Lecture by Prime Minister Orbán at the Catholic conference entitled: "Hope and a Christian Response to the Crisis".

Respected Congress, Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Let me first of all say that it is I who owe you and not you who owe me a debt of gratitude for my being here. And thank you also to my friend, who when we last met managed to make me promise that I would be sure to be here with you in Madrid in November. The opening lecture and introduction said many good things about me. One feels a little awkward when being praised in public, while of course it does, in secret, feel good. The Americans, with their usual flippancy, have even worked out a formula for this, which I will share with you know, and which goes like this: if my parents had been here, then my father would have been very proud and my mother would have believed everything word-for-word. Well, that's the situation with praise.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Please allow me, above all else, and looking as it were beyond this conference, to pass on to you the warm regards of the people of Hungary. The regards of the nation, and this is especially relevant today, that gave Europe Saint Elisabeth. Thank you also to the church leader who conducted this morning's mass for making the kind gesture of talking about Hungary and Saint Elisabeth during the sermon. Well, this is the country I have arrived from. To be a little secular too, we also gave European culture Ferenc Puskas and László Kubala, both of whom regarded Spain as their second home, and who were both loved by the Spanish people as one of their own.

Dear Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen,

We Hungarians understand the pain that the Spanish are feeling today, and we understand the hard struggle of the Spanish Government, that it must continue against this inherited, difficult economic situation. We understand the disappointment, anger and impatience of the Spanish people. We Hungarians have known and still know these well. And for this reason we sympathise with you and show solidarity towards Spain.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Similarly to Hungarians, the Spanish are a people who value freedom, who look back at their own history with pride, and who will not allow the work with which their grandfathers rebuilt their homeland after the civil war to be put at risk once again by bureaucrats and financial speculators. A whole series of demonstrations and strikes throughout the European continent indicate that people everywhere are searching for the answer to the question: how could the dream, which a common Europe meant to all of us, have broken? How can Europe have lost its competitiveness? How can it have become indebted up to its eyeballs? Why didn't it adapt in time, in a planned manner and without upheaval to the changed circumstances? Why are we suffering such problems now, destroying the standard of living and way of life of millions of families? These are difficult questions. There is one thing that I can certainly tell you with relation to these introductory thoughts. I myself believe that this is not a simple conjectural crisis. The situation isn't that in place of the previous prosperity there is now a heavy downturn within the European economy; it is something else. It is my belief that we must face the reality and it is not worth deluding ourselves. A reorganisation of power is occurring in the world which makes it impossible for the world after the crisis – and in it Europe and European life – to be the same as it was before the crisis. Our lives will never again be the same as they were before the crisis. And accordingly – at least we Hungarians believe so – reforms or structural reforms are not sufficient in politics. In Hungary we say that we require the total renewal of our homeland, Hungary; total renewal and as a result, radical reorganisation within every dimension: intellectual, moral, spiritual, economic and social. This is never easy and never comfortable.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

What can you expect from me at today's conference? Let us first of all make it clear what you cannot expect from me. I am not a priest or a church leader. And I am not a philosopher or a scholar either, and so you should not expect a theological, philosophical or scholarly approach from me. As they say in English, I am a "doer". A man with a sense of political calling, who happens to be Prime Minister, and is working to get things done. With regard to myself, let me tell you in short that I come from a small village, and from a working class family; I went to law school and later attended the halls of Oxford. I took part in the illegal fight against communism and the Soviet Union, organising youth movements, then founded a political party and succeeded in hammering my own nail into the coffin of communism – the one which it was my job to hammer in. I became a Member of Parliament at 26, and Prime Minister at age 35. After four years of government I found myself in opposition, and eight years later, in 2010, I returned with a majority of two thirds. The 52% proportion of the votes mean a two-thirds majority of seats in Parliament, because of the electoral system. What I will tell you today is therefore based on experience, experience accumulated in Central European and European politics. The collateral behind what I have to say is not theoretical argument, although I do like exercising my brain, but instead practical knowledge, political and personal experience. The 30 years that I have spent on the floorboards of politics, which, it is common knowledge, are rough, un-planed boards, and so wound one's feet deeply.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

