HIS-Press-Service, 1978 (3. évfolyam, 9-12. szám)
1978-02-01 / 10. szám
HIS Press Service No.10. February 1978 Page 4 Lausanne, St.Gallen, Zürich. Scandinavia: ca. 10,000 faithful; pastoral centers in Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm. With a few exceptions, such as that of the Hungarian pastoral activity in Vienna with its rich past, the beginnings of Hungarian pastoral activity in Western Europe date from the years directly after the end of the Second World War. It was then that Prelate József Zägon, representative of the Congregation of Bishops, received from that body the task of organizing the pastoral care of Hungarian refugees scattered about Europe. His activity led to the setting up of the first pastoral centers in Germany and Austria. In 1950, he appointed György Ádám as head of the Hungarian pastoral program in West Germany in order that Ádám might continue the work of setting up and organizing the program. When in 1960 József Zágon was appointed ✓ to a higher office in Rome, György Adam,as his successor, became the Hungarian member of the Consilium Superior and the head pastor of all Hungarian refugees living in Europe. In 1970, the Holy See appointed him representative of all Hungarian Catholics living in Western countries. György Ádám's Activity as Head Pastor The work of pastoral organization constituted an important task for György Ádám - and this under adverse conditions: Rome entrusted him with ever greater responsibilities, but two essential prerequisites for effective organizational activity, namely jurisdictional power and a financial basis for the tasks entrusted to him, remained uncertain. Contrary to the usual custom in Rome, György Ádám received no title or rank - which can be considered a mistake in so far as such an act would have secured him a certain respect from the very beginning. This omission alone demonstrates the newness of the dimension presented by the work of G. Ádám in the area of Church organizational activity, and also how little its significance was recognized in high places. In every individual case, by the founding of each individual pastoral center, by the designation of each pastor, by securing the financial means for each individual pastoral activity, G. Ádám had to begin negotiations at the lowest level and use all his powers of persuasion to convince these bodies of the necessity of the proposals being presented to them. His appointments in 1963 as Papal Chaplain (Monsignor) and in 1977 as Papal Prelate were post-factum recognitions of the significance of his achievements. These accomplishments even received the recognition of the West German government: In 1974, the Social Medal of Bayern's Ministry of Work and Social Order was conferred upon György Ádám and, in 1977, Bayern's Medal of Honor.
