Folia Theologica et Canonica 5. 27/19 (2016)

SACRA THEOLOGIA - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi, O.Praem., Cardinal Mindszenty and the Hungarian bishops against the communist dictatorship (1947-1974)

FOLIA THEOLOGICA ET CANONICA (2016) 73-82

Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromt, O.Praem.

CARDINAL MINDSZENTY AND THE HUNGARIAN BISHOPS AGAINST THE COMMUNIST DICTATORSHIP (1947-1974)*

Introduction; I. Cardinal Mindszenty’s activity between 1947 and 1950; II. The Accord of 1950; III. 1956 and Card. Mindszenty; IV. Epilogue

Introduction

“(...) the global public opinion, and exclusively we - Catholics - are really sure that Cardinal Mindszenty was vanguard of the religious freedom and legality in Hungary (...) He liked to serve the veritable good of his nation through his fight for the freedom of religion and the Church. The entire World has recognized that courage, when he stood up for his conviction, moreover for the right of faith and religion. We are standing at his side with fraternal loyalty, praying for him, that he may hold on even to the martyrdom (...).” As we can read in the proclamation of Theodor Cardinal Innitzer (December 30lh 1948) archbishop of Vienna in the name of Austria.'

Several new research projects and publications have been composed in the recent one and half decade on Joseph Cardinal Mindszenty, about different aspects and epochs of his life, analyzing many original contemporary written documents. It is also true concerning various questions about the relationship between the representatives of the Hungarian clergy and the communist leadership of Hungary, particularly in the political era since 1947. These new research ac* This article was written in the International Canon Law History Research Center (Budapest) and in the Collegio S. Norberto (Rome); it is a supplemented version of my paper which was presented at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyriski University (Warsaw, October 15"’ 2016).

1 Kattpress (30. XII. 1948.); cf. Lipthay, E., A Mindszenty-per az osztrák sajtó tükrében ( 1948. december - 1949. január), in Török, J. (ed.), Mindszenty József emlékezete (Studia Theologica Budapestinensia 13), Budapest 1995. 43-58, especially 56.