THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH 1304 The building of parish Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary completed (see the greyish dome on the front page). 1458–66 The church is heavily damaged as a result of the clashes with the Hussites. 1490 and later Restoration personally supported by the Hungarian Archbishop Thomás Bakócz (1497–1521). In this period the town flourishes.
1507 A stone pastophorium (Greek for sacrament-house) is built next to the northern wall of the presbyterium. The Holy Sacrament is stored here. 1513 Completion of the unique panel painting of Rožňava Mettercia portraying St. Anne and authentic mining scenes in the background → see separate chapter. 1516 The Chapel of the Holy Cross (also called the Bakóczy chapel) with a Renaissance portal and a separate entrance is added. At this time, the church already consists of three aisles. 1518 New, Renaissance southern portal near which the Vera Icon is later placed. Vera ikon means ‘Authentic Picture (of Christ)’ and is of Latin and Greek origin. The scene itself is the 6th Station of the Cross. Veronica is often associated with the menorrhagic woman → Matt (9, 20). According to a 13th C. legend, she was among the women who accompanied Christ on the Way of the Cross → Luke (23, 27). When Jesus stumbled under the weight of the cross, Veronica allegedly handed him her veil to wipe his face. 1580 and later Protestants use the building for a few decades. 1758 Church restoration. Probably around this time, the Chapel of Virgin Mary is pulled down. The church thereby loses one aisle. 1776 Setting up of the Rožňava Diocese. The parish church becomes a cathedral church → see 2nd column of the chapter St. Francis Xavier’s Church. 1776–1780 Reconstruction during the tenure of bishop
Translation of the Latin inscriptions: St. Neit, Christ’s martyr, in peace left: 1836 Bishop Ján carries me; right: 1936 Bishop Michal decorates me. The Liturgical commemoration service for this saint takes place in the cathedral on the 16th of June. His name comes from Greek and signifies ‘he who goes in-depth’.
1860 Total restoration. The Assumption painting is in-stalled on the high altar. 1936 Celebration of the 100th anniversary of the transferral of St. Neit’s relics. 1988 Consecration of the new altar.
T H E C AT H E D R A L C H U R C H
Anton Révay. The Bakóczy chapel is converted to a sacristy and a winter chapel for the canons. The upper floor serves as the chapter library, the undercroft as the canons’ and bishops’ resting place. The new, brick-built altar with the statues of the Apostles Peter and Paul as well as with a sculpture of the Holy Trinity. The new pulpit. The majestic 3-bell bell-tower originating from the same year stands separate. 1828 The new font – baptistery (from Greek baptizein ‘immerse, baptize’). 1834 In order to strengthen the diocese members’ faith, bishop Ján Scitovský (1827–1838, born in Košická Belá) requests that pope Gregor XVI. send St. Neit’s relics which were found in the catacombs of Rome. The martyr allegedly perished in the last great persecution of Christians during the rule of the Roman emperor Diocletian (284–305). The relics rest in the bishop’s chapel of St. Neit which was restored two years later.
ST. ANNE’S CHURCH 1745 Construction of the church building and the Franciscan monastery (see the greenish dome on the front page) begins. 1784 The finished monastery and chapel burn down. 1791? The church tower and façade are finished. 1826, 5th Nov. Ceremonial consecration of the church. 1892 Three bells originating from Budapest. 1897–1918 The well-known local painter Július Ádám decorates the church walls in almost 20 years. 1905 The main altar. 1906 Major restoration after multiple fires! The chapel of the Holy Sepulchre extends the church on the eastern side. On the Triumphal Arch (Latin arcus triumphalis) is the follow-ing Hungarian inscription: Jertek leborulva – Imádjuk az Urat Translation: Come, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. (Psalm 95, 6)
The Franciscans came to Rožňava in 1733. St. Francis of Assisi (1181/2–1226), arguably the most popular saint of the Middle Ages, is to be thanked for the notion of the Christmas crib and the Way of the Cross. Under the influence of his wealthy merchant father and learned mother, he was an admirerer of the French culture and language. After being captured and imprisoned for one year during the Perugia/Assisi War (1202), he converted. In 1209 he and three of his companions retreated – marking the birth of the Franciscan order, the Friars Minor; abbr. OFM (Ordo Fratrum Minorum). The order was banished from the town in 1950.
