Where will the papal mass take place? Who and where does not have to pay for transport? Where should closures be expected? We have collected the most important programs and practical information of the papal visit.
On February 23, it was officially announced: the Pope will visit Hungary in April. We have compiled the programs of the papal visit, as well as how this major event affects traffic, and where to expect closures.
On April 28, Pope Francis will leave Rome-Fiumicino International Airport for Budapest a little after eight o'clock in the morning, arriving in Hungary at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport at ten o'clock. An hour later, they will be received in a ceremonial setting in the square in front of the Sándor Palace. Then
meets with the President of the Republic Katalin Novák and then with the Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
In the early afternoon, he meets representatives of state authorities, social life and the diplomatic corps in the Carmelite Monastery building, where he also gives a speech. In the late afternoon of April 28, Pope Francis will meet with church leaders, bishops, priests, deacons, monks, religious teachers, and catechists in the St. Stephen's Basilica, where he will also give a speech.
The Pope also meets the poor and refugees
The following day, on the morning of April 29, the Holy Father will meet the poor, homeless, and refugees at the St. Elizabeth Church in Rózsák Square. (The fact that the meeting takes place here has a nice symbolism, since Saint Elizabeth of Árpád-háza was a great patron of the poor, she founded a shelter for orphaned children and took care of the poor even after her husband's death). After that, the Holy Father also visits the Greek Catholic church on the other side of the square, where he also meets the Greek Catholic faithful.
In addition to the poor, Ferenc also cares about the fate of young people, and he wants to meet them as well. This will also take place on April 29, namely at the Papp László Sportarena.
"We are waiting for the Pope with a more breath-taking induction program, a spirit of prayer, and glorification. Then, when he arrives, there will be welcoming testimonies, and he also wants to speak to the young people."
Áron Ernyey, the program director delegated from the ecclesiastical side of the papal visit, told 777blog . Those arriving in the arena with an invitation will be admitted, but the organizers encourage those interested to gather in front of the projector on Szent István Square to follow the events. By the way, all the events will be broadcast here, so those who can't get in can get involved in this form. Those who cannot go there can follow the events in the public media.
Papal Mass on Kossuth Square
On April 30, Pope Francis will celebrate Mass on Kossuth Square from 10:30.
As Ernyey said, the stage, on which the altar will be located, is located in front of the Kossuth statue group and looks towards the square, in front of it will be the concelebrating fathers, the entire square will be available to the faithful in the sitting and standing sectors. Ernyey recommends that the faithful come from the direction of Szabadság tér and Deák tér. A separate sector is provided for wheelchair-bound and hearing-impaired believers.
On the last day of the visit, the Pope will meet with representatives of university and cultural life at the Faculty of Information Technology and Bionics of Pázmány Péter Catholic University, where he will also deliver a speech. The Holy Father's official farewell will take place at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport at half past six in the evening.
Free transport is provided by MÁV and GYSEV
From anywhere in the country
provides free travel to the capital for pilgrims arriving and returning from the programs of the papal visit on April 29 and 30 of the MÁV-Volán group and GYSEV.
The exemption applies to the 2nd class carriages of the scheduled flights of MÁV-START Zrt. and GYSEV Zrt., as well as the scheduled flights of Volánbusz Zrt., MÁV informed MTI. The passenger must pay any surcharges as well as the price difference for 1st class, they pointed out. It is not necessary to redeem a registration ticket for free travel, the relevant transport service providers will continuously inform passengers about further technical details.
You have to expect closures here
Due to the construction and demolition work related to the visit of Pope Francis, from Friday until May 7, trams 2, 2B and 23 will only run to the Kossuth Lajos tér (Széchenyi rakpart) stop instead of Jászai Mari tér in the capital, and separately on the interrupted section there is no replacement bus. The Budapest Transport Center (BKK) recommends metro 2 to reach Kossuth Lajos tér and its surroundings from BKK Buda, and bus 15 to reach the area between Szent István körút and Kossuth Lajos tér.
Pope Francis last visited Hungary on September 12, 2021: he came to the closing mass of the International Eucharistic Congress and celebrated the so-called statio orbis mass in Heroes Square. During the morning, he met with Hungarian Catholic bishops and leaders of other denominations, and held an official meeting with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and President János Áder.
Then he only spent a few hours in Budapest, then traveled on to Bratislava and made an apostolic visit to Slovakia. On the way home from Bratislava, in response to a journalist's question on the plane, he said: "I promised your president, whom I met - this is the third time I have met him - that I would think about whether I could come next year or the year after, because they have a lot of value in for Hungarians. I was impressed by how deep your sense of ecumenism is. It touched me deeply.”
Pope Francis's visit to Hungary at the end of April serves specifically religious purposes. However, the background of the visit is that Budapest has become the symbolic center of a specific political thought and action in contrast to the secular progressivism offered by Brussels, the National Catholic Register wrote. You can read more about this here.Featured image source: katolikus.ma
