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Cardinal Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, initiated the beatification of Gábor Ervin, a Catholic priest and rescuer, murdered by the Arrow Cross in 1944. The cardinal spoke to journalists about this on Tuesday at the site where Gábor Ervin’s martyrdom took place.
Péter Erdő highlighted that Gábor Ervin is a martyr of solidarity and love, whose beatification the cardinal hopes will happen soon, which will not only enrich the Hungarian church with a “new heavenly intercessor,” but also with a new role model.
He explained that Ervin was a priest of Jewish origin who was baptized with his family at the age of seven. Later, he attracted attention with his excellent abilities:
he wrote several theological books, was a member of the Hungarian Philosophical Association, and his writings that had an aesthetic direction are also noteworthy. Ervin was one of the few who, even in the 1940s, was able to maintain a dialogue with all of Hungarian society.
In 1944, as the secretary of the Holy Cross, Ervin did a lot for the persecuted: he helped them, and hid them. For this, he was eventually arrested by the Arrow Cross, and according to eyewitness accounts, he was tortured and flogged in the Arrow Cross’ headquarters in Budapest. He was then shot into the Danube along with his mother, said the Cardinal.
Cardinal Péter Erdő (L), Depaula Flavio, designated postulator (R); Photo: MTI/Purger Tamás
Erdő mentioned that Ervin’s character was also shown by the fact that
when he saw the Jews being gathered in Buda and escorted away, he went up to them and started shouting at the escorts that what they were doing was spitting in the face of humanity and that they should release the prisoners. As a reverend priest, perhaps no one else had done such a thing,
he noted, adding that Ervin was arrested at that time, but was released shortly afterwards.
Depaula Flavio, postulator of the beatification appointed by Erdő, explained that his task is to collect data and recollections regarding the life and martyrdom of Ervin during the diocesan stage of the beatification.
He stated that numerous testimonies confirm the actions and authentic life example of Gábor Ervin. Although these are secondary testimonies (people living in Australia, London, and America), they can recall what their mothers and fathers told them about their hero.
During the data collection, it was also revealed that Ervin not only hid persecuted Jews in his own apartment but also rented several apartments in the building for this purpose.
However, in early December 1944, the Arrow Cross broke into an apartment and took everyone away. According to the testimony of their maid, who was the only one among those taken who returned, Ervin and his mother were flogged in the Arrow Cross house and then both were shot into the Danube. The exact date of his martyrdom is unknown.
Via MTI; Featured picture: MTI/Purger Tamás