Close-up of the statue of St. Bonaventura located near the left altar.
The Lent canvas portaying The Crucifixion of Christ covers the paining of St. Anne and St. Mary
S T. A N N E ‘ S C H U R C H
RESPICITE QUONIAM NON MIHI SOLI LABORAVI SED OMNIBUS EXQUIRENTIBUS DISCIPLINAM. Translation: And note, I have not been working merely for myself, but for all who seek instruction. Ecclesiasticus/Sirach 33, 18
ST. FRANCIS XAVIER’S CHURCH The construction of the church situated in the middle of the town square, behind the watchtower, began two years after the Jesuits came to Rožňava (1656). Notwithstaning the tough times – including the Thirty Years’ War and numerous uprisings – the building was completed between 1660–1666 (although the sources diverge). The church is dedicated to St. Francis Xavier (1505–1552), a contemporary of the founder of the Jesuit order, St. Ignatius Loyola (1491–1556). Born at the Javier (Xavier) castle, near Pamplona, Spain, he is known for initiating overseas missions to India, Japan, and China. He died of exhaustion during a voyage near Canton, China. Both of them were canonised in 1622. The front of the building is adorned with precious linden statues of Moses (left) and King David (right).
Above the roof cross, the sign of IHS is placed – referring to the first three letters of the name Jesus in Greek: ‘IHΣOYΣ’; or partly latinised to ‘IHCOYC’. Commonly interpreted as: Jesus, Saviour of men (Iesus Hominum Salvator). The Jesuits used this sign frequently in the Baroque. It is also the symbol of their order, sometimes thought to stand for Iesum Habemus Socium (= Having Jesus as a companion). IHS is also connected with: In Hoc Signo (= In this sign) – adopted as a motto by Constantine’s army in the crucial Battle of the Milvian Bridge in 312. Due to the harsh construction period, the interior is rather plain.
The motto of the order– Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam (A.M.D.G.) = For the greater glory of God – is also a common inscription on Jesuit Baroque statues, monuments, and in their churches. The members of the Society of Jesus wear solely civil clothing and append an ‘SJ’ to their name. The most numerous male Catholic order registers 17,600 brothers worldwide, including the incumbent Holy Father Francis. The Jesuits also founded a town school. This explains why the church frequented by their pupils was called the pupils‘ church. After the dissolution of the Order in 1773, the church passed to the Franciscans. Later, until 1950, it was in the hands of the Premonstratensians of Jasov who also led the Catholic grammar school. Apart from the period 1990–2013 when it was run by the Salesians, since 1950 it has been under the control of the parish. In the chapel next to the church is located the statue of St. John of Nepomuk, the patron saint of the diocese and of the Rožňava cathe-dral chapter → see the corresponding column on the reverse. On the diocese origins 1776, 15th Jan. Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa (1717–1780), who reigned 1740–1780, established the Rožňava bishopric comprising the following counties: Gemer, Novohrad, Malohont, Turňa, South Spiš and parts of the Horehronie region. Pope Pius VI. sanctioned it with the papal bull Apostolatus officii (= A message of service) on 13th March 1776. Two years later, the present-day bishopric residence was built. Latin inscription on the bishopric office (loc. opposite to the church):
Translation: The apostolic passion of Maria Theresa erected this building for the bishop of Rožňava in 1778
S T. F R A N C I S X AV I E R ‘ S C H U R C H
The painting depicting the church patron on an overseas mission will certainly catch the eye of the visitor.
THE METTERCIA OF ROŽŇAVA – 1513 In medieval Latin, me tertia stands for ‘myself threefold’ – hence the name of the painting. The unique artwork is located on the left wall of the cathedral’s presbyterium. It refers specifically to St. Anne, mother of the Virgin Mary, who is depicted here with a careworn expression. The red robe symbolises blood and therefore sacrifice and life. The „threefold“ epithet refers to St. Anne as a grandmother accompanied by her daughter and grandchild. The Latin name may also be understood as ‘mother over and over’.
Neither Anne nor her husband Joachim are mentioned at length in the New Testament. In the upper section of the painting one can observe the depiction of the Holy Trinity: God the Father seen above, the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove and little Jesus who, with childish trust, touches the right hand of St. Anne. His mother Mary supportively holds him with both hands. Mary’s crown and purple cloak signify the queenly status (Queen of Heaven, Latin Regina cæli). The religious motif is here exceptionally well combined with the detailed depiction of the miners’ activities.
