A short description of the issue of reprivatizing property of the Church in Romania with particular focus on the case of Mikó Székely College Cover Image

Krótki opis kwestii reprywatyzacji znacjonalizowanych nieruchomości kościelnych w Rumunii, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem przypadku Kolegium im. Mikó Székelya
A short description of the issue of reprivatizing property of the Church in Romania with particular focus on the case of Mikó Székely College

Author(s): Emőd Veress
Subject(s): Civil Law, Canon Law / Church Law
Published by: Uniwersytet Opolski
Keywords: Romania; Transylvania; nationalization; ecclesiastical schools; restitution

Summary/Abstract: The “communist” regime nationalized church property also in Romania. Minority (Hungarian and German) churches were traditionally extensively involved in school maintenance and were particularly hard hit. In the interwar period, these schools provided education in minority languages. Nationalization affected the entire property of the denominational schools and often broke centuries of tradition. The property included school buildings, teachers’ residences, and economic assets that served to finance the school. After the regime change, the state gradually established a framework for restitution. Still, after a positive start, the trend was reversed and restitution of the nationalized property to churches, without any change in the legal framework, began to be prevented by administrative and judicial practice. Through a concrete example, the article illustrates contraditictions in caselaw, ideological obstacles to restitution, and the complex legal history and civil law issues that arise.

  • Issue Year: 20/2022
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 237 - 259
  • Page Count: 23
  • Language: Polish
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