Ján Chryzostom Korec
| His Eminence Ján Chryzostom Korec S.J. | |
|---|---|
| Cardinal, Bishop Emeritus of Nitra | |
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| Church | Roman Catholic |
| Archdiocese | Nitra |
| Installed | 1990 |
| Term ended | 9 June 2005 |
| Predecessor | Ján Pásztor |
| Successor | Viliam Judák |
| Other posts | Cardinal-Priest of Santi Fabiano e Venanzio a Villa Fiorelli |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1 October 1950 |
| Consecration | 24 August 1951 |
| Created Cardinal |
28 June 1991 by John Paul II |
| Rank | Cardinal |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
22 January 1924 Bošany, Czechoslovakia (Present day Slovakia) |
| Nationality | Slovak |
| Motto | Ut Omnes Unum Sint |
| Coat of arms |
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Ján Chryzostom Korec, SJ (born 22 January 1924 in Bošany) is a Slovakian Jesuit Cardinal and Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Nitra.
Jan Korec was born to a working-class family. His father Ján Korec and his mother Mária Drábiková were laborers at a local leather factory in Bošany. There were two older siblings: brother Anton, who was imprisoned during the first wave of communist persecution in 1951, and sister Štefánia. Korec's family lived a humble life with limited resources.
Korec entered the Society of Jesus in 1939 and studied Catholic theology and philosophy. During the order's suppression by the Communists, he was forced to discontinue his philosophical studies. He entered the priesthood in 1950. One year later, at the age of twenty-seven, he was secretly consecrated a bishop by Bishop Pavol Hnilica on 24 August. The following three years he worked at the Tatrachema company and then at the Institute of Work Hygiene and Work-Related Diseases. On 30 June 1958, Jan Korec was forced to leave the Institute, and on 10 September, he began working as a night watchman for the Prefa company. From there he took a job as a maintenance worker at the Juraj Dimitrov Chemical Company, one of the largest companies in Bratislava
He was imprisoned from 1960 to 1968. While he was in prison, Korec cared for the spiritual welfare of his fellow prisoners. Korec spent most of this period in Valdice, a prison in the Czech Republic. There were at least 250 priests and several bishops being held: Vojtašák, Zela, Otčenášek, Hlad, and Hopko. These clergymen were forced to share prison cells with some of the country's worst criminals. His hardships are described in the Night of the Barbarians published by Bolchazy-Carducci. After many petitions, he was released during a general amnesty in 1968. Despite his bad health, Korec continued to work as a street cleaner and as a factory worker. During this time, he also continued his active life as a leader of the underground Church. He led spiritual retreats for students; he counseled young people, seminarians, and priests. His private apartment in Petržalka on Vilova Street 7 became a highly sought-out center of his underground ministry. Many people, lay persons, and priests went to him for spiritual advice. Because it was forbidden to publish Christian literature, Ján Korec wrote his famous "samizdat" books that were secretly printed and distributed among students and the general public. Ján Korec also secretly ordained priests; this activity was not allowed because under government law, priests could only be ordained by government-approved officials in the church hierarchy. The communist government purposefully manipulated the enrollment numbers in the seminary so that parishes would lack priests, and as a result, the Church would slowly become extinct. Therefore, Bishop Korec's role was crucial in keeping the Slovak Church alive; these secretely ordained priests remained active for many years in the underground. The Secret Police (Štátna Tajná Bezpečnost) watched Korec's apartment closely, and two attempts were made to assassinate him.
After the fall of the Iron Curtain, Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of Nitra in 1990.
In the consistory of 1991, Korec was made a Cardinal-Priest of Santi Fabiano e Venanzio a Villa Fiorelli in the College of Cardinals.
Korec did not take part in the papal conclave of 2005, which chose Benedict XVI, because he was over eighty, the age at which cardinals become ineligible to vote. However, he was present at the College of Cardinals, which negotiated the beginning of the conclave, and the transfer of the late Pope John Paul II's body into St. Peter's.
On 13 June 2012, Cardinal Korec was admitted to the hospital due to a ruptured appendix. He suffered a perforated appendicitis, severe peritonitis, and his vital signs were beginning to fail. The doctors operated on him, but even afterwards, his condition remained critical. By 18 June, it was announced that his condition had not improved and that he was breathing only through a respirator. On 20 June, it was announced that the condition of Cardinal Korec had significantly improved. It was a great surprise for all of Slovakia. Thousands of people celebrated his improved health and return home.
