Hungarian Church changes may improve relations

FROM MICHAEL WILSON IN VATICAN CITY
PE PAUL moved last
week to clarify the lines of episcopal authority in Hungary by accepting resignations and making new elevations and appointments.
With the naming of an Apostolic Administretor, 'together with an auxiliary, to Veszprem, every diocesan position in the nation, with the exception of Eger, where Bishop Pal Brezanoczy died last month, is now filled either with a residential bishop or an administrator.
More important, all of these apostolic administrators have been found acceptable both to Rome and to the Budapest government. Since they are all Ad Nutatm Sanctue Sedir (at the pleasure of the Holy See) all could be changed overnight to residential bishops, were an agreement reached
The changes, made last week, are viewed in authoritative circles here in the light of a future ageement which could greatly improve Church-State relations in general, apart from ensuring a
residential apostolic succession.
ROME VISIT Mgr. Jozsef Ijjas, Archbishop of Kalocsa, returned to Hungary on February 10 after conferring with the Pope and a number of Vatican officials on phases of the agreement which has been under discussion for the past three years. The archbishop was reported to have in his pocket the names of those elevated or transferred last week, together with a number of other points involving education, religious orders and finances.
Mgr. Sandor Kovacs, 78
year-old residential Bishop of Szombathely, retired and was replaced, in apostolic adminstrator role, by Fr. Arpad Fabian, who was elevated to the episcopate. Fr. Fabian, as Rector of the Hungarian Pontifical Academy in Rome, is known as a "regime man."
Fr. Sandor Klempa, a non
episcopal apostolic adminstrator of Veszprem, aged 73, was elevated to titular bishop of Basti and retired.
STRENGTH EN ED
His place was taken by Fr. Laszlo Lekai, who was elevated to titular Bishop of Giro Di Tarasio, and the diocesan authority was still further strengthened by the appointment of a young 41-yearold auxiliary. also elevated from the priesthood — Fr. Laszlo Kadar.
In addition to these moves, Mgr. Mihaly Endrey, 66-yearold titular Bishop of Barata, consecrated in 1951 but impeded until recently, since when he has been more or less "hibernating in the wilds," was named auxiliary to Bishop Jozsef Cserhati of Pecs in a strengthening of that residential see.
At the moment, six of the seven vacant residential sees are fi:Ied by apostolic admi n istra tees.
Although Cardinal Mindszenty, Archbishop of Esztergom and Primate of Hungary, lives in exile in Vienna and is replaced by apostolic administrator Emre Szabo, it is unlikely that any agreement to replace him has yet been reached.
ONE VACANT
But it is very possible that the cardinal will voluntarily step down on March 29 this year when he will be 80 years old — Pope Paul's announced cut-off date for active service.
But five of these apostolicadministered sees could be filled overnight by a simple change from the administrative to the residential with the same prelates in authority.
This would then give Hungary ten residential prelates, one of them of the Oriental Church (Mgr. Miklos Dudas) and only one vacant see, that of the late Mgr. Brezanoczy.
Poland's Communist leadership, in a major concession to the Catholic Church, has abolished a law requiring bishops to keep inventories of all Church assets, a church spokesman said in Warsaw this week.
He said: "The State has come to the conclusion that the regulation is wrong, and abolished it."