In the footsteps of the legacy of Hungarian priests of the Society of Divine Word (SVD) in the Philippines
The Embassy of Hungary in Manila together with the Societas Verbi Divini (SVD) Philippine Central Province, following an earlier postponement due to the quarantine protocols, organized a memorial service in honor of the five Hungarian SVD confreres in the SVD Cemetery Christ the King Mission Seminary, Quezon City on 26 June 2020.
A plaque to honor the Hungarian SVD priests who served in the Philippines was also unveiled during the ceremony and a memorial pamphlet published for this occasion as a remembrance for the attendees.
You can download the memorial pamphlet from here.
H.E. Dr. József Bencze, Ambassador of Hungary in the Philippines told in his message during the event:
“As Ambassador of Hungary, I consider it one of my important mission tasks to work with my colleagues in the Philippines to find the footprints and legacies of the Hungarian predecessors who helped to improve the spiritual, health, educational and social situation of the inhabitants of the country. They taught, built schools, hospitals, churches, preached the Word of God where it was most needed. Such were the SVD fathers in the Philippines,
Fr. Johannes Rácz, Fr. Victor Tunkel, Fr. Lajos Bellér, Fr. Ludwig Halász, and Fr. Joseph Werner, who were in the service of God for the rest of their lives and served a very active, successful part of their mission in the Philippines. Two of them are buried here in the SVD cemetery in Quezon City.
The plaque to be placed in the cemetery should also proclaim the indispensable service of the Hungarian Fathers and preserve their memory for the next generations. It is a pleasure to know that to this day, many remember the service of Hungarian priests in the Philippines. I rest assured by the fact that there are still SVD missionaries who connect the two countries such as Brother Béla Lányi in Cebu City and Father Elmer Hernandez in Hungary. We shall always remember them.”
