On September 23, 2022, the Barankovics István Foundation organized the Margit Slachta Memorial Conference at the House of Dialogue in Budapest. In his opening speech, József Mészáros, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, said that together with the Society of Social Sisters founded by Margit Slachta, they decided to hold a Margit Slachta lecture every September, which will not only preserve but also help to live the Christian democratic and Christian social tradition symbolized by the founder of the order.
The event also provided the opportunity for two book launches. Rita Mária Kiss presented the methodological volume of the Teachers’ Round Table of the Barankovics István Foundation. The teacher’s handbook contains lesson plans and teaching aids to help teachers’ work through Margit Slachta’s career, at school.
Following the publication of Margit Slachta’s parliamentary speeches in 2021, conference attendees were able to pick up another volume. Editors Éva Petrás and Boglárka Schlachta have published a book of sister Margit’s public writings spanning the ages, with the support of the Foundation. The book presents Margit Slachta’s writings in a periodical format, and in parallel, the writings of the contemporary press about her. In this way, we can learn more not only about the social role of the politician, but also about the era in which she had to work.
The guest of honour at the conference was Christiaan Alting von Geusau, President of the ITI Catholic University, who gave a lecture on “Christianity and public life, being a Christian in Europe today”. Speaking about what Christians in public office should expect, the lawyer-philosopher speaker said, among other things, that Christian politics should be rooted in truth and human nature, that Christian politicians should respect the order of creation, that they should strive to develop the virtues based on their constantly enriched knowledge and morals, so that they can remain free in the Christian sense of the word and not become a slave to fashionable ideologies.
In a discussion at the end of the conference, the audience reflected on what had been said, and asked the speaker questions. MEP György Hölvényi assessed the presentations from the perspective of a practising politician. Emma Németh SSS, District President of the Society of Social Sisters, drew attention to the potential of actors outside the political sphere. In his closing speech, József Mészáros announced the continuation of the conference in September 2023.
