religion

Hungarian bishop apologises over opinion given in support of presidential pardon

Reformed Bishop Zoltán Balog said on Tuesday that he had been asked to give his opinion and agreed with supporting a presidential pardon granted to Endre K but added that the decision was not made by him.

Balog, who is pastoral president of the Synod of the Hungarian Reformed Church, said in a video message that he had made a mistake, he expressed regret and apologised to all affected persons.

In a message posted on reformatus.hu, Balog said he had called a meeting of his church’s officials on Tuesday to discuss “the attacks directed at him and the church”. He added that the meeting had been attended by four-fifth of the officials and it ended in a secret vote where 86 percent of those present stated support for him.

Balog reacted to recent press allegations according to which it had been on his advice that Katalin Novak, who resigned from the post of President of Hungary on Saturday, granted presidential pardon to a former deputy head of a children’s home in Bicske, near Budapest.

Balog said the request for presidential pardon had not been submitted by him but he was one of the persons whose opinion was asked about it.

“Based on preliminary opinions and information about him [Endre K] and his life, I agreed with granting him pardon, but I was wrong and I made a mistake,” he said.

“I apologise to everyone I must apologise to,” he added.

Balog said it was not him who made a decision concerning the request for presidential pardon and added that it was above question that he was clearly rejecting the crime of paedophilia.

“We have full consent about this, too, in the Reformed Church,” he added.

PM’s press chief decries media reports on Orbán, Balog

The prime minister’s press chief on Monday decried “left-wing press reports” saying that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán “also held [Reformed Bishop] Zoltan Balog responsible for the clemency” granted by President Katalin Novák to a man convicted for helping to cover up child abuse. Several news websites alleged on Monday that “Balog’s seat as a bishop may be in danger”. Bertalan Havasi called the reports “fake news” and “stupid”. The government and the prime minister do not interfere with matters of the church, and respect their autonomy, he said.

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House Speaker Kövér: Developing eastern network priority for Hungary

kövér shakiev

Speaker of Parliament László Kövér met his Kyrgyz counterpart, Nurlanbek Turgunbekovich Shakiev, in Budapest on Monday, and said that Hungary continued to see “developing the eastern network” as a priority.

Hungary is ready to step up its ties with Kyrgyzstan, the country’s strategic partner since 2020, he said. Besides shared cultural and historic roots and varied political ties, educational and economic cooperation are also thriving, Kövér said, according to a statement of the parliament’s press office. That cooperation had been boosted by opening embassies in each other’s capitals, and the two countries have set up a joint economic committee headed by the two foreign ministers, he said.

The Organization of Turkic States has opened a representation in Budapest, further boosting cooperation with the region, he added.

Kövér said Kyrgyzstan and Hungary both valued the freedom they had achieved more than 30 years ago, and wouldn’t sacrifice it “for any cooperation”. Hungary envisions the European Union as a community of sovereign states, “despite recent attempts to turn it into a centralised empire”, he added.

Just as Kyrgyzstan, Hungary valued traditional values such as the family, the nation and religious roots, he said. “Based on those shared values, Hungary is ready to represent and help the central Asian country’s attempts to forge closer ties with the EU.”

Shakiev said the energy sector, infrastructure development and tourism offered opportunities for closer cooperation with Hungary. He said a direct Budapest-Bishkek flight would have beneficial effects on those sectors.

Kyrgyzstan sees Hungary, its only strategic partner among EU member states, as “the gateway to the EU”, he said. He thanked Hungary for a grant programme offering stipends for 200 Kyrgyz students wishing to study in Hungary.

The talks were also attended by Deputy Speaker of Parliament Sándor Lezsák and lawmaker Sándor F Kovács, the head of parliament’s Hungarian-Kyrgyz friendship group.

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Hungary will teach the United Nations how to protect persecuted Christians?

Hungary will teach the United Nations how to protect persecuted Christians

The United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief has asked Hungary to share its experience with its policy of aiding persecuted Christians with the rest of the world, a foreign ministry official said on Friday.

Tristan Azbej, the state secretary in charge of aiding persecuted Christians, said at the end of his visit to Washington, DC, that he had spoken with UN Special Rapporteur Nazila Ghanea on the sidelines of the International Religious Freedom Summit.

