PROHÁSZKA, OTTOKAR. — One of the greatest Hungarian writers of the 20th century, born at Nyitra on 10 Oct. 1858, died at Budapest on 2 Apr. 1927. He completed his studies in Rome at the German-Hungarian College and was ordained priest in 1881. In 1884 he became professor of theology at the Seminary of Esztergom; in 1904 he held the chair of dogmatic theology at the Pazmány University of Budapest, and in 1905 was appointed Bishop of Székesfehérvár (Alba Regia).
A member of the Academy of Sciences from 1909, he served from 1920 to 1922 as a fellow of the National Assembly of Hungarian orators, poets, and writers. A zealous advocate of the social movement, he worked for a fairer distribution of wealth, particularly of large estates, in favour of the poor. His output was extensive, covering philosophical, theological, historical, and pastoral themes. Of his works (25 vols., Budapest 1929, ed. A. Schütz) the principal ones are: Dio e il mondo (1890); Terra e cielo (1901); La concezione trionfale del mondo (1903); Verso le altezze (1911); L'anima della guerra (1915); Luce nelle tenebre (1916); Civiltà e terrore (1918); Sorgenti d'acqua vive (1927).