He was born in Hahót, Zala County, as Ferenc Kelemen, the son of master blacksmith Ferenc Kelemen and Lóri Jankó. His father passed away on December 31, 1883, a week and a half before his son’s birth. He attended secondary school in Keszthely, then entered the Benedictine Order in 1903 and studied theology in Pannonhalma; he earned his teaching degree at the University of Budapest. Between 1910 and 1916, he taught in Pápa, then served as parish priest in Nyalkán. From 1928, he was the principal of a high school in Győr, and from 1933 to 1947, he served as abbot of Pannonhalma. He was a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Upper House until 1945. In 1947, he left for Brazil.

In 1944, during the Szálasi regime, the Pannonhalma Abbey complex also functioned as a children’s shelter under the auspices of the International Red Cross. In addition to the staff, 760 people, including 418 children, received care and shelter; they also took in young conscripts, Jews in hiding, and deserters. On October 25, the Gestapo conducted an unsuccessful search of Abbot Kelemen Krizosztom’s residence. Members of the Arrow Cross Party continued to harass him later, but he did not betray those under his protection. At the end of November, he signed the “memorandum from church leaders aimed at sparing Transdanubia,” which was sent to Szálasi.

In 1947, he left the country. From 1949, he was a member of the National Committee of Emigrants. After the change of regime, his ashes were brought home, and he found his final resting place in the Pannonhalma Basilica.

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