He said Ghanea had specifically asked that Hungary share its unique experience in using humanitarian aid to assist in the survival of persecuted Christians and other religious groups.

The state secretary said this year’s religious freedom summit had been attended by more countries than ever before, with representatives of persecuted groups, national governments and other types of organsiations present. He said it was a hopeful sign that whereas in the past, such summits had resulted only in statements, this time there was reason to trust that it would yield “tangible action”.

Azbej said Hungary had contributed to the summit by presenting the work carried out by the state secretariat in charge of aiding persecuted Christians since 2016 as well as the operations of the Hungary Helps humanitarian programme which promotes through development policy the cause of the freedom of religion.

Read also:

  • New US travel sanctions against Hungary? – Read more HERE
  • FM Szijjártó: Hungary to contribute to bolstering UN peacekeeping work

Meanwhile, the state secretary said he had taken part in several political meetings in Washington, meeting US political figures, including members of Congress.

He said that in his experience, Hungary and the Hungarian government’s values nearly fully align with those of the American right and Christian conservative American people and organisations. He said one struggle that was once again gaining importance was the fight against anti-Semitism, which, he added, US conservatives also valued. The state secretary pointed out that violent anti-Semitism had reared its head again in the Western world and the US following developments in Gaza.

Azbej said his negotiating partners had all spoken highly of Hungary’s efforts to protect Christians and fight against anti-Semitism, and measures taken in the interest of families, the institution of marriage and the protection of life.

The state secretary said he had also attended the National Prayer Breakfast, whose organiser had highlighted Hungary’s family policy and protection of persecuted Christians to the House Representatives and Senators in attendance, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.

Azbej noted his meeting with Republican Senator J. D. Vance, who had previously voiced his support for Hungary on several issues and had again spoken highly of the steps taken by Hungary in aiding persecuted Christians. Senator Vance also expressed his agreement with Hungary’s pro-peace stance on the war in Ukraine, Azbej added.

The International Religious Freedom Summit was held in Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday, with its opening event held at the Hungarian embassy.

Hungary Helps programme focuses on Nigeria, Nicaragua and Iraq

Hungary helps

This year’s International Religious Freedom Summit opened at Hungary’s embassy in Washington, DC late on Monday.

Speakers at the event called the fight for religious freedom “the most important human rights fight of the present”.

Tristan Azbej, Hungary’s state secretary in charge of aid to persecuted Christian communities, told MTI on the sidelines of the event that it was “a sign of recognition of the Hungarian government’s work in the field” that the embassy was hosting it.

In his opening address, Azbej gave an account of the Hungarian government’s recent efforts to provide aid to persecuted Christians through the Hungary Helps programme, focusing on communities in Nigeria, Nicaragua and Iraq.

Read also:

  • Hungary helps persecuted Christians all over the world

Katrina Lantos, the daughter of late congressman Tom Lantos and co-president of the summit, said Hungary “is setting the pace” in helping persecuted communities, its efforts “manifested in deeds, not only in words”.

Nigerian Bishop Wilfred Anagbe said “every person has to right to exercise their religion and faith,” and referred to Hungary as a “spearhead” in the fight for persecuted Christians.

PHOTOS: President Novák recognises Transylvanian Bishop Kató with Hungarian Order of Merit

bishop kató katalin novák

President Katalin Novák recognised Reformed Bishop Béla Kató, of the Reformed Diocese of Transylvania, the head of the board of the Sapientia Foundation, with the Hungarian Order of Merit, Grand Cross, civil division, at the presidential palace on Friday.

In his laudation at the ceremony, Bishop Zoltán Balog referred to Kató as “a guideline to Catholics and Protestants, to all Christian communities seeking to preserve their Hungarian identity.”

The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, House Speaker László Kövér, and Gergely Gulyás, the head of the PM’s Office.

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Ecumenical prayer week begins in Hungary

Ecumenical prayer week gets under way

Cardinal Peter ErdÅ‘, Hungary’s Catholic leader, stressed the importance of the “helping love” that binds Christians together and touches everyone, at the opening of an ecumenical prayer week at Saint Stephen’s Basilica in Budapest on Sunday evening.

