The academic year has started in the new Nyírkércs public education institution of the Diocese of Debrecen-Nyíregyházi | Hungarian Courier
The event was attended by Ferenc Palánki, the county bishop of Debrecen-Nyíregyháza, András Törő, bishop’s office director, József Panyi, parish priest, school pastor, Zoltán Orosz, Greek Catholic parish priest, Zsolt Szilágyi, deputy mayor of Nyírkércs, Julianna Némethné Székely, director of educational supervision and László Türk, head of the Ro EKIFF, Erzsébet Csománé Zahorák, the head of the taken over member institution, the heads of the diocese’s public education institutions, the head of the Nyírkércs kindergarten, the school’s teachers and students.
The ceremonial opening of the school year began with the joint singing of the National Anthem and the invocation of the Holy Spirit at the now Catholic school in Nyírkércs, where Erzsébet Csománé Zahorák, head of the member institution, addressed the first grade children in her speech. He assured them that the whole school community would help them to become more and more brave and confident. He then wished the children a lot of hard work, very good health and many happy moments for the school year.
The head of the member institution was happy to welcome the seniors as well. He asked the eighth-grade students to study hard and participate actively in the life of the school so that this last year would be truly successful and memorable.
Addressing the parents, he thanked them for choosing this school as the scene of their children’s education. He also asked the parents to share their opinions and experiences about the school, to talk about any problems that may arise in order to find a common solution.
There has been a change in the spirit of the school choir, and the leader addressed those present: “Since 2000 years, Christianity has always paid a lot of attention to children, to the upbringing and education of young people, not only to technical knowledge, but also to a unified, harmonious world view, through which the child he guesses the reason of the whole world, its purpose, what is the main guiding thread of his life. It gives moral support: it teaches love, generosity, honesty, and faith,” he said, expressing his joy at the fact that on September 1, the Diocese of Debrecen-Nyíregyházi took over the maintenance of the member institution.
The county bishop of Debrecen-Nyíregyháza, Ferenc Palánki, greeted those present on behalf of the new patron of the school. He said that the diocese, at the request of the Nyírkércs municipality and the parents, took over the school in that institutional community, where we can meet a 30-year-old public education institution. They gladly complied with this request, because they have already experienced the fruits of Catholic education: the lives of countless young people who graduated from the diocese prove this. As an example, the senior pastor mentioned the office director Father András Törő, who was once a student of the Szent József High School in Debrecen, who will also participate in the ceremony. In his studies, he even reached Rome, where he obtained a doctorate in theology.
“The purpose and meaning of the Catholic school is that young people receive the kind of education and spirituality that enables them to become adults capable of responsibility and commitment,” said the senior pastor, and then explained that Catholic pedagogy does not exist, but a Catholic teacher does, who accepts this way of thinking and way of life and passes it on with his being. Today it is not necessary to talk a lot about Jesus Christ, but to represent the love of Jesus Christ where we live. At Nyírkércs, we want to represent his love to children, because “to such belongs the kingdom of God” (Mk 10:14).
Teachers have the vocation of great schools, because as they enter it every day, they enter heaven every day: because they look at the children, and then the question will no longer be from what, but why, who do they do their work, who do they work for , they work hard for an entire school year.
Faith is not easy, but it is a gift from God. To do this, we simply need to open our hearts. I expect this openness from my colleagues, and I ask that they be open to God, to each other and to the children, and that they receive God’s grace and love, and then, letting it pass through their own hearts, pass it on to others!” said the head pastor.
Afterwards, the school and the cross presented to the school by the school chaplain József Panyi were blessed. Father József said that he bought the cross 20 years ago together with other objects from a woodcarver to help him make a living. He kept it until now, it didn’t even get on the parish wall, but now the time has come for it to fulfill its function.
The full report and photo gallery HERE window is available.
Source and photo: Ágnes Kovács/Diocese of Debrecen-Nyíregyházi
Hungarian Courier