Us and Blessed Karl of Austria
This news story by Bishop Nuno Brás originally appeared in Jornal da Madeira, the online newspaper for the Diocese of Funchal.
This year 2022 will pass the centenary of the death of Emperor Karl of Austria. At the end of World War I, Karl arrived on our island as an exile. The winning governments of the conflict forced him to leave his land and come to Madeira with his family for shelter. After all, the Emperor personified a set of values that they wanted to see removed from the new political scene they were building.
First, the primacy of God. In personal life, be it interior, in the secret of conscience, or public, in the attitudes and words that someone addresses to everyone; and, above all, the primacy of God in political life, in the organization of society and in the laws that regulate its way of life. Throughout his life, this was Carlos' secret: God and his will, sought after, known and lived as far as our strength and abilities allow.
Then the primacy of the person. The person is seen not as a means to an end, not as another insignificant number, but as someone dear and loved by God for himself, with a unique dignity that cannot be compared to the mere consideration of one in the midst of an anonymous mass.
Finally, the primacy of peace. It may seem strange, but the fact is that at the beginning of the 20th century (and even today), many defended war as a means of human progress: from the partisans of the class struggle to the defenders of savage individualism that does not look at nothing or anyone to achieve your purposes. In front of these and against them, Karl, since he arrived at the head of the Empire, always tried seriously and with all his strength to find ways to peace in Europe and in the world.
One hundred years later, we must confess that we have learned very little from the figure of this Holy Emperor. And that we Madeirans too often forget his example and his Christian witness.
Therefore, this could be a year to rediscover the figure of this man who, if it is true that he did not choose Madeira to live in exile, asked to be buried here next to Senhora do Monte, his and our Mother.