Christians are united by the fact that they are all disciples of Christ and recognise Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, the Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest said.

“And if we are his disciples, then we must follow his teachings,” he added.

Explaining the story of the Good Samaritan, the central parable of the prayer week, Erdo said the message of the parable was that “for the sake of God, we must turn to each other with helping love and we cannot exclude anyone from this love”.

Reformed Church Bishop József Steinbach, head of the Ecumenical Council of Hungarian Churches, said the introduction to the parable of the Good Samaritan, when a lawyer asks Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life, highlighted “that all of our problems … stem from the fact that we have become separated from God and are mortal”.

read also:

  • Hungarian Catholic Church goes against Pope Francis concerning blessing same-sex couples – details HERE
  • State secretary Azbej talks about Christian persecution in Europe, details HERE.

Ecumenical week of prayer

The biblical motto for this year’s ecumenical week of prayer is found in the Gospel of Luke:

‘Love the Lord your God. and your neighbour as yourself.’

The central Gospel presents the contrasts of unity-sharing and love-hatred, but the parable of the Good Samaritan also highlights the importance of hospitality.

According to the information, the material for this year’s event was prepared by the Ecumenical Council of Burkina Faso in Africa, and the final text was produced by members of the international commission set up by the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity of the Vatican.

The ecumenical week of prayer has been held since 1908, when it was first attended by members of the Anglican and Catholic Churches and held in Graymoor, United States. Since 1968, prayer books have been produced for the event and sent around the world to be translated into local languages.

The event also has a long tradition in Hungary.

Center for Fundamental Rights director: Hungary the last place where people can speak their minds

Budapest Hungary people citizen street competitiveness eu

Miklós Szánthó, the director of the Center for Fundamental Rights (Alapjogokért), said Hungary’s “signature cocktail” was the antidote to the “woke movement”. “No war, no migration, no gender – and a refusal to play by the liberals’ rules,” Szánthó said in an opinion piece published on The Daily Caller, a US website.

In the piece, also quoted by Hungarian daily Magyar Nemzet, Szánthó said “Prime Minister Viktor Orbán does upset the delicate sensibilities of the progressive liberals”. “An age of discovery in reverse has started, as intellectuals from Tucker Carlson through Jordan Peterson to Micheal Knowles explore for themselves the Hungarian conservative landscape in search of lessons to learn about politics and winning at the polls.”

“We have always taken our borders seriously and controlled them effectively; respected our religious roots and guarded our state sovereignty and constitutional traditions. The family is the cornerstone of our society. We have also recognized that demographics is not just a matter of sovereignty, but a geopolitical challenge as well,” Szánthó said.

“Hungary is the last place – certainly in Europe – where people can speak their minds. A country still led by elected politicians, not ruled by a bureaucratic deep state,” Szánthó said.

To read the full article, visit https://dailycaller.com/2023/12/31/opinion-this-country-knows-how-to-stop-the-woke-mind-virus-dr-miklos-szantho/

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State secretary Azbej talks about Christian persecution in Europe

azbej tristan

The law on the Hungary Helps humanitarian aid programme has been amended to allow broader Hungarian contribution in economic development and peace-making as of 1 January, the foreign ministry’s state secretary overseeing the scheme told public broadcaster M1 on Wednesday.

“The amendment allows Hungary to strengthen its role and better enforce solidarity with Christian communities as well as to represent the concept that help must be provided where the problems are,” Tristan Azbej said.

He said Christianity had become the most persecuted religion in the world, with some 5,000 followers murdered each year. Around 80 percent of the attacks occur in Nigeria, Azbej said, noting that “Jihadist, Islamist tribes” had mounted attacks on 20 Chirstian settlements and killed some 200 Christians around Christmas.

The state secretary said that the few reports covering the event in the western press had presented it “as an attack by shepherd tribes against farming villages”. “They failed to mention that behind the attacks were according to information Jihadist tribes trained and armed by the Al-Kaida Islamist terror organisation,” he added.

“It is important to break the silence, the disinterest and the denial and to say out loud that this is Christian persecution,” said Azbej, cautioning that “Islamist terrorism is now present in Europe”.

