On April 25th, to great interest, two members of the Research Group, György Sági and Viktor Kanász, held a presentation at the Thúry György Museum about the history and operation of the Sisters of Mercy in Nagykanizsa.
Following the welcome speech by Director Csilla Száraz, György Sági, in the introduction to his presentation titled "Overview of the Operation of the Sisters of Mercy in Hungary (from 1853 to the present)". In the main part of his presentation, he presented the formation of the Hungarian Province of the Sisters of Mercy and the work of the sisters serving in it. He briefly outlined the changes and challenges during the tenure of each Hungarian visitator (understood as provincial superiors) and the opportunities for service provided by circumstances beyond the sisters. At the end of his presentation, he illustrated with numerical data that despite the decades of "dispersion" following Hungary's once most populous religious community, diminished but faithful to their four vows (chastity, poverty, obedience, and service to the poor), they continue to be ready to serve those in need.
In his presentation titled "The Forgotten Sisters of Nagykanizsa and the Hospital Chapel," Viktor Kanász described the diverse activities of the sisters in Nagykanizsa between 1885 and 1950. He discussed the ongoing research process over the years and the varied nature of the sources, presenting the nature, usability, and findings of documents and photos found in Kanizsa, Zalaegerszeg, Budapest, and Paris (see here). Subsequently, he presented the circumstances of the sisters' settlement in Nagykanizsa, the nursing and catering tasks carried out in the hospital, the charitable, cultural, and social activities of the sisters, focusing primarily on the work of the Love Association and the Maria Association. He also outlined the development of spiritual care for the sisters, highlighting the work of the Franciscans, the Heart of Jesus Parish, and hospital chaplains. In this context, he thoroughly analyzed the history of the construction of the still functioning hospital chapel, as well as the role of Imre Longauer. He pointed out the significant resonance of certain celebrations of the order in Nagykanizsa, demonstrating that the sisters were an integral and important part of the city's life, which was only ended by the dispersion in 1950. Under the communist dictatorship, the operation of the order in Nagykanizsa slowly faded into oblivion; local history literature only superficially dealt with it, and physically, only the hospital chapel, the graves of the sisters, and the stained glass windows preserved in the Thúry György Museum tell of their presence. Therefore, together with György Sági, they plan to present the events outlined in the presentation in detail in a forthcoming volume published by the Museum.