People who are committed to Christian traditions, laics, clerics, Catholics and Protestants alike, are connected by a common feeling; the responsibility of the dutiful guardian. We may read in the book of Ezekiel, that if the guard on duty sees the armed enemy approaching but does not blow his trumpet to warn his people, then God will call him to account for the human lives that are lost. In my view, God ordained church and secular leaders to be such dutiful guardians, and this includes politicians. And so it is in full knowledge of our responsibility that we must proclaim that the financial and economic crisis that is occurring in Europe is not some accidental event that a few gifted technocrats will be able to correct. The crisis occurring in Europe is the result of a process of decay that has been present for some time on the continent. I feel that we must speak out and state that in Europe today, such forms and configurations of human cohabitation such as the nation and the family have fallen open to question. Similarly, the true and original meaning of work and credit have become uncertain in economic life. This is all thanks to the fact that these important things – work, credit, family, nation – have become dissolved from the moral foundations that Christianity provided to us, and so have lost their weight and meaning in recent decades. I don't know when this process began, perhaps historians know, but what I see is that a situation has developed in Europe today in which Europe – in politics certainly – has begun to feel ashamed of its roots. This is why the new European master document includes no reference to Christian roots. They didn't forget to include it, but instead there was a large-scale European debate in which those gained the majority who said that it must not be included. Schuman, one of the founding fathers of the idea of Europe, once said that Europe would either be Christian, or it would not exist. Yet today, we have reached the point where the majority of European politicians are working and doing everything in their power to exile Christianity into people's private lives, churches and history books.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

If an Islamic country began feeling ashamed of itself because of the teachings of the Koran, it would rightly awaken the anger of other Islamic countries. If someone in India were to begin challenging the fundamental principles of Hinduism, or someone in China the fundamental principles of Buddhism, then they would very quickly meet with incomprehension. In contrast, in Europe I see every day that it is instead those who wish to think and behave according to the values of Christianity in political and social life who meet with incomprehension. With relation to the crisis, what I have experienced in the modern world it that in times of crisis there is a spiritual, uplifting force within every successful national economy – because successful national economies do exist, albeit outside Europe. In the Latin American countries it is Christianity, in India it is Hinduism, which motions towards tranquillity, and in China it is Buddhism, which is built on the high regard of labour. Capitalism in Europe can also trace its birth back to spiritual foundations. It would not have come into existence without Christianity. But today, people often laugh if someone views his profession as a vocation and not just a source of income, if he wishes not to preserve, but to exploit the order of the created world, and he is he not taken seriously if he claims that he has received a responsibility from God for all the communities that are part of it. Secularized Europe regards the traditional forms of community life, the nation, the congregation and the family, sceptically, as if they were odds and ends left over from the past, and Europe simply does not take note of the fact that there are many people, many millions, who are no longer able to live and experience their human relationships in their true depth. In the meantime, Europe's population is gradually dwindling, because the family is under constant attack, and many view raising a family as something that is in the way of self-fulfilment. The reduction of family communities based on stable commitments is a general tendency throughout Europe. In Hungary, the proportion of children born outside wedlock is 42 percent, and the age of women at the birth of their first child is 30; they do not have children before, but only after the age of 30. Hungary – the country of Saint Elisabeth – is one of those European countries in which the willingness to have children is lowest, and this is only partly attributable to existential problems that have arisen as a result of the crisis. Our people also suffer from more deep-rooted problems.

