Disappearing Religious Order in Hungary

The quality of the relationship between the state and churches fundamentally shapes the mood of contemporary society. In Europe, historical churches held secular power for centuries, legitimizing it.

In our modern era, the role of churches is changing, but their most important mission to support the development of society remains unchanged. Churches carry out significant social and educational activities, contributing to society in countless ways. From the state budget, historical churches receive adequate support to finance their activities.

However, financial support does not solve all faith-related problems, and according to some church figures, the use of generous state support is not always good, and not every forint benefits the church’s operation.

Numerous religious orders operate in Hungary, but one, the Carmelite Order, is in severe crisis and on the verge of dissolution.

After six months of deliberation, one of the priests of the community gave a shockingly honest interview to the Szemlélek blog about the internal problems of the Hungarian Carmelite Order, explaining what led to the community, which was ten times larger twenty years ago, now having only three active members in Hungary. One of the reasons is that power spoiled the order.

In the interview, the priest not only talked about how the Hungarian Carmelite Order (whose former monastery in the Castle is now the Prime Minister’s workplace) has dwindled due to the deaths of older members but also about how their financial “over-support” contributed to the order’s disintegration. Of the 8 new monks who joined in the past 20 years, only one remained, and the old ones also left the community one after another, forcing them to close three of their monasteries. He himself plans to move abroad.

The interview is mainly about the internal problems of the order, but there is a “public interest” part where it is also discussed how destructive the generous support received from the government was. The priest cites the renovation of their Angyalföld monastery and church as a concrete example, which, despite the billions received, has been ongoing for eight years. However, in the meantime, the order “disappeared” from behind the investment.

The Huba Street monastery and church were built 125 years ago to serve the poor workers who lived there at the time. “The building was quite dilapidated: it was so cold there during my seminary years that it was 12 degrees in the dining room in winter. We were undoubtedly hoping for a possible renovation, for which we also received the funds from the state. Initially, it was supposed to be a 1-2 year transformation period. Then, of course, problems always arose, there were problems with the foundation, with everything. In principle, the construction should have been completed by the beginning of the International Eucharistic Congress, but the investment has not been handed over even today. Maybe it will happen this fall. I couldn’t sympathize with several things that characterize this renovation because I felt that significant amounts were spent on unnecessary, luxury things.”

In this regard, the monk quotes the words of the order’s founder, Saint Teresa of Avila, who wrote: “I desire that on the day you finish some splendid building, the whole thing may collapse, and provided that you are all in a state of grace, may it bury you all under its ruins. I say this seriously, and I truly ask God for this. It is a very ugly thing, my daughters, if we build large houses from the wealth of poor people. May the Lord not allow this to happen to us! On the contrary, may our house always be poor and small in everything. Let us imitate in this at least as much as we can our King, who had no other dwelling than the stable in Bethlehem, in which He was born, and the Cross, on which He died. These dwellings were certainly not comfortable! That others build large monasteries is none of our business. That is their affair. Their purpose is different, and surely holy goals float before their eyes.”

The priest does not want to leave the order; he would go abroad because “for some time I started to feel that we are no longer led by the Holy Spirit, but by other kinds of interests or money.” But he hopes to return one day.