HIS-Press-Service, 1979 (4. évfolyam, 13-15. szám)

1979-06-01 / 15. szám

ress-bervice

Special Topic: Religion and Church in Hungary ___________________ No, 15 - Vienna, June 1979

THE FACTS

Pope John Paul II Places Special Emphasis Upon the Rights of the Church in Education and Religious Teaching During an Audience with Hungarian Church Leaders

Hungary's two places of training in Rome for candidates to the priesthood - both of which play an important role ih the education of Hungary's clergy - celebrate jubilees this year: the Collegium Germanicum Hungaricum its 400th, and the Hungarian Papal Institute its 50th year of existence. A number of Church leaders and alumni of the Germanicum came to Rome with Cardinal Lékai for the commemorations, and were received by Pope John Paul II in a private audience on 6 April. The Holy Father heightened the significance of this occasion by giving a lengthy talk on matters concerning the training of Hungary's priests and the education of its youth. It was the importance of the topics and the wealth of content contained in the Pope's statements that set them apart from the usual remarks made in private audiences: In speaking about the conditions of the Hungarian Church, the Pope referred both to the teachings of three Vatican II documents and his own recently promulgated encyclical.

The Pope's Speech

in response to Cardinal Lêkai's words of greeting and in accordance with the occasion at hand, the Pope spoke about the jubilee being celebrated by the Collegium Germanicum Hungaricum. He called to mind its significant history and the important role of the Collegium in the training of Hungary's priests. He made no effort to hide his happiness at Cardinal Lêkai's statement that, after a now lengthy interval, new students would again be coming to the Collegium from Hungary. The Pope also mentioned the jubilee being celebrated by the Hungarian Papal Institute. This institute, which is again opening its doors after two years of renovations, offers living quarters to Hungarian priests interested in continuing their studies in Rome.

After these introductory remarks, the Holy Father directed his attention to the Council's Declaration on Christian Education and quoted the Church's official standpoint: "This sacred Synod proclaims anew a right already made clear in numerous documents of the Church's teaching authority, namely, the Church's right freely to establish and to run schools of every kind and at every level. At the same time, the Council recalls that the exercise of this right makes a supreme contribution