The XVII. a Balassi mass was held for the consecration of the sword, this time in Lendva, Slovenia. The service was held in compliance with the Covid rules, and was celebrated by a Hungarian bishop and a Slovenian priest. They blessed the two sabers that will be presented as literary awards for the twenty-sixth time on St. Valentine's Day in Budapest.
The Hungarian-founded international literary prize, the sword consecration service belonging to the tradition of the Bálint Balassi memorial sword, took place this time in the Mura region: the sabers were blessed here by Bishop László Kiss-Rigó of Szeged-Csanád. This year the XXVI. this recognition is presented for the first time on St. Valentine's Day, February 14, and this is the first time that one of the writers to be honored was present at the previously held consecration of the sword. This year, Lajos Bence, , can take over the poet's saber. The foreign translator to be honored this year is the Romanian Elena Lavinia Dumitru .
This service was also the mass of this year's Balázs blessing, the Hungarian bishop and the Slovenian parish priest gave the consecration of throat protectors to the long line of believers between the two candles. Mihály Soós , director of the local Hungarian National Cultural Institute, and Pál Molnár , founder of the literary award and president of the Balassi Sword Art Foundation, greeted the bishop and parish priest as well as the faithful
At the agape after the service Martin Dolamič-Konrad , parish priest of the St. Catherine of Alexandria Catholic Church in Lendva, stated: it is a unique celebration for Lendva that the consecration mass of this highly prestigious international award could take place in the Catholic church of this city, and the priest thanked the organizers for this opportunity. Pál Molnár, the president of the Balassi Sword Art Foundation, also thanked the excellent parish priest for the fact that the Saint Catherine of Alexandria church provided a place for this service, and thus the bilingual mass could become a joint Slovene-Hungarian celebration.
Source: Gondola.hu
(Header photo: Teodor Žalik )
