The Devout Songs („Pieśni nabożne“) of Franciszek Karpiński – the main representative of sentimentalism in Polish literature - is a meaningful collection of his poetic works. It was edited with religious and educational purposes. Beginning from its first edition in Supraśl in 1792, it has been reprinted many times. This collection consists of forty nine pieces, including twenty nine songs and twenty psalms. The poet skillfully incorporated pieces into individual periods of the liturgical year. This article presents an excerpt of the thorough theological and musicological study of The Devout Songs. It first gives a short biography of the poet, then the place of The Devout Songs in the context of his work and finally, emphasizes five songs because of their special theological and liturgical character.

This article shows how five pieces from the cycle of The Devout Songs („Pieśni nabożne”) by Franciszek Karpiński were received. These pieces represent a special theological and liturgical character. Examples of musical notation are an attempt to reconstruct the poet’s ideas. These examples refer to melodies of Church songs to which Karpiński appealed while writing his works. There are also partial examples of the reception of these five songs in prayer books, collection of songs and in vocal tradition. The article also presents certain chosen works translated into Lithuanian. The article invites a better study of the religious works of Karpiński and an interpretation of the phenomenon of the timeless vitality of his songs in the life and tradition of the Church.