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Hungarian Catholic Church goes against Pope Francis concerning blessing same-sex couples

Pope Francis

Pope Francis approved letting Catholic priests bless same-sex couples on 18 December. However, the Hungarian Catholic Church has a more conservative standpoint and rejects to follow Pope Francis.

Francis’s decision is a radical shift in policy concerning the blessing of same-sex couples. While it maintains the church’s strict ban on gay marriage, it opens a loophole for those living their lives as same-sex couples and seeking church blessing.

LGBTQ+ advocates, of course, want more and slammed the Vatican for treating same-sex couples inferior to heterosexual couples. That is because the blessing has several restrictions. For example, “the blessings cannot use set rituals or even involve the clothing and gestures that belong in a wedding”, AP News wrote.

However, it seems that for the Hungarian Catholic Church, even that is too much. According to the statement of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops’ Conference (HCBC) issued on 27 December, Hungarian Catholic priests are only allowed to bless same-sex couples as individuals and not together. As a result, collective blessing for a same-sex couple continues to remain forbidden in Hungary, Szeretlek Magyarország wrote.

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  • Sziget Festival in trouble: government office investigation over LGBTQ video – Read more HERE
  • The head of the Hungarian National Museum is fired, the whole world is up in arms

Pope Francis blesses Hungarian wine

Pope wine

Pope Francis received the government commissioner for national wine marketing, Pál Rókusfalvy, in an audience and gave his blessing to Tokaj and Hungarian wine in general.

It was not easy to obtain the blessing, which must have delighted the lovers of Ezerjó or Koccintós from the Danube-Tisza area. According to a government statement published by MTI, Hungary wrote to Pope Francis through the Embassy of Hungary to the Holy See, asking for the sanctification of Hungarian wine.

Then, apparently to sweeten the decision, Pál Rókusfalvy sent a total of 180 bottles of aszú to the Vatican in advance from 30 Tokaj winemakers through the Hungarian Wine Marketing Agency. The former radio presenter-turned-wine-government commissioner also took a special gift box of Tokaj Essence with him to the audience in Rome on 27 December, which coincided with the traditional St John’s Day wine consecration.

After the meeting, Pál Rókusfalvy said, “we have come to ask for the apostolic blessing of this Tokaji Aszú, and through it, of Hungarian wine and the work of the God-fearing Hungarian winemakers on the feast of St. John!”

Pál Rókusfalvy said that Tokaji wine is so important for Hungary that it is even in the hymn. On this occasion, Rókusfalvy gave Pope Francis a trilingual print of the hymn.

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PHOTOS, VIDEO: Time capsule found in dome of Hungarian church

Time capsule found in dome of Hungarian church

The time capsule was discovered in the dome of Sarlós Boldogasszony Church, containing a letter that is a century and twenty years old.

In a recent restoration project in Elek, the construction team stumbled upon an unexpected find. The past has once again surprised us in Elek, as reported by lelepo.hu.

Unexpected discoveries

Renovation work on the Sarlós Boldogasszony Church in Elek began at the end of October, funded by a HUF 120 million (EUR 314,173) grant from the Secretariat for Church and Nationality Relations. With this support, they aim to partially restore the copper dome of the church and cover it with new plates. However, as the construction team worked on the building, they unearthed something remarkable. In the process of renovating the dome, they uncovered a hidden treasure—a time capsule containing a century-old letter.

Hidden past

The time capsule was well hidden in the dome of the Sarlós Boldogasszony Church for over a century. It was placed there in 1901 during a renovation led by Pastor János Kramp, who presided over Elek from 1888 to 1913 and advocated for the renewal of the Elek church.

The renovation was deemed necessary because, in the pastor’s opinion, the town of Elek required a larger church. At that time, Elek had a population of ten thousand souls. Since the old church was already in a state of structural shambles, his vision was approved, and the reconstruction of the church of Elek began. The old church was renewed with a transept, and the arch was completely rebuilt. During these expansions and additional constructions, the secret time capsule found its hiding place for the next century in the dome, specifically in the globe under the cross.

