State takes back St Vitus cathedral
Karen
The Czech Catholic Church has handed over Prague cathedral to the state
after a February court ruling overturned the Church's ownership, writes
Jonathan Luxmoore.
The Gothic St Vitus cathedral, which dominates the Prague skyline, was
founded in 1344 by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and nationalised under a
1954 Communist decree. Although it was returned to the Church in 1994, Czech
MPs launched a series of appeals.
In its February ruling, the Supreme Court cancelled a June 2006 municipal
court decision recognising the Church as legal owner. However, a Catholic
lawyer, Petr Zdercik, told Prague Radio that church leaders were ready to go
to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. The Czech bishops'
conference spokesman, Jiri Gracka, told The Tablet: "Though deprived of
ownership, the Church will still hold services in the cathedral, but the
legal process has to start all over again." Prague's district court is to
begin hearing a fresh church claim to the cathedral on 3 May.
http://www.thetablet.co.uk/articles/9678/
ar...@hobbiton.net
wrote:
>State takes back St Vitus cathedral
>
>The Czech Catholic Church has handed over Prague cathedral to the state
>after a February court ruling overturned the Church's ownership, writes
>Jonathan Luxmoore.
>
>The Gothic St Vitus cathedral, which dominates the Prague skyline, was
>founded in 1344 by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and nationalised under a
>1954 Communist decree. Although it was returned to the Church in 1994, Czech
>MPs launched a series of appeals.
I wonder if the slug sees himself as in any way concerned by this turn
of events?
We are, after all, talking about a cathedral named after the patron
saint of at least one of the slug's favourite activities ... perhaps
two, if we stretch 'hypocrite to include its original, Greek meaning.