Austria Reconnects with Its Catholic and Imperial Past

After many decades spent trying to remain aloof from its Catholic and imperial past, the Austrian decision to hold a “Maximilian Year” in honor of the founder of the Hapsburg dynasty who died on January 12, 1519, is significant.

The Austrian diocese for the armies began the celebrations with a Pontifical High Requiem Mass on January 12th in the cathedral of St. George in Wiener-Neustadt – the Theresian military academy – where the emperor was baptized and is now buried. 

The Maximilian Year has been organized by both the Austrian Chancellery and the Catholic hierarchy; according to the newspaper Tiroler Tagezeitun, besides the liturgical celebrations, there are also going to be hundreds of other events – sound and light shows, concerts, etc. – throughout the country.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire, the last remaining great Catholic State in Europe, was dissolved a hundred years ago in the name of a supposed “right of the people to dispose of themselves”, that cleverly masked the true goal, that of doing away with the last remains of a Christian Europe.

One hundred years later, after the slow agony of the totalitarian ideologies and the recent shock of the migration waves, the Austrians seem to be turning their eyes back to their glorious past. May they also recover the same Catholic Faith and true zeal that inspired it.