Century-old secrets revealed

120 years old letter timecapsule

In the time capsule, a letter was discovered, written by none other than Pastor János Kramp. He greets readers by praising the Lord and details the renovation process, which researchers had assumed had secret donors until now. In the letter, the pastor reveals the names of his helpers who made his visions of the church come true. As it turns out, the Wenkheim family played a crucial role in the revitalisation of the Elek church, particularly Count Frigyes Wenckheim, Count Géza Wenckheim and Count Dénes Wenckheim, who were the primary patrons of the Elek Roman Catholic Church.

A renewed beginning

The plan is to reinstall the dome later this year, with facade renovations continuing in the spring. It is anticipated that a new time capsule will be placed in the renovated dome for future generations. Hopefully, the next discoverers will carry on this charming tradition that inadvertently began in Elek.

  • Read about another planned construction, that has the country shaken up HERE.
  • Read our article about a look in the past of Budapest HERE.

Hungary condemns attack on Catholics in Philippines

Philippines Catholics bomb

The foreign minister on Sunday issued a condemnation of a bombing during a Catholic service in the southern Philippines city of Marawi which took the lives of four people and injured 50 earlier in the day.

Hungary is providing 5 million forints in emergency relief to the relatives of the injured and deceased through the Philippines Catholic Charity, Peter Szijjarto said on Facebook.

Hungary, he said, always stood up for Christians around the world. “We strongly condemn the attack on Catholics practising their religion … on the first Sunday of Advent,” he wrote.

The attack took place in the city with the country’s largest Muslim population.

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  • Companies in Hungary hunt for Philippines and Indonesians: they neither drink nor flee to the West – Read more HERE

PHOTOS: Indian Sun God worshipped at festival held in Budapest

Celebration of the Indian Sun God in Budapest

This year a significant Indian festival Chhath Puja was celebrated by the Indian community in Budapest, Hungary.

On 19-20th November the Chhath festival celebration happened in Budapest displaying vibrant enthusiasm and participation from the local Indian community. This is an Indian festival primarily observed in the northern Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and in parts of Nepal. This festival is dedicated towards the worship of Sun God. This festival comes six days after another big Indian festival Diwali. People gather at the banks of river with holy dips in water, offering prayers, and making offerings of fruits, sweets, and homemade delicacies. The festival holds cultural and spiritual importance, symbolizing purity, faith, and the offering of gratitude to the Sun God for sustaining life on Earth. This brings rich cultural heritage of India to Hungary spreading love with the belief of the world is one family (Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam).

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Here are some photos:

Hungary, Italy join forces to help persecuted Christians

Hungary helps persecuted Christians

The most effective and humanitarian course of action in crisis regions is to give people an opportunity to stay in their homeland or return there, the state secretary for aiding persecuted Christians told a conference in Vatican City where he presented achievements of the Hungary Helps programme and met Italian officials.

On the sidelines of the conference, Tristan Azbej met Davide Dionisi, the Italian special envoy for the protection of religious freedom, and highlighted the commitment of Italy and Hungary to ensuring religious freedom.

“The world often fails to see that Christians are the largest group among those persecuted for their faith,” Azbej said.

Hungary and Italy are mulling cooperation to explore possibilities to represent the issue jointly, as well as the most effective way to help persecuted communities in Africa, the Middle East and other places through humanitarian and development programmes, he said.

Hungary Helps has helped some 1.5 million people

Since its inception in 2016, the Hungary Helps programme has helped some 1.5 million people through 300 programmes in 50 countries of the world, Azbej, who also heads the scheme, said.

Some 300 million people are suffering persecution for their Christian faith worldwide, Azbej said. One in five Christians is persecuted in Africa, he said. Fully 89 percent of the Christians killed for their faith last year, 5,000 people, were killed in Nigeria, he added.

Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu of Nigeria, the secretary of the Section of First Evangelization of the Dicastery for Evangelization, thanked Hungary for aiding Christians worldwide. Hungary is contributing to the improvement of ties between Africa and the West, he said.

Read also:

  • Hungary helps Gaza refugees with a lot of money – Read more HERE
  • Hungary helps persecuted Christians all over the world

Italy-Hungary cooperation:

New bishop of the Serbian Reformed Church, László Harangozó, was consecrated

harangozó serbian reformed church

The consecration of a new bishop took place on Saturday at the Reformed Christian Church in Serbia. The recently elected Bishop, László Harangozó, received blessings from all the Reformed bishops of the Carpathian Basin, and a welcome speech was delivered by the President of the Republic, Katalin Novák, in Bácsfeketehegy, Serbia.

