Thirty years after their landmark 1996 document, Hungary’s Catholic bishops have issued a new pastoral letter addressing the country’s social, economic, cultural and spiritual challenges. The text is wide-ranging and at times strikingly self-critical. Yet it remains conspicuously silent about the Church’s relationship with Viktor Orbán.

On 19 October, the Hungarian Catholic bishops published a major pastoral letter entitled For a More Just and Fraternal World: Thirty Years Later. The title echoes that of a document issued in 1996 (see Regno-doc., 19/1996, p. 608). Running to approximately sixty pages and divided into eight chapters and 146 numbered paragraphs, the new letter seeks to guide the Church in the years ahead, following the profound political changes brought about by the recent Hungarian elections.

The document addresses a broad range of issues, including family life, the economy, education and culture, politics, young people, and the spiritual renewal of society. It draws extensively on the recent social encyclicals of Popes Leo XIV and Pope Francis, as well as the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, the teachings of the Hungarian Church, and major studies produced by Hungarian state institutions.

The letter is the.

While in Rome for a gathering of the Catholic bishops’ conferences, Chinese bishops could not meet with Vatican officials nor with the Pope. This episode highlights the meticulous control exercised by China state authorities on the local Church.

A couple of Chinese bishops attended the recent meeting of the presidents of the episcopal conferences to mark the tenth anniversary of the apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia. Despite their involvement in the event, they were unable to meet with anyone from the Secretariat of State responsible for China, the Secretary of State, or the Pope.

This episode highlights the meticulous control exercised by state authorities, despite the agreement between China and the Holy See. Nothing can deviate from Beijing’s precise directives. Nevertheless, the agreement on the appointment of bishops is functioning, albeit with some hiccups and delays. Following the ordination of Giuseppe Chang Yanfeng in Chifeng (Inner Mongolia), the following were consecrated as bishops: Francesco Saverio Duan Yongkun in Bameng (Chifeng), Paolo Liu Honggang in Datong (Shanxi), Andrea Ding Wang in Chongqing (Sichuan), and Ignatius Ding Zuaying in Hefei (Anhui).