Ján Cardinal Korec has remained active in the Church and in his social life. He received three honorary PhD titles from universities in the United States of America. He makes regular contributions to the media, especially the Slovak magazine, "Kultúrny Život." Many visitors make appointments at his residence, and every day he receives letters and phone calls from Slovakia and abroad. At eighty-nine years old, he is still incredibly vital and active. One of his main activities is counseling. Priests, bishops, and lay persons, including scientists and politicians, seek his advice and counseling. He is expected to play a significant role in celebrating the 1150th anniversary of Saint Cyril and Methodius, who brought Christianity to Slavic countries and created an alphabet for Old Slavonic. Ján Cardinal Korec is considered by many to be one of the most remarkable people of the century and provides a great example of Christian life. His imprisonment and decades of heavy labor while continuing his priestly ministry at great personal risk illustrate his dedication and sincerity in his Christian journey.
New Developments
After the downfall of the Iron Curtain and the revival of democracy in Czechoslovakia, Ján Cardinal Korec became an influential leader in all aspects of social-economic and political developments in Slovakia. It was expected that he would support the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) in their re-election process; however, the new political debate took on a separatists direction: the Christian Democrats stood against the independence of Slovakia from Czechoslovakia; however, Ján Cardinal Korec supported Slovak independence. In addition,Christian Democrats implemeted stringent free-market policies, which caused a rapid rise in unemployemnt and economic hardship. Ján Cardinal Korec chose to stay on the side of the poor and economically disadvantaged bringing him closer to left-oriented parties. Pragocentrics did not approve of Korec's ties with the Slovak Prime Minister Mečiar, who played a significant role in the "velvet divorce" between the Czechs and Slovaks. However, Ján Cardinal Korec tried to remain neutral with respect to all political developments in postcommunist Slovakia.
Forty years of communist domination left the Slovak Catholic Church in ruins. There was a shortage of priests, and church buildings needed to be renovated. In addition, Catholic education had suffered severe drawbacks and new schools needed to be built. There was also a shortage of teachers and Catholic media was non-existent. Besides restoring the Church and Catholic education, Cardinal Korec put a lot of effort into restoring justice and good relationships. One example was restoring a good relationship with the Jewish minority. Already in 1987, Cardinal Korec was one of the main activists who signed the "Declaration of Apology," an official apology to all Jews in Slovakia that suffered deportation during WWII. The Cardinal condemned deportations and called it "an inhumane act." Twenty-four famous Slovakian celebrities signed this declaration among them the composer Eugen Suchon, artist Vincent Hloznik, writer Dominik Tatarka, and many others. This declaration was published also in Israel and received positive responses from many Jewish leaders as well as Dr. Epstein, from Canada, who later visited Cardinal Korec in Nitra and thanked him personally for this initiative and his work for the sake of restoring a good relationship between the Church and Jewish community.
Ján Cardinal Korec is until now active as a writer and adviser. Many Catholics and non-Catholics from Slovakia and also from abroad seek his counsel. He resides in Nitra where he continues in his religious and social activities. Ján Cardinal Korec lived a remarkable life of a dissident and Bishop of Nitra - the most ancient diocese in Slovakia that goes back to Saint Methodius in the Great Moravian Empire. Like his predecessor Saint Methodius, Cardinal Korec was persecuted by secular forces and later elevated to his current post. Ján Cardinal Korec is a "Man for all seasons" meaning that he willingly accepted service to the Church at a time when it was difficult; he did not hesitate to support his ministry by working with his own hands, like St. Paul, in various industries in Bratislava or in the prison glass factory. As Cardinal, he has remained humble and attentive to all people rich or poor, famous or ordinary. He sets a good example for this generation as a man of strong character that does not bend in front of injustice or political and social pressures. In February 2014 the Liverpool Hope University in Great Britain awarded him with Honorary Ph.D for his lifelong achievements on behalf of freedom, democracy and peace in the world.
References
Korec, Ján (1996). Die Nacht der Barbaren-Als Geheimbischof in der Kirche des Schweigens 1950–1970 (in German). Graz-Vienna-Cologne: Verlag Styria. pp. 111–113.
Spolok Slovenských Spisovateľov (1999). Život a dielo Jána Chryzostoma Korca (in Slovak). Nitra, Slovakia: Filozofická Fakulta UKF.
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