Thanks to this truly unique piece (in all of Central Europe), generations could for 502 years now observe the then-used process of deep ore extraction – a profession as much challenging as hazardous in nature. The reverence for St. Anne peaked at the end of the 15th/beginning of the 16th C. when pope Sixtus IV. (note that the Sistine chapel, built in 1475–1483 in Vatican, bears his name) in 1481 established a commemoration day in the Roman calendar. One century later (in 1584), pope Gregor XIII. (who is behind the still-in-use Gregorian calendar modification) fixed the date of St. Anne‘s and her husband Joachim‘s saints-day for the 26th July. The name Anne is mentioned in the Old Testament, namely in Samuel I (1–2), where the life story of her hero Hannah and her son Samuel is told: Hebrew ( ַחנָּ הḥan·nāh) stands for ‘absolved’ (Greek Αννα). In the late Middle Ages, St. Anne had a reputation of a strong woman – an ideal of the emerging bourgeois family. She became the patron saint of miners and was believed to protect against sudden death as well as to multiply (hidden) riches → The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Matt (13, 44) St. Barbara was born in 306 in Nicomedia, today‘s Izmit in Turkey. Only with the widespread use of gunpowder in mining did her cult as a patron of miners and metal workers spread in the Gemer region. On the occasion of this brochure’s publication, the author put together the following pure Latin chronogram:
IN ECCLESIA CATHEDRALI METERCIA ROSNAVIENSIS.
INTROI IBI! In the cathedral church is the Rožňava Mettercia. Enter here!
∑ = 10xI + 1xV + 0xX + 2xL + 4xC + 1xD + 1xM = 2015 THE CHRONOGRAM stands for ‘time writing’ in Greek – χρόνος, chronos (= time) and γράμμα, gramma (= letter). It is a well known concept in Hebrew and Sanskrit as well. The Latin numerals I=1; V=5; X=10; L=50; C=100; D=500; M=1000 serve as a reference. If these characters are marked bold, as all caps, with a color (or a combination thereof), their arithmetic sum stands for a particular date/year which is linked to a specific person, event, monument, epitaph, bell, painting, book and the like. The pure chronogram has to satisfy these two conditions: 1) if all the numerals used in the words are added, 2) if at least one numeral is used in each word. E.g.: HABEMVS PAPAM (= We Have a Pope), the announcement given upon the election of a new pope in Vatican. A little mnemonic help: in ∑ = 2005 pope Benedict XVI. assumed office.
THE IMMACULATA The statue was sculpted after the plague epidemic of 1710 as an expression of gratitude for saving the town. From May to mid-August of that year, 2025 out of 3000 inhabitants perished, as noted by a contemporary author. Source: Ladislav Tajták, Dejiny Rožňavy, Part 1, page 235, 1978. In 1999, a copy of the Immaculata was placed in front of the bishopric office while the restored archetype is located in the town gallery. The restored original Corinth column top can be found in the Museum of Mining in Rožňava. The terms’ religious usage: IMMACULATA CONCEPTIO = The immaculate conception (of Virgin Mary → Genesis 3; Revelations 12) IMMACULATA = immaculate, free from sin This term gained in its popularity during the Counter-Reformation. In the 17th and 18th C., the Immaculata was among the most frequently depicted settings of St. Mary. Shortly after the plague epidemics, many a town square across Europe was enriched by a plague column with a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head (→ Revelations 12) on top. THE STATUE OF ST. JOHN OF NEPOMUK The patron-saint of the Rožňava diocese and of the Rožňava cathedral chapter was born around 1350 in Pomuk, near Pilsen. His byname originated by the false pronunciation of his Latin name „de Pomuk = of Pomuk.“ From 1389 onwards, he served as Vicar general of the Prague archdiocese and as a member of the St. Vitus Cathedral Chapter. As an advocate of the ecclesiastical matters to king Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, he was also the queen’s confessor. In 1393, after being tortured, he was thrown into Vltava from a bridge. He is usually portrayed in full canonicals, a biretta on the head, holding a crucifix in his hands. His head also often decorate five stars with the inscription Tacui (= I said nothing). Buried in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague and sanctified in 1729, he is also the patron-saint of the Czech Republic, Bavaria and of the Jesuit order and is a symbol of the Recatholicization.
