No sooner had Hungarian Laszlo Cardinal Lekai arrived in Vilnius than a reception was held at the residence of Orthodox Bishop Viktorin. The reception was also attended by Religious Affairs Commissioner P. Anilionis, who read a speech. He began with a lesson on Lithuanian geography and later concentrated on matters of Church life. Anilionis stressed the fact that in Lithuania there are many undisciplined priests who are disregarding Soviet laws. He placed the Jesuits of Lithuania among the ranks of the undisciplined. The Commissioner could not resist mentioning that a Catholic Committee for the Defense of Believers' Rights had been formed in Lithuania but that it would be better not to meet with its members.
Later, the Provincial of the Hungarian Jesuits remarked to the Lithuanian bishops: "If he speaks this way to us, how does he speak to you?"
In truth, Religious Affairs Commissioner Petras Anilionis is a fierce enemy of the Church who follows the hard Stalinist line. This type of Commissioner is appointed in order to force the Lithuanian Ordinaries and priests to observe, however reluctantly, the Soviet decrees aimed at destroying the Church. Thank God, the priests have shown the necessary strength. It only remains for the Ordinaries, who are presently being harshly terrorized by Anilionis, to display similar fortitude.
