Gulyás Katalin – Horváth László – Kaposvári Gyöngyi szerk.: Tisicum - A Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok Megyei Múzeumok Évkönyve 20. (2011)
Történelem - Puskás Zoltán: Szolnoktól Paokingig (P. Lombos László és a kínai magyar ferences misszió)
PUSKÁS ZOLTÁN: SZOLNOKTÓL PAOKINGIG 2000 A kommunista valláspolitika és a katolikus misszionáriusok helyzetének alakulása Kínában az 1940-50-es években. In: Mítoszok és vallások Kínában (szerk. HAMAR Imre). Budapest. 161-174. 2004 Magyar misszionáriusok Kínában. In: Vigília 2004/7. http://www.vigilia.hu/archiv.html VILÁGVALLÁSOK 2009 Világvallások A-Zs. Akadémiai lexikonok. Budapest. VOIGT Vilmos 2004 A vallási élmény története. Budapest. WEBER, Max 2007 Világvallások gazdasági etikája. Budapest. YATES, Timothy 1996 Christian Mission int he Twentieth Century. Cambridge. Képek, illusztrációk forrása: APAP 2005 Ferences Levéltár, Budapest www.ofm.hu Zoltán Puskás From Szolnok to Paoking (László P. Lombos and the Hungarian Franciscan mission in China) Two Hungarian missions worked in China in the first half of the 20 t h century. In the north Jesuits founded an independent centre in Taming town (1936) of Hopej province, and in the south Franciscans got their own mission in Paoking, Hunan province. The Hungarian fraters arrived there in the winter of 1929, where the Franciscans of Tyrolese (Austria) province got them ready for the missionary work adjusted to the Chinese peculiarities. The Holy See gave the rank of apostolic prefecture to the Paoking centre in 1938, then handed over it with the outer stations to the Hungarian missionaries of the Franciscan Province of János Kapisztrán. The fraters' work was helped by the nuns of the Sisters of Mercy of Szatmár, who carried their generous work from 1933 until 1952. After the proclamation of the People's Republic of China (1949) all the foreigners had to leave the country, therefore the missionary work ceased, but it provides significant lessons for the researchers of the present. The voluntary Hungarian Franciscan mission, as this work tried to point out, bore important individual features. The Franciscans, from their founder St. Francis, was an evangelizer missionary order. But yet until that point they propagated the Christian doctrines only in Hungary and the neighbouring regions. As on effect of the Trianon concussion, which complemented with the thoughts of 'Turan idea' they were willing to open to far-away missions, searching for the eastern relatives and allies for Hungary. The 'missionary verve' drove the Hungarian Franciscans as far as China joining the one of the greatest enterprise of the Catholic Church. With the propagation of the faith the missionaries took not only the European but also the Hungarian culture to the Chinese towns and peasant, who lived in very poor conditions and often they did not know anything on the external world. Nowadays no one challenge that dialogue is necessary and we must get acquainted with religions. Present study tries to examine that what circumstances and what possible 'scenes' were vital for the missionaries to be able to approach the natives and their results. According to the writings of P. László Lombos apostolic prefect and his brethren the basically complex missionary task connected not only to the propagation of the faith and evangelization but also included the field of educational, social (caritative) work in conformity with the Franciscan spirit. Naturally the full and detailed elaboration of the missionary work cannot be undertaken in the frames of the present thesis. The survey and breaking down of the correspondence can take years. This study was written by the aim of raising the issue, and does not intend providing solutions for the emerging problems. It can add further information to forming effective dialogue between religions. I am of the opinion that change does not necessarily abolish the experience of the elders. The 'change of paradigm' can be faithful to the past, or at least can learn from the experience of the elders which can take place among the answers searched for under the new challenges. The Hungarian Franciscans did not looked for confrontations, they rather strove to shape good relations with their Chinese 'brothers', and as a serving community they helped the needy in the missionary area and tried to establish the later 'dialogue' with the organization of provision and education. They imagined the possibility of inculturalization on the basis of tolerance and selfless help and not with dictatorial means. Humility is the characteristic of their work, which is the deepest base of all civilized dialogue. In the meantime they made the locals acquainted not only with elements of the Christian European but also the Hungarian culture, which however much we may think it is an important channel of finding each other and mutual understanding of two civilizations. And all of these happened in the hardest decades of the 20 t h century. However much the after-ages may judge the Christian missions in general they gained imperishable merit in field of getting acquainted with other people's culture. Hungarian fraters also took an important part of this kind of 'mission' with their solidarity and generous sacrifice.