THE FRANCISCA ANDRÁSSY MEMORIAL is situated in the middle of the town square, in front of the watchtower (built 1643– 54). The total height of this symbol of Rožňava is 36 m. The visitors can reach the observatory platform (at 28 m) after conquering 144 steps. The memorial was erected as an expression of appreciation and gratitude to the benefactress and wife of count Dionysus Andrássy in 1905. The art nouveau memorial consists of her bust (carved out of Carrara marble) and an old man with two children. It was deemed ‘ideologically disadvantageous’ bet. 1973–93 and removed to the Mausoleum in Krásnohorské Podhradie. After the regime change and restoration it was returned to the original site.
(1835–1913)
(1838–1902)
The portraits are located in the Francisca Museum at the Krásna Hôrka Castle, which was seriously fire-damaged on 10/3/2012. The husband and wife, both major art patrons, contributed significantly to the social uplift of the local community and of the population of Gemer. 1902 Francisca unexpectedly died in Munich. One year later, her grieving husband erected the art nouveau mausoleum in the village of Krásnohorské Podhradie. It was finished in Sep. 1904. On 24th–26th Oct. 1904, her remains were transported from Munich. On the 26th, a ceremonial funeral was held. 1913, 7th March Count Dionysus died in Palermo, Sicily, and now rests next to his lady in the abovementioned mausoleum. OBIIT SINE PROLE. He died without offspring.
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In 2014, the Cathedral of the Assumption gains special spiritual attachment to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, based on which the Apostolic Penitentiary (the Holy Father) grants full indulgences. Renovation of the RoĹžĹˆava cathedral chapter. Short description: The basis for the coat of arms is the authentic chapter signet received from Maria Theresa in 1777 although the individual signet elements have been simplified. The two crowns represent the crowned Virgin Mary holding Jesus. The three roses originate from the first bishop of RoĹžĹˆava, Anton RĂŠvay’s (1776–1780) personal coat of arms. The biretta above the bridge symbolises the chapter patron-saint, St. John of Nepomuk. The crosier with the sudarium signify the fact that the chapter is led by a provost. Source: Miroslav Glejtek, heraldic consultant to the Bishops’ Conference of Slovakia, 2/XII/2014 Nitra.
THE NEW BISHOP Holy Father Francis appointed the previously auxiliary bishop of KoĹĄice, Stanislav STOLĂ RIK, as the new Bishop of RoĹžĹˆava on 21st March 2015. The new diocesan bishop was born in 1955 in RoĹžĹˆava itself. The three former bishops: t 7MBEJNĂ“S '*-0 o 0O st March pope Francis accepted the SFTJHOBUJPO PG CJTIPQ 7MBEJNĂ“S 'JMP EVF UP SFBDIJOH UIF BHF PG VOEFS UIF Codex of the Canon Law. t &EVBSE ,0+/0, o p th Oct. 2011. t 3Ă˜CFSU 10#0Ç/Ă… o NBOBHFE UIF CJTIPQSJD EVSJOH UIF BHF PG 4UBMJOJTN BOE PG UIF HSBWFTU USJBMT p th June 1972. Services info: http://goo.gl/J7nVAi Additional source of info: Jutta SEIBERT, Herders Lexikon der christlichen Kunst, Verlag HOHE GmbH, D–Erfstadt, 2007
Photo taken by: Milan KerdĂk
Š Jozef SoroÄ?in | www.issuu.com/VydSorocinJ Š Review: Milan KerdĂk Š Photos: Peter OlekĹĄĂĄk | peter.oleksak@centrum.sk Š Layout+Translation: Jozef SoroÄ?in, Jr. | about.me/sorocin Š For RoĹžĹˆavskĂĄ katedrĂĄlna kapitula, /ĂˆNFTUJF CBOĂ“LPW 4, 3PäʼBWB ☎ +421 903 112 855, issued by: Jozef SoroÄ?in JSL, RĂĄzusova 6, SK-071 01 Michalovce | sorocin23@gmail.com Š Printed by: Rotaprint, s. r. o. #BSĘŠJBOTLB 4, ,PĂ?JDF t