Unum omnes in Christo in Unitatis Servitio I. [antikvár]

SALUTATIO ABBATIS PRIMATIS It is a pleasant and easy task to pen a few lines for the book which honors Father Gerard Békés. My acquaintance with him was developed in two stages: 1. as a student in Sant'Anselmo in the 1950's and 2. as abbot primate beginning in 1992. I was not privileged to have him as a professor in the 1950's but I talked to his students who found him a forward looking theologian and an effective teacher. Father Gerard distinguished himself as a teacher and ecumenist. He showed great respect for various Christian traditions and sought to bring them together in mutual understanding and united action. Students found in Father Gerard an interested listener and a va-lued counselor. All residents of the Collegio Sant'Anselmo found in him a pleasant person and an observant monk. They realized too that he made himself available to other monasteries and schools for spiri-tual conferences and lectures. In the name of the six abbots primate that he has worked with over the years I wish to thank him for his long and successful life of worship and work at Sant'Anselmo. He gave of himself unstintingly and he did much to further the cause of Benedictine life and thought in the church and the world. SantAnselmo, January 3, 1995. JEROME THEISEN OSB Abbot Primate