Francis spoke of two temptations we must always guard against as a Church: catastrophic defeatism and worldly conformity
Pope Francis gestures at the audience during a Mass in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo: La Civilta Cattolica)
Pope Francis returned to Hungary recently following an earlier trip for the International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest on September 12, 2021.
He is the second pontiff to visit the country after St. John Paul II, who visited in 1991 and 1996. The central image on the logo for this trip was the Szechenyi Chain Bridge in Budapest, Hungary’s oldest bridge crossing the Danube.
A symbol of the capital and the country, it was originally built to unite the cities of Buda and Pest. It clearly evokes the thought, repeatedly uttered by Pope Francis, of the importance of building bridges.
The pontiff arrived at Budapest’s Ferenc Liszt International Airport at 10 a.m. on April 28, where he was greeted by the deputy prime minister at the foot of the plane, where two children in traditional dress offered him bread and salt. He then traveled to Sándor Palace in the Buda Castle district, which is the official residence of the country's president. Here the pope was welcomed by President Katalin Novák. The two leaders then proceeded to the second floor for a private meeting, which was followed by one with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
It is essential to find the European soul
Later in the afternoon, the pope went to the hall of a former Carmelite monastery, the seat of the Hungarian head of government, where he met political and religious figures, the diplomatic corps, a number of businesspeople, and representatives of civil society and culture — about 200 people in all.
Read the complete feature here.
This article is brought to you by UCA News in association with La Civilta Cattolica.
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