Béla Soltész was born on March 7, 1889, in Jolsva. He completed his high school studies in Rozsnyó and Losonc. On October 29, 1908, he arrived in Rome, where he continued his theological studies as a student at the Collegium Germanicum-Hungaricum. He was ordained a priest in 1914. The outbreak of World War I brought his stay in Rome to an end, and on May 7, 1915, he returned to his diocese.

After his return, he served as an assistant pastor in Putnok, and later took on the role of tutor for the Serényi family. His ministry in Hungary lasted until 1925, when he left for the United States.

The first significant stop in his pastoral work in the United States was Connellsville, Pennsylvania, where he served as pastor of the Hungarian St. Imre Roman Catholic parish beginning in 1926. His ministry is also attested to by contemporary sources: in 1930, the *Magyar Bányászlap* referred to him as “Parish Priest Dr. Béla Soltész.” The Connellsville parish covered a vast mission area; its Hungarian parishioners were scattered across numerous nearby mining settlements.

Accordingly, Soltész’s ministry was not limited to Connellsville. He regularly ministered to the Hungarian Catholics in Brownsville and also carried out pastoral and missionary work in Daisytown, Masontown, and other nearby mining settlements. Brownsville, therefore, should not necessarily be considered his independent parish, but rather part of the outreach associated with the Connellsville parish.

In 1934, he served briefly in Beaver Falls, then moved to Homestead. There he served as pastor of St. Margaret of Hungary Church. His ministry in Homestead is also confirmed by a contemporary directory of Hungarian priests in the United States, which lists his name and address as “Béla Soltész, 435 E. 10th Ave., Homestead, Pa.” as “Béla Soltész, 435 E. 10th Ave., Homestead, Pa.”

Homestead remained his last known place of ministry. Based on the sources uncovered so far, it has not been possible to determine the exact place and date of his death. The sources are not entirely consistent regarding the year of his death either: the Hungarian Catholic Lexicon lists 1942, while other sources and an earlier collection of biographical data list 1943.