After the end of the September Campaign in 1939, the Catholic clergy joined the fight against the Nazi occupier. This article refers to the area of the Nowy Sącz State Army Inspectorate, which included the districts (and at the same time underground districts) of Nowy Targ, Limanowa, Nowy Sącz and Gorlice. Already at the end of September, refugees began to flock to the southern border of Poland, seeking help in getting to Slovakia, and from there to Hungary and then to France. The rectory in the Gorce and Beskid Mountains became a contact point for refugees. The priests put them in touch with people who took them across the border and, if a waiting period was necessary, provided them with accommodation. From the spring of 1940, underground department and district commands were organized. Priests took part as field chaplains, provided communications and took care of radio eavesdropping. Based on the information they received, they prepared messages for the underground press. Many rectories had radios that were also used by underground soldiers. The policy of persecution and repression used by the Nazis against the Polish nation also affected the Catholic clergy. Many priests were sent to prisons and concentration camps for their underground activities, many became invalids, and many died. However, repression and sacrifices did not discourage them from underground work. When the first partisan units appeared in the Gorce Mountains in the summer of 1943, the rectory provided care for wounded soldiers, food and rest. In the summer of 1944, there was a field chaplain in each unit who provided spiritual comfort and celebrated Holy Mass for the quartered people. In this way, the clergy in the Nowy Sącz inspection district significantly contributed to the fight for the liberation of Poland. Several priests were awarded decorations for this.
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