screening of “Triumph of the Heart,” a remarkable new biopic about the martyrdom of St. Maximilian Kolbe, the Polish Franciscan priest, media evangelist, and prolific writer who was arrested by the Nazis and imprisoned in the notorious concentration camp at Auschwitz.
The film opens with the famous moment when Kolbe chooses to lay down his life for a stranger. After a prisoner escapes from the camp, the Nazi commandant retaliates by condemning 10 random inmates to a slow death by starvation. One of the doomed men collapses in tears. He sobs, “My wife! My children!” Kolbe boldly steps forward and offers himself in exchange.
To the astonishment and consternation of the commandant, Kolbe survived in the starvation bunker without food or water for 14 days before being murdered by lethal injection. During this time, he comforted his fellow prisoners, leading them in prayer and singing hymns together.
“Triumph of the Heart” is a triumph of filmmaking. For days after the screening, I found myself pondering the spiritual lessons that Maximillian Kolbe’s extraordinary life and heroic death can teach us eight decades later.
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Worldly success is fleeting.
At a key moment in the film, Kolbe makes an honest examination of his conscience and remembers an occasion when an influential cardinal admonished him for his pride, saying: “You seem to forget that the Word of God became man, not a magazine.”
Before his arrest by the Gestapo, Maximilian Kolbe was an acclaimed pioneer in Catholic multimedia evangelization. He founded publishing organizations that produced pamphlets, newspapers, and magazines in both Europe and Asia, and embraced the emerging media of radio to make pro-Catholic broadcasts. But at Auschwitz, Kolbe was stripped of all the success and honors he once boasted. He was confronted with the truth that all such worldly achievements are fleeting. Sooner or later we must let them go.
Like Kolbe, my calling is to share the Catholic faith through media. I’ve spent the last five years of my life writing articles, recording podcasts, and publishing books. But I’ve also discovered how ephemeral success can be. The satisfaction that comes with seeing my work in print doesn’t last, and I find myself chasing the next achievement. When I seek out a relationship with God in prayer, and devote more time to my loved ones and friends, I discover a happiness that abides.
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Self-giving love is essential.
Stripped of everything and imprisoned in the dark, cold, and filthy starvation bunker with nine other desperate men, Maximilian Kolbe managed to sustain both his own sanity and that of his companions to the very end. He embraced hope and rejected despair because he knew, like St. Francis of Assisi, that perfect joy is not found in success or riches, but in self-gift — the same self-emptying love with which Christ loves us.
Jesus said to his disciples, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life” (John 12:24-25). Sacrificial love is the one essential in this earthly life, because, unlike all worldly goods and achievements, it is not fleeting or impermanent. It is fruitful and life-giving in eternity.
While I’m not likely to find myself in a situation like Kolbe’s, where I’m called to willingly sacrifice my life to save someone else from death, I can still seek out simple, everyday opportunities to cultivate self-giving love. Whether it’s putting aside my plans to help a sick family member or donating useful household items to a charity that helps the poor, these small acts of self-gift foster in me a greater detachment from worldly goods and accolades.
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Heaven is the goal.
“Triumph of the Heart” has one of the most striking and moving depictions of heaven I’ve ever seen on film. During the end credits, heaven is portrayed as an exuberant Polish wedding feast, complete with festive music, laughter, dancing, and jubilant reunions.
Like many Christians, I often struggle picturing heaven as anything concrete. But Scripture is replete with passages that describe heaven as a wedding feast. St. John records in the Book of Revelation: “Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb” (Rev 19:9).
As I left the theater, I began to reconsider my priorities — What’s the goal of my life? Is it becoming a best-selling author? Landing the perfect job? Accumulating more stuff to fill my apartment? Making enough money to be self-sufficient? Too often I’ve found myself unconsciously living by the terms of these goals instead of the one goal that truly matters — getting to heaven.
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A transformative film.
Even if you’re already familiar with Maximillian Kolbe’s story, “Triumph of the Heart” is a rare masterpiece of cinema not to be missed. Be forewarned, this is a disturbing movie at times, but I appreciate the filmmakers’ bold decision not to sanitize Kolbe’s martyrdom or shy away from the hideous cruelty and brutality of Nazi atrocities.
“Triumph of the Heart” is an unflinching meditation on evil, suffering, forgiveness, faith, and sacrificial love. It is one of those rare movies that changes you, inviting you to reflect deeply on the meaning of life and the essential importance of faith. “Triumph of the Heart” is currently showing in limited theaters nationwide. In my opinion, it deserves a wide release.