President of the Republic, Katalin Novák, attended the Episcopal Consecration Service of the Reformed Christian Church in Serbia, which occurred on Saturday in Bácsfeketehegy.

During her speech, Katalin Novák stressed that Christians increasingly seek answers from God regarding the boundaries of violence and terror, actions to take when the security of communities and families is threatened and how to uphold God’s commands in this world. “The solution to all these questions can be found in unity. It is imperative that members of a community are so tightly connected to one another that they cannot be separated,” she emphasised.

“Just as a mother clings to her child, the Motherland can also cling to its children, including Hungarians beyond its borders, as now is the time for Hungarians to support one another,” declared the President.

János Nagy, State Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, read Viktor Orbán’s welcoming letter during the bishop’s consecration. The Prime Minister expressed that “those who have faith can achieve and persevere beyond their strength.”

According to reformatus.hu, László Harangozó, the newly elected Bishop of the Reformed Christian Church in Serbia and Pastoral President of the Synod of the Church, asked the community to pray for the realisation of the good wishes expressed during the service and for the vitality of a community that aspires to truly thrive.

Serbian Reformed Church Harangozó
Photo: reformatus.hu/Attila Zeneka

Zoltán Balog, Bishop of the Reformed Diocese of Dunamellék, Pastoral President of the Synod of the Reformed Church in Hungary, and Executive President of the General Convention, delivered the sermon.

As reported earlier, a survey indicates that three-quarters of Hungarians support Christian culture.

 

Service held at Dohány Street Synagogue to show solidarity with Israel

Dohány Street Synagogue

A service of solidarity was held at Budapest’s Dohany Street Synagogue to express support for Israel recently attacked by the Hamas terrorist organisation, on Wednesday evening.

At the service, Andor Grósz, head of Hungarian Jewish federation MAZSIHISZ, said “the mourning and grief of the Jewish community is shared by Hungarian society.” He said the inhuman terrorist attack launched on the holiday of the Torah had not hit Israel and Jewish people only: “they not only took human lives but brutally violated the Ten Commandments, a gift of the Torah to mankind.”

“The Jews, non-Jews, Christians here want to pass a world to their successors that is not ruled by terror,” Grósz said.

Israeli Ambassador to Hungary Yakov Hadas-Handelsman thanked the Hungarian nation, church leaders, and politicians, for their solidarity with his country. Israel is at war, the ambassador said, but warned that it was not only Israel’s problem as the attacks could eventually reach Europe, too. He noted that groups supporting the terrorists had celebrated the attacks across the world. He voiced confidence that Israel would win the war. The Jewish community of Israel has a secret weapon: they have no other place to go and will protect their homeland at all cost, he insisted.

Róbert Frölich, the chief rabbi of Hungary, said the war was not just a cause for Arabs and Jews but “for all of us that live on this planet and consider ourselves human … it has not just been an attack on a country: terrorism and hatred has declared war against civilisation.”

The service, organised by MAZSIHISZ and the Jewish community of Budapest (BZSH), was attended by President Katalin Novák, Cardinal Péter Erdő, the head of the Hungarian Catholic Church, Bishop Zoltán Balog, head of the Reformed Church, Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, United Hungarian Jewish Community head Slomo Koves, and other dignitaries.

The 2022 census results are out: here are the most important details

The 2022 census results are out here are the most important details
The Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) has revealed the detailed results of the 2022 census, providing interesting data about the knowledge of languages, ethnicity and religion of Hungarians.

Population and Demography

A total of 9,603,634 people live in Hungary. The gender distribution is nearly equal, with 1,000 men for every 1,078 women. The number of people currently employed has increased from 3.9 million to 4.7 million compared to 2011 when the previous census was held. According to 24.hu, Marcell Kovács, the project coordinator of the census, revealed that the decline in the number of marriages is slowing down, with a 12% increase in marriages under the age of 30. Additionally, 73% of women have at least one child.