Respected Congress,

During communism, religious communities in Hungary had to overcome a severe trial. The dictatorship adopted an anti-church policy, first openly, then craftily, with which it wanted to terminate the connection that Hungarian people had with their own churches. However, it was unable to do away with the commitment that the people of Hungary had towards their own congregations, although it did succeed in weakening it. 95% of the adult population in Hungary – 95% according to the latest census data – profess to belong to a religious denomination, although only 16% go to church on a weekly basis. In answer to the question, are they religious, many answer yes, but if asked what this means, it becomes clear from the census that the majority say they are religious in their own way, and very few say that they are religious in accordance with the teachings of their church. These are very interesting, and at the same time very cautionary signals.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In the end, I must say that the aging Europe that is disclaiming its Christian roots, and within it Hungary, is like the man in the well-known parable who built his house on sand. The floods came, hit the house, and the building found itself on the verge of collapse. This flood was only partly caused by Europe, but Europe has only itself to blame for the fact that it has hardly been able to withstand the flood, and behind the problems lie weakness, and behind that European weakness lie precisely those things: the crisis of families, communities and the nation, that in the early stages of capitalism were precisely what made us successful. They made Europe strong and dominant at a global level precisely because at the time they fitted into a Christian system of morals: in commerce, the economy, the family and the nation alike. I would like to highlight just one issue to show you what I mean. And this is the issue of credit. In the Old Testament, the word usury, money-lender, means to bite another person, like a snake would. It is understandable that the Catholic Church also decreed a ban on collecting interest on loans; they obviously wanted to protect people from the anguish and barbarity of money-lenders. During the reformation, the stance on the collection of interest changed. In today's world it may seem difficult to believe, but at one time it was normal that for instance a banker from Geneva would write to the city's Protestant priest and ask him what conditions and level of interest he would find appropriate with regard to the collection of interest. From a man of the church! However, from the early days of capitalism, credit became acceptable, something which was made possible precisely because there was a moral content connected to the word. At the time, trust, the sanctity of the given word and honourable business ethics were still connected to credit. I am not a naïve romantic. Greed and the human urge to become rich were obviously not unknown in those times either. It remains nevertheless significant that in those days every question related to credit were part of a Christian system of values and behaviour, and were measured according to Christian standards. If we look at the list of Europe's indebted countries, then we see that the loans which our countries are suffering from no longer have any relation to any kind of moral principles. The conditions for successfully receiving credit today are such that they endanger the sovereignty of the nation in question, and lenders force governments to take money away from the very people they should be giving it to.

It is my firm belief that a Europe that represents Christian values would perhaps not have allowed people to squander the future of their families by taking on irresponsible loans. In Hungary, this is what happened to one million families. This is the number of people in personal family bankruptcy today. A Europe that represents Christian values would perhaps have warned everyone that they will eventually have to work to earn every single Euro they spend, including the ones they borrow. A Europe that represents Christian values would perhaps rather provide loans to those who they see are working to earn them and want to continue working in order to earn them. A common Europe that represents Christian values perhaps would never have allowed certain countries to fall into debt slavery. This is an important question for the Spanish nation. It is not my business, I bear responsibility for Hungary, but I would like to warn you that Spain is very close to arriving at the moment when it falls into debt slavery. And a country may be conquered in two ways: by the sword or through debt, and this is something we should never forget. And finally, a Europe that represents Christian values would perhaps, in place of today's politics, encourage one that distributes the burdens of today's economic crisis fairly.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

If in Europe today a government is compelled to take on a loan from a European or perhaps international organisation, then they will be required to introduce such measures which make the government lose its credibility before its own electorate. The trends and austerity measures that are required today are in the long-term interests of neither the people, nor the governments, nor the lenders, and it is not right to push national governments in this direction, because if order collapses, social stability is no more and the framework of economic life becomes uncertain as a result of all those cuts and austerity measures, then who will work to earn those borrowed euros so that these loans may be repaid? The example of Greece is not simply an example of a nation, but a warning to the whole of Europe. Unfortunately, honoured Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my personal experience that in Europe the most serious moral crisis may be seen is precisely those political and business leaders who do not take other criteria into account because of their own short-term career and financial interests. As scripture says: "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." The moral crisis may also be recognised in the case of those leaders who, professing a philosophy of "let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die", or at last "tomorrow we will not be in government", were capable of casting whole countries into debt. This also brings up questions of serious personal responsibility.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

