Folia Theologica et Canonica 2. 24/16 (2013)
RECENSIONS
RECENSIONS 273 tion regarding every activity and case of catholic universities and catholic ecclesiastical faculties. The higher educational law of the Catholic Church was revised by Pope Pius XI (1922-1939) in 1931 which was followed some modifying by Pope Paul VI (1963-1978), nevertheless the final renewal has happened by the promulgation of the Apostolic Constitution Ex corde Ecclesiae (August 15th 1990) by Pope John Paul II. Thomas Frankó is the first author who summarizes in detailed form the entire system of the ecclesiastical higher educational system in Hungarian. This just published work - which was defended as a PhD dissertation at the Pázmány Péter Catholic University (Budapest, Hungary) - is really valuable because there is not only a comparison between the old and the current canonical norms of this topic - analyzing every level of the legal hierarchy - but he dedicates an independent chapter to the priestly formation too (82-139). The Author describes in detail the higher educational religious studies institutes of Hungary, the universal and particular canonical regulations which are in relation of the instruction, including the internal law of the single institutes (142-161). He explains those unique institutionalized forms which are still distinctive within the ecclesiastical system: the affiliation (162-180), the aggregation (181-189) and the incorporation (190-195); moreover, he underlines their importance in the inter-institutional cooperation and the possible issued degrees. Finally, he deals with the introduction and assessment of the bologna-system (196-212). The Author emphasizes the analysis of the license and doctorate instruction too; moreover, he reviews the catholic higher educational norms and evaluation as compared to the Hungarian state law and accreditation condition system. This precise comparison is based on the current text of the statutes, instmctional process, and evaluation prescriptions of the Doctorate School of the Pázmány Péter Catholic University. At the end of this volume is a well elaborated English summary (225-232) and a detailed international bibliography (233-248). Thomas Frankó’s volume - which was published in the Bibliotheca Instimi Postgradualis Iuris Canonici Universitatis Catholicae de Petro Pázmány nomi- natae series - is a real stopgap work, in particular concerning the Hungarian theological higher educational system and its activity. The updated and informative monograph gives attention to those principles, proposals and prescriptions which have taken place in the recent circular letters of the Congregation for Catholic Education. In the same time, it gives a clear picture about the evaluation activity of the accreditation committee of the Holy See (AVEPRO), erected in 2010. These important facts make this book very useful for the catholic higher educational institutes, even to help the supervisors, leaders, senates to prepare well deliberated decisions or strategic plans; but this book is a good guideline for those who would like to understand that catholic higher educational activity which extends to the whole world. Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi, O.Praem.
