26 December 1948 A.D. WWII Resister Cardinal Mindszenty Arrested by
Soviet Agents
Graves, Dan. “Arrest of the
Valiant Cardinal Mindszenty.” Christianity.com. May 2007. http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1901-2000/arrest-of-valiant-cardinal-mindszenty-11630796.html. Accessed
24 Dec 2014.
Freedom to practice religion was
a rare commodity in Hungary during the Nazi occupation and under the Communist
tyranny that followed it. Any religious leader who resisted either of these
totalitarian regimes was in danger of life and liberty. One who was pinched in
the jaws of both states was Jozsef Mindszenty. A bishop in the Roman Church
during the Nazi occupation, he was imprisoned during 1944 and 1945 for
protesting the arrest of Jews.
After World War II, Mindszenty
was made a Cardinal of the church. As the highest official of the Church of
Rome in Hungary, he became a target of Communist harassment, especially when he
resisted nationalization of Polish church schools. He called churchgoers to
boycott government newspapers and radio stations, because the media carried
propaganda and lies.
Late in 1948, the cardinal
realized he was about to he arrested. He scribbled a note to his mother:
"I have taken no part in any conspiracy of any kind. I shall not resign
from my Episcopal see. I shall not make a confession. But if despite what I now
say you should read that I have confessed or resigned, and even see it
authenticated by my signature, bear in mind that it will have been only the
result of human frailty. In advance, I declare all such actions null and
void."
On this day, December 26, 1948,
Mindszenty was arrested in Budapest by the Soviet stooges who governed the
nation. Accused of treason, the cardinal was convicted in a show trial and
given a stiff sentence the following February.
For twenty-three years he would
suffer imprisonment and isolation. During that time he was unwavering in his
love for God.
The Hungarian Revolt of 1956
brought a change in his circumstances. Local peasants, armed with hoes,
pitchforks and other farm tools demanded freedom for Mindszenty and food for
the people. The soldiers guarding the cardinal gave him up.
Shortly afterward, Mindszenty
appeared at the United States Embassy in Budapest, requesting asylum. The
soldiers on duty were not sure what to do but decided to admit him. Washington
telexed a few moments later to say every courtesy should be extended to the
cardinal. Cardinal Mindszenty remained in the embassy fifteen years. In 1971,
Pope Paul VI ordered him to Rome.
Free at last, Mindszenty toured
among Hungarian refugees, but the Vatican placed a gag on his words. Rome had
cut a deal with the Hungarian Communists. But Mindszenty wasn't the sort of man
to remain silent. Asked to resign, he refused to do so, upon which the pope
relieved him of his responsibilities. The cardinal died in exile in Vienna in
1975. His eulogy accused both the Communists and the Vatican of forcing him
into needless suffering. For their part, his opponents accused him of fascism
and antisemetism.
Bibliography:
3. Schuster, George Nauman. Religion behind the Iron Curtain. New
York: Macmillan, 1954.
4. Various internet articles on Mindszenty.
Last updated May,
2007.
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