There are many in Europe, and although we may be a minority, but we are many, whose common goal is to be able to once again build Europe on the rock solid foundations of Christianity. I would like to now spend a few minutes talking about Hungary. Hungary has been following this path since 2010. As we have heard: we have created a new Fundamental Law, and it may also be read in Spanish. An enthusiastic Spanish patriot translated it into Spanish, this is how I became aware of it, and it is probably available in libraries; that I also where I came by it. So, we have introduced a new Fundamental Law, the first chapter of which we called the National Credo. This is the essence of the constitution, its spiritual framework, its backbone. The first line of the new Hungarian constitution begins with the words: "Lord, Bless the Hungarian People!" This is also the first line of our national prayer. The first word of the Hungarian constitution is God. Hungary is a country whose first king, who was called Saint Stephen, some one thousand years ago, after his first child had died and he had no progeny, offered the Crown of Hungary to the Virgin Mary. We view Hungary as a country which our first king offered to the Virgin Mary. This is an important fact. He did not offer it into the safekeeping of a foreign power, and he did not offer it to a financial institution, but to Mary. This is mirrored in the constitution. One of the reasons why we elaborated a constitution of this kind was that we felt we must face up against those European political and intellectual trends and forces which aim to push back and undermine Christian culture, Christian civilisation and Christian values. We knew that this would result in conflict. As we have heard precisely a little earlier. The European forces that wish to undermine the strength of Christianity are strong and well-organised forces. They are a significant factor within Europe. Let us not delude ourselves, it is better to face the truth. But I am positive that if we do not enter into conflict with them, then they will sweep us off the path of both European public life and national public life. For this reason, Hungary decided it would rather face this conflict. We have also included the following thoughts in our constitution, which I will now quote to you. "We profess that the basis of human existence is human dignity. We profess that human freedom may only develop in cooperation with others. We profess that the most important framework of our coexistence is the family and the nation, and that the principle values of our coexistence are loyalty, faith and love. We profess that the foundation of the strength of the community and of the honour of every person is work and the performance of the human spirit. We profess the duty to help the fallen and the poor. We profess that the common goal of the state and its citizens is a good life, security, order, and the achievement of truth and freedom. We recognise the nation-preserving power of Christianity." This is what caused the greatest conflict: we acknowledge the nation-preserving role of Christianity.

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen,

We have now reached a subject which we will perhaps discuss in greater detail during the debate, so I will mention only the main point. Politics raises difficult questions for Christians. Difficult personal and moral questions. Politics is a wild world. It is difficult to be successful in it. And to reconcile success and the norms of Christian behaviour in this world is an especially difficult task. Perhaps one of the most difficult issues that we must find a solution to within ourselves and that the Christian parties must find a solution to in their programs, is how to reconcile the criteria for the representation of the truth and the acquisition of the majority. Power, if it has been granted to us by the electorate, must be practiced in a way that represents the truth of Christianity in policies, but in a way that also allows us to receive a majority on the next occasion. We are not Christian political kamikaze pilots, but responsible Christian leaders. If no political majority is allied with the truth, then how are we to implement these programs in politics? But if we have the majority but do not represent the truth, then what is the point of the majority? This is a question that all parties with Christian roots and all Christian politicians must clarify within themselves: how does one combine these criteria? Of course this must be done differently in Spain and differently in Hungary, and it is an issue which includes many tactical elements, but it is an unavoidable question for all of us. What I can tell you is that, no matter how difficult, we were capable of creating a deeply Christian-based constitution within a democratic political environment in a country that is religiously rather neutral – because unfortunately Hungary is a country which is religiously rather neutral. And I think that the Hungarian example – and I do not wish to commit the sin of self-praise here – is an encouragement to all Christian politicians that it is possible to adopt a deeply Christian constitution that requires a two-thirds majority in Parliament in a democratic environment in a religiously neutral country. This is an encouragement regarding the fact that Christian politics do indeed have a chance, a chance to be victorious and to create in the modern European world.

