Paper short abstract:

Drawn on historical sources of plague and cholera epidemics (18-19 c.) in Hungary, the paper highlights ecclesiastic medicine in general crisis management. Historical data are contrasted with the findings of recent ethnographic research on clerical responses to the challenges of COVID-19.

Paper long abstract:

My preliminary investigations on the 18th century medical realities of the Pécs Episcopal See (Hungary) proved that epidemics, and especially plague, stood out among contemporary illness categories in many respects. As the thorough examination of contemporary official plague regulations issued by the Habsburg imperial administration revealed, the Roman Catholic Church not only cooperated with the state authorities in carrying out preventive and defensive measures but offered a large scale of spiritual remedies against the plague. The methods of sacred medicine were ranging from miracle working images, saints’ relics, amulets and various sacramentalia, through prayers and benedictions, to miracle cures and processions all aiming to cure both body and soul.

Drawn on the rich repository of historical sources on the 18th century plague and the 19th century cholera epidemics sweeping through the territory of the Pécs Bishopric, among which the protocols of miraculous healings at local Marian shrines and the archival material of several Franciscan friaries are highlighted, the paper introduces the approaches of the members of the Roman Catholic clergy in both collective and individual crisis management. Furthermore, the paper contrasts historical data with the findings of recent ethnographic research on the clerical responses to the challenges of COVID-19.