The Masons On Mindszenty
The Catholics seemed determined to make out the Mindszenty case as one of pure and simple persecution of "Christianity" by an atheistic Communism. We hold no brief for communists. We have no doubt that they were and are ruthless in their treatment of prisoners; Mindszenty was likely no exception. But we believe the case is not so simple as the Catholics claim. There was a political angle to it as well as a religious. Mindszenty, true to the practices of his church, was seeking political control or Hungary for a regime favorable to Catholicism. That, rather than the pursuit of his duties as a priest, was what brought punishment to him.
In that connection, we thought it might be of interest to see how the Masons of Hungary regard the Mindszenty case. Following is an editorial from the Masonic New Age Magazine, giving the views of Dr. Geza Supka, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Hungary:
"Hungarian Freemasonry, founded two hundred years ago, was, in 1919 when the reactionary Horthy regime came to power, prohibited by the government without giving any reasons. The temples were invaded and plundered by an officers' junta. The Freemasons themselves were persecuted. Thus the Hungarian Freemasons during a quarter of a century were only able to continue their work in secret, braving the dangers.
When early in 1945, Hungary was liberated, the democratic regime restored to the Freemasons their lodge buildings, declared their confiscation illegal, and returned to them their valuable libraries. Since then Hungarian Freemasons are undisturbed to carry on, in accordance with their ancient rites, their work, which is only controlled by their Freemasonic conscience.
It is this Freemasonic conscience which is inducing the Hungarian Freemasons now—apart from any political purpose, purely in defense of objective truth—to address themselves to their brethren abroad to put before them the true position concerning the so-called "Mindszenty case". The Hungarian Freemasons sincerely trust that their brethren all over the world will give more credence to the brotherly word than to partial propaganda.
The Mindszenty case is not a matter of religious or conscientious freedom, but simply a political criminal case. We declare and prove that in Hungary everybody, Roman Catholics as well as any other church or confession, are free to exercise their religion and to partake of the sacraments. The priests preach, christen, marry, and bury. The teaching of religion is compulsory in the schools. The state is spending today larger sums on church purposes than at any time in the past.
Cardinal Archbishop Joseph Mindszenty, however, carried on an expressly political propaganda in the interest of the Hapsburg monarchism against the republic. For this purpose he received very large sums from abroad which he used here for purchasing souls.
The restoration of the Hapsburgs certainly does not fall under the heading of the defense of religious freedom.
The Hungarian Masonic Fraternity has every reason to distrust the resurrection of the Hapsburg regime. The most illustrious Hungarian Freemasons risked their lives in fighting the Hapsburg absolutism. Brother Ignatius Martinovitz and his friends were the martyrs of this cause at the end of the 18th century. Brother Louis Kossuth, Brother George Klapka, and Brother Stephen Turr acquired world fame in the struggle against the Hapsburgs. Louis Kossuth was received with jubilation by the American people when he landed as a simple exile on the shores of the land of freedom.
Whoever fights for the restoration of the Hapsburgs is struggling against the ideals of the universal freedom of mankind.
Archbishop Mindszenty has committed this sin.
All this has nothing to do with the freedom of religion, which is attacked by nobody in Hungary.
Putting their hands upon the Bible, which is lying open on the table of every Hungarian Freemasonic Lodge, the Hungarian Freemasons proclaim to their brethren abroad that this is the truth in the Mindszenty case."