Torsello, Davide - Pappová, Melinda: Social Networks in Movement. Time, interaction and interethnic spaces in Central Eastern Europe - Nostra Tempora 8. (Somorja-Dunaszerdahely, 2003)
Time and social networks
80 Davide Torsei Io tion to the ethnic problem on the other. Villagers’ stories vividly portray those priests who gave all their human efforts for the sake of the community and who were eventually chased by the state. One priest in particular, Tamás, was active during the early 1960s. He was a young priest who came to Királyfa from a neighbouring parish. He did not remain in service for long, but he is remembered affectionately by most villagers. Tamás was a good guy. He was one of us. He never tried to build any distance- he was seen in the pub to drink with the workers and then he helped those who had problems. Unfortunately he was inconvenient to somebody else. He could not last long; he was too active in the village and he knew it. But he did not care. This is why the whole village had faith in him. Then one day the town police came and took him away. There was a crowd in the village main square to bid him farewell. He just said: "Don't be sad. Someone better than me will come". But this didn't happen. The old woman who, unwilling to reveal her name, told me this story had to stop to dry the tears in her eyes. She confessed to me that, with the help of two other village women, she had gone more than once to visit Tamás in the monastery where he remained until his death. This happened during socialism. The present priest is also extremely active in spite of his 81 years of age. Because of the lack of Hungarian priests, he administers the service in two parishes, Királyfa and the neighbouring village of Hosszúfalu, which does not have its own priest. In Királyfa masses are said only in Hungarian. The figure of the priest is highly respected and trusted in the community, especially for his personal involvement in social clubs (mainly the scouts), public events and religious festivals such as the village festival6 (19th of November) and the Corpus Christi Day (May) procession. The ceremony of Corpus Christi Day starts in the morning; the church is already crowded a half an hour before the start.7 There are different social groups that play their own
