He was born the only son in a deeply religious family with three children. He received his First Communion at the age of five. His parents were members of congregations led by Jesuit priests; one of his uncles served as a Jesuit priest, and another was a Marist brother. He attended Fáy High School. After graduating, he applied for admission to the Archdiocese of Esztergom and was accepted into the Central Seminary. However, he was expelled from there in 1958 because he refused to attend the priests’ “peace assembly” and participated in secret seminary training. He learned to drive and worked as a chauffeur. In 1960, he was readmitted to the Esztergom seminary. He was ordained a priest in Esztergom by Auxiliary Bishop Imre Szabó on June 16, 1963. He left the country in 1975 and earned a doctorate in the sociology of religion at the University of Innsbruck. In 1978, he became a Jesuit novice. He earned a degree in mass communications from Concordia University in Montreal. He took his vows in the Jesuit Order in 1979, after receiving permission from the Holy See to leave the diocese, even though Cardinal Lékai had refused to grant it. From 1979, he served temporarily as editor of the magazine Szív. He became a Canadian citizen in 1981. From 1982, he worked for Vatican Radio. He was an outstanding and respected Scout leader; the 79th Dr. György Kozma SJ Scout Troop in Innsbruck bears his name. He died as a result of complications from heart surgery; he never regained consciousness from anesthesia and was pronounced dead two days later.
Domestic service locations
From
To
Place i
Current name, country i
Church / institution
Position
1964
1971
Nógrádmegyer, Hungary
assistant pastor
1973
1973
Érsekvadkert, Hungary
assistant pastor
1973
1975
Budapest, Hungary
Szent Imre templom
assistant pastor
Foreign service locations
From
To
Place
Current name, country
Church / institution
Position
1975
1978
Innsburck, Austria
pursuing studies
1978
1982
Toronto, ON, Canada
Novitiate, followed by service as an assistant pastor in Montreal, MB, Canada, and Vancouver, BC, Canada
1982
1984
Róma, Italy
Vatican Radio staff member
1984
1988
Bécs, Austria
Editor at Opus Mystici Corporis Publishing
1989
Nyugat-Berlin, NSZK
Berlin, Germany
third
1989
1990
München, NSZK
Germany
Magyar Katolikus Misszió
youth pastor
Literary activity
Das Kirchenbild der ungarischen Bischöfe im Spiegel der bischöflichen Rundschreiben. Bécs, 1979;
Úti misekönyv. Róma, 1982;
Kézikönyv világi kisegítők számára. Róma, 1987.
Életünk c. havilap szerkesztője
Kozma Teréz: Kozma György élete (1939—1990), in: Szabó Ferenc (szerk.): Magyar jezsuiták vallomásai III., „Anima Una”-könyvek / 13, Jézus Társasága Magyarországi Rendtartománya, 1999.;
Kozma György SJ, dr: personal record. In: Historical directory of Hungarian, Hungarian-descended, and Hungarian-speaking clergy serving abroad. Available at: https://www.diaszporalelkipasztorok.hu/persons_v2/view.php?id=594 (accessed: 2026-07-07).
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