During a solemn ceremony in Tyrol (Austria) in December 2018, the President of the Royal Deputation of Austria and Liechtenstein, H.I.R.H. Archduke Simeon of Austria, admitted three new members into the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George. For this purpose, the Right Reverend German Erd OSB, the Abbot of Stams Abbey in Tyrol, celebrated a mass in the 18th century chapel of the old Tyrolean State House (Landhaus) in Innsbruck. This chapel’s patrocinium is dedicated to St. George, which embodies Tyrol’s bond to its former patron-saint. In his sermon, Right Reverend German Erd reminded the attendants of Saint George’s virtues, and how such saints could serve as inner navigators guiding each of us throughout all domains of life.
The three new members admitted to the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George include a professor of Catholic Theology at the University of Vienna; a politician and former local councillor for economic affairs in Tyrol; and a civil servant who has been voluntarily serving as a secretary to the Delegation for years.
After the mass, the President of the Local State Diet invited all members of the Order and their families to a joint lunch.
«We appreciate that every year, individuals from all sectors of life seek admission to our Order for the purpose of channelling Catholic values towards a common goal», said H.I.R.H. Archduke Simeon of Austria who heads the regional Delegation and who, alongside his wife H.I.R.H. Archduchess Maria of Austria, was present at the ceremony in Innsbruck. «At each gathering, we are witnesses to a confluence of noble aspirations. The fact that there is still a vivid demand to lead a life based on Catholic values within a widely secularized epoch renders our community even more important».
