Ján Hirka

Ján Hirka ( born November 16, 1923 in Abranovce, Circle Presov ) was 1989-2002 Greek Catholic Bishop of Prešov.

Life and work

Hirka came from a peasant family, attended school in Abranovce and from 1936 to 1944 the church gymnasium. He made his High School on May 3, 1944. Then he entered the seminary in Prešov and began studying theology. His bishop Pavol Peter Gojdič sent him to further studies at the Theological Faculty of Charles University in Prague. Auxiliary Bishop Vasil Hopko consecrated him on October 31, 1949 in the chapel in Prešov seminar for priests. Ordinations at the Cathedral were banned by the state.

After the dissolution of the Greek Catholic Church on April 28, 1950, he went to the exercise of his pastoral activities in the underground. His maintenance he earned with auxiliary works without an official work permit, which was denied him. On October 22, 1952 arrested by the State Security, he was six months in custody and was sentenced to three years in prison for " obstructing the monitoring of churches and religious societies ( § 173 Str.GB ) " sentenced on 28 April 1953. With presidential amnesty Antonín Zápotocký he was released on July 4, 1953.

On October 19, 1955, he was again arrested along with several priests and nuns. The charge of high treason was dropped, he was sentenced on September 4, 1956, two and a half years in prison for " pooling of hostilities against the Republic." He was deported to a forced labor camp (mining). After his release on March 20, 1958, he was not allowed in his home, for he had five years' residence ban for the cities of Prešov and Košice. Back in the underground working, he performed emergency services in the social sector ( hospital, fire ).

Pope Paul VI. appointed in January Hirka on 2 April 1969 Apostolic Administrator of Prešov, a bishop's appointment was not allowed by the state. The Episcopal Ordinariate consisted of a two- room apartment in a suburb of Prešov. After the " Velvet Revolution " made ​​him Pope John Paul II on 21 December 1989 as Bishop of Prešov. The episcopal ordination gave him Cardinal Jozef Tomko on 17 February 1990, with great participation of bishops from around the world. It was the first episcopal ordination after the fall of the "Iron Curtain" in Czechoslovakia.

Tireless was his commitment to the reconstruction of his diocese of Prešov. That earned him a lot of honors and awards. The highlight was the visit of Pope John Paul II in Slovakia in 1995 and the beatification of his predecessor and mentor Peter Pavol Gojdič in 2001.

With reaching the age limit, he offered the Pope 's resignation, and retired on 11 December 2002.