And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, please allow me to say a few words about the fact that our national Fundamental Law has become a target for the actions – as we call them – of the international and Hungarian left despite the fact that references to Christian values are also otherwise included in the constitutions of many nations. There are several such constitutions in Europe. What therefore is the explanation for the extremely blinded and hate-induced actions that we had to face? It is important to note that I am not complaining now. As they say in Hungary, people who are afraid should not go into the forest. We knew that this constitution would result in such conflict. And so there is no reason to feel sorry for ourselves. In fact I can tell you that there are many of us in Hungary who decidedly enjoy this fight, who are motivated by it and who feel that this is a just fight, and so it is good to fight it. Nevertheless it remains important to put the question, if there are other constitutions in Europe that refer to Christianity, then why was it the Hungarian constitution that evoked this huge attack on the part of Europe? I know you have your own troubles to deal with, but if you once have the time, it would be most illuminating to watch the video footage of how the European left in Strasbourg organised a special trial in the European Parliament to discuss the Hungarian constitution and to condemn the Hungarian constitution. This was a huge debate at which I myself was also present. It is most illuminating; if you have the opportunity, do so. It is worth seeing how anti-Christian politics work today in Europe out in the open. Well, my opinion is that what was quite clearly behind the attack is the fact that the representatives of today's mainstream European politics, and especially the intellectuals who took part in the events of nineteen sixty-eight and are now in important positions of power, are not prepared to accept the fact that Christianity is again capable of adopting an increasingly determined political position. The European mainstream – the ideological category is a cause for confusion, so I will refrain from using terms such as liberal and left wing, because I don't know if these terms mean the same here as they do in Hungary, and so I would rather say that – the mainstream of European thinking, its dominant trend, has a clear picture of the future of Europe. They think, and here the analysis and the wishes mix, and of course we too often make the same mistake, they think that both objectively and according to their wishes, Europe is moving towards a state where the religious will become unreligious, where national will make way to formations that are above national, and in which families will be replaced by individuals. They call this progress. This is the dominant intellectual trend in European politics today. Our sin, which we of course assume proudly, is that in the 21st century we have dared to include in our constitution the fact that faith, the church, the nation and the family belong not to our past but to our future. This is the reason for the hate-induced huge attack against the Hungarian constitution and the creators of the Hungarian constitution which we have experienced throughout Europe.

We think, honoured Ladies and Gentlemen, that as it has done before during the course of history, Christian-based politics will now once again renew Europe. We believe in what Schuman said: Europe will either be Christian, or it will not exist. And we believe that we, who God placed within this struggle as the dutiful guardians of Europe as politicians, have the responsibility of giving back to our faded and empty values their deep, Christian moral meaning so that solidarity should not be an equality of interests, but instead a commitment towards the other individual and the other person, and so that the protection of the created universe should not be merely a political program, that the acknowledgement of working people should be so strong that everyone who works from the unskilled labourer to the atomic physicist may look on his or her work as a vocation, a kind of sacred vocation. We must work to make sure that the credit I talked about earlier should once again be determined by the mutual trust between two parties. We must go back to the last lines of the introductory thought. We cannot ignore the issue. It is rare that I speak of this in public, but the fact is that if we wish to achieve these goals, then the issues of personal change, personal commitment and personal example cannot be ignored. To successfully renew Europe in the spirit of Christian values we require a political culture, a personal mentality and bearing, a governance, and the provision of such personal examples as are defined and determined by Christian teachings. I will of course be trying to invoke these, and I feel that we, European people in public life, must take this seriously. What I say now must be also taken seriously: we require policies and leaders whose culture is built on the fact that they are not envious, do not brag, are not conceited, do not behave offensively, do not search for personal profit, do not become angered and do not hold grudges. Who do not celebrate falsehood, but instead rejoice together with the truth. If we cannot embrace this, then we will never have a majority in European politics. This is the most difficult in politics, but honoured Ladies and Gentlemen, I also see no other path in politics that does not lead to damnation or doom. So let us take this path, my dear Brothers and Sisters.

Thank you for your attention.

(Prime Minister’s Office)