Remembering a Giant Man of Faith and Action

Many are thinking this week of Vaclav Havel, playwright, activist, rebel, man-about-town, President and philosopher. The world is poorer for his passing.

Today I've been on the road with Lindsay and Elisabeth Balint of Toledo and Budapest (Great Lakes Consortium)and Mate Varga of Budapest (Civil College and Hungarian Community Development Association) and his friend Csabo to Szentendre, a beautiful village about a half hour upriver on the Danube from Budapest. This is a living town that has seven historic churches, windy narrow streets, ethnic roots in Serbian, Greek Orthodox, Calvinist and Roman Catholic ccommunities and a lively arts tradition.

It was also the family home of Father Martin Hernady, who spent 45 years in Toledo Ohio as pastor of St. Stephen's Church in the Birmingham neighborhood. He was an educated man, read history and literature, appreciated art and sport, skied in the Alps when he could, loved conversation and was great company. He was also a consummate political man, who might have been at home among the Medicis or the Hapsburgs. As a parish priest he saw that the power of the church grows from its people, and the job of the church was to serve the needs of those people wisely. It was Hernady who thought, when the city announced plans to widen the road between the parish and the neighborhood, let's hold Mass in the middle of the street! The ladies came out - Father said it would be ok - and they made news, and the Mayor came over and the neighborhood organized and the plans got changed.

Hernady was a national leader among Hungarian Americans and other ethnics as well, conspiring with Msgr. Geno Baroni to bring together the Black, brown and broke - the urban ethnics and the other disempowered people to defend cities and families and communities.

He welcomed me in to the Birmingham neighborhood when I arrived in Toledo in July of 1981. He was a wise advisor, and a great strategist who was willing to risk his status when the people were ready to act. He knew the politicians would come around once the people put on enough pressure. He often quoted me a Latin political truth (maybe it was his own...) and that's what I wrote on the wrapping paper on the floweres that Elizabeth Balint brought for the gravesite today. "Mundus Vult Decipi" he'd say. "The world wants to be fooled." Sure enough the politicians took credit for the new truck route outside the community.

Hernady knew how to support leaders - he promoted young acivists like Peter Ujvagi (later City councillor, State Rep and now County Administrator) and Marcy Kaptur (city planner and now US Congresswoman). He retired to home (over here) but Birmingham was his home, too.

Thanks for your strength and your wisdom, Father Hernady. It was good to visit you today. I hope we make you proud!