Boros György (szerk.): Értesítő a Nemzetközi Unitárius Conferencziáról (Kolozsvár, 1897)

A Nemzetközi Unitárius Konferenczián tartott beszédek és felolvasások - Beszédek és felolvasások

12J X

this time the king, who was crowned king of Hungary, became prince of Transylvania as well.

Leopold 1._iji his edict of vJdWO/promisod to observe

the constitution of Transylvania and not to interfere with the equal rights of the four acknowledged religions namely Roman Catholic Calvinist, Lutheran and Unitarian. He assured them also of the undisturbed possession of all their goods and properties, which they possessed at that time.

But to confine ourselves on this occasion to the history of our Church alone, I have to remind you here that all assurances given to the Unitarians in that edict remained unobserved, for after a violent occupation of all their properties, they were exposed to shameful persecutions in spite of the equal rights assured to the four acknowledged religions.

Let it suffice to call to mind here, that the Unitarian College at Kolozsvár as well as the greater number of their Churches, were taken away from them and it was pmlubited^ha.iiuijd, new ones..

Unitarians were now refused government offices, and in case they were allowed to hold them, they were restricted to the lower ones. In some respect, other Protestant Churches also shared this misfortune with them. But, the latter, on account oi their more anthoritative position and greater numbers, could not be so easily oppressed as the Unitarians.

The Emperor Joseph II. having been a liberal thinker, issued an oder of religious toleration in 1781 under which the Unitarians gained a little more favourable position. During his reign most of our present Churches were built anew.

Now, in Hungary proper, there scarcely remained a single Unitarian.

It is really marvellous how we were able to maintain our position, for with the exception of a short time