Knowledge of Foreign Languages

The number of young English speakers has nearly doubled. More than 50% of people in their 20s speak English, ranging from beginner to advanced levels, as highlighted by G7. Overall, around a quarter of the entire population has some level of English knowledge, marking a significant increase compared to 2011 (16%) and 2001 (less than 10%). German is the second most popular language, primarily spoken by people aged between 30 and 39.

Religion and atheism

There has been a large drop in the Catholic population. The question about religion was optional, with 60% volunteering to answer. Among the respondents, 50% identified themselves as Catholic, 16% as members of the Reformed Church, and only 3.1% belonged to the Lutheran Church. The most noticeable change compared to the previous censuses in 2001 and 2011 is the decrease in the number of Catholic people. In 2001, approximately 5 million people claimed to be Catholic, in 2011 it was 3.7 million, and in the last year, it plummeted to 2.9 million. The Hungarian Catholic Bishops’ Conference expressed gratitude to everyone who identified themselves as Catholic, noting that international tendencies are reflected in the census statistics.
The Hungarian Atheist Association criticised the fact that atheist individuals could not mark their status in the “religion” section of the questionnaire, unlike in 2011 when there was a separate option. They turned to the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights who rejected their complaint without investigating the merits, ruling that it was okay that KSH only inquired about the respondents’ religious beliefs. However, as rtl.hu reported, their decision was successfully challenged by the Hungarian Atheist Association: the Metropolitan Court ruled that the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights could not have refused to investigate the complaint and ordered them to conduct a new procedure.

2022 Census on Minorities

There has been a sharp decrease in the Roma population, while the number of Ukrainians has surged. Back in the days, Hungary used to be a multicultural country with multiple minorities, but the Trianon Peace Treaty in 1920 significantly changed the country’s demographics. It is interesting to note that the number of Roma has dropped to slightly more than 200 thousand compared to 2011 when the number was 350 thousand. According to Telex.hu, the Roma population did not actually decrease; many Romas chose not to disclose their origin.
In 2022, more than 142 thousand Germans resided in Hungary, which is around 40 thousand less than 11 years ago. Historically, more German people lived in Hungary, but after the Second World War, many of them were forced to leave the country. The number of Ukrainian people has also considerably risen from 7,396 to 24,609. This increase is not solely attributed to the war between Ukraine and Russia; many Ukrainians had been working in Hungary before Russia’s invasion.
Author: István Hegyesi

The mage trials: the history of the 13th century Hungarian Inquisition

inquisition

The 13th century is one of the best-documented periods of the Hungarian history. There are many written documents concerning the Mongol invasion of Hungary or the Golden Bull issued by the legendary Andrew II. However, not many people have heard of the mage trials that happened during those times.

Promotions writes that the story of the Kassai Codex would make the most heinous crime thrillers seem like lighthearted fairytales. Mátyás Jenő Fehér, a Dominican monk, found the codex in the last years of the Second World War in Kassa. In the book, he found astonishing case histories, containing information almost unknown to the general public: namely, the history of the Inquisition in Hungary in the 13th century.

The Hungarian Inquisition worked a bit differently than in Western Europe. While in the West, the church burned many heretics and witches, in Hungary, it worked much less effectively. But who were these mages still active in the 13th century, and who brought them to trial?

Christian spirit and mages

By the 13th century, the foundation of the state by St Stephen in the Christian spirit was still incomplete, despite the fact that the Catholic Church had been spreading for 200 years in Hungary. In addition, some people still practiced the “old faith”. The most important representatives of the old faith were the so-called mages. According to the written documents, their main activity was healing.

The documents also say that mages did this activity highly efficiently. Healing at that time consisted of praying in the Western countries. However, mages took urine sample from the patient, completely mapped their environment, and examined their bodies – similarly to modern day doctors. Mages made various potions and creams that had healing effects.

Inquisition in Hungary

The most striking thing about the story is that Hungarian mages did heal people, and the descriptions suggest that jealousy was often the root of lawsuits. A peculiarity of the Inquisition trials was that the accused could not even speak, the defence consisted solely of witnesses. Mátyás Jenő Fehér exmained 55 trials and he found that not a single witness testified against the mages. They did nothing but good, healing, teaching, leading town celebrations – even the royal bishop came to them in case of illness. Mages never accepted money, they were only invested in serving their people.

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