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)
78 SZABOLCS ANZELM SZUROMI, O.PRAEM. Rákosi himself.21 We have spoken already about the long debate of the secularization of ecclesiastical schools, which had been concluded into the Parliament’ decision on June 16th 1948 (Law 33/1948). However, even the preparatory radical legislation and the arrest of Card. Mindszenty then his imprisonment as sentence of February 8lh 1949, moreover the suppression of the school-catechism on September 5lh 1949 could not make a reassuring negotiation background for the communist regime when they began the discussion with the Catholic Church, in order to prepare a fundamental agreement with it. Based on the result of the census of 1949, 70% of the Hungarian population was Catholic, which meant 6.5 million faithful (the entire population was 9.32 million in that time). This fact could not be ignored by the communist government. Every single high clergy position was under supervision of the Holy See, therefore it was a delicate move if the political power liked to manage legally - moreover canonical validly - any action. This complex situation made uneasy to handle the Catholic clergy on one hand, but on other it caused several - many times extreme - encroachments on clergymen’s rights because impatience of the secular power. These elements explain well why was necessary that long, conflict-full negotiation process between June 28"1 and August 29th 1950 which concluded into the accord between the Government of the Hungarian People’s Republic and the Hungarian Bishop Conference on 30"’ August 1950. Among the inhuman, incorrect and indescribable unmerciful instruments during the terms of negotiation we must remember on those 1720 members of male and female religious orders who were deported by trucks on June 8'h-9'\ 19lh, July 11th and August 14th 1950. But we cannot forget Zoltán Meszlényi, auxiliary bishop of Esztergom too, who had become arrested on June 29,h 1950 and died as martyr on March 4,h 1951.22 The communist regime had calculated well. The new accord with the Hungarian Catholic Church had become an instrument in the hands of the state to issue several new laws and order many actions which reduced the influence of the Church. These decisions were not only unlawful but were against those statements which had been fixed during the eight preparatory sessions of the accord of 1950. We must underline here that even the “accord” cannot be recognized as a valid legal act between Hungary and the Catholic Church, because only the Holy See - or her expressive delegation - is able to ratify such a contract, as considered its context. This argument were mentioned several times by the Hungarian bishops during the negotiation, moreover it was again underlined by József Grősz, archbishop of Kalocsa in his pastoral-letter draft, which had 21 See Gergely, J., Az I950-es egyezmény, 7. 22 Zoltán Meszlényi was beatified on October 31" 2009. Cf. Beke, M., Boldog Meszlényi Zoltán Lajos püspök élete és halála, Budapest 2009.
