Bátor Botond, the Pauline monk who led the team, said that they set off from Hargitafürdő with thirty motorbikes on the trying journey, but there were vehicles with more people on them.
The Transylvanian superior of the only male monastic order founded in Hungary said that they arrived with thirty motorbikes, but there was one on which more people sat. Family members and other companions made the trip by plane and bus.
"We took it as a nice challenge to go on a motorcycle pilgrimage. The road to Rome was not short, but the Good Lord was with us all the way," he emphasized.
Bátor Botond said that it was good to see how many people joined the national pilgrimage announced by the Hungarian Catholic Bishops' College.
"It is a great pleasure that Pope Francis welcomes us with such love"
- he referred to Thursday's Vatican audience, when the head of the church will meet the Hungarian pilgrims. He added: "we were informed that he is really waiting for the Hungarians".
Zoltán Balga, the leader of the Hungarian Catholic parish in Prague, arrived in Rome with a group of fifteen people. He said that most of the members of their community belong to the younger age group. They took part in the International Eucharistic Congress organized in Budapest in 2021, the closing mass of which was pontificated by Pope Francis, and they were also present at last year's papal visit.
"The Pope's visit to Hungary was leading news in our community for a long time. A year later, it's not just a memory anymore, it's much more than that, as it helped me realize that not only a concert or a soccer match, but also a mass church event, a mass, can connect us. It strengthens a person's faith and initiates a spiritual flow"
- He told. He believed that some of the believers experienced that belonging to the church does not end with going to mass on Sunday.
"The current national pilgrimage responds to Pope Francis' visit to Hungary last year. This also shows that the concept of the nation has undergone a strong change in the last century: the Pope visited the Hungarian Catholic community and went to the people of faith. In addition, however, he also met the heads of official institutions, almost the entire country. The nation also appeared in this sense," said Péter Erdő.
He explained: the pilgrimage also has a double aspect, the Catholics and the country are also represented. "I think that in this sense we all try to pray for the good of everyone at the masses presented during the pilgrimage in Rome," he declared. Péter Erdő announced that on Thursday, Pope Francis will receive the participants of the pilgrimage in the audience hall of the Vatican together with the archbishops and bishops of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops' Conference (MKPK). After that, the cardinal presents Mass at the so-called Cathedral Altar of St. Peter's Basilica, which is located behind the main altar. To the suggestion that this is not the first time that he has celebrated mass in St. Peter's Basilica, Péter Erdő replied that this occasion will be extraordinary, since he will lead the ceremony in front of a large Hungarian community after a direct meeting with Pope Francis.
"My speech will be about thanksgiving and will be a message to strengthen our belonging to the world church. We need to make people aware that the church lives not only in history, but also today around the world, and that we are members of this great community," he stated.
On the second day of the pilgrimage, 1,500 Hungarians visited St. Paul's Basilica, outside the former Roman city walls, where Archbishop György Udvardy of Veszprém, vice president of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops' Conference, presented mass. György Udvardy emphasized in his homily that the person and teachings of Jesus Christ are true, and this obliges us. He recalled that during Pope Francis' visit to Hungary, he talked about opening gates and building bridges on several occasions. "His visit marked a task for us, that of serving people," said György Udvardy.
For the Hungarian communities across the border, it is a "positive joy" to experience the strong character of the church, which at the same time makes us aware of our belonging and our Hungarianness, added Gergely Varga, who also serves in the Prague parish.
Father László Brána, from Rahó in the easternmost part of Subcarpathia, called it a good feeling that Hungarian pilgrims wearing white scarves around their necks filled the city of Rome, and no matter which country or region they came from, they were happy to talk to each other, because
"their Hungarianness also connects them in the holy city of Rome".
When asked whether the Hungarian-inhabited area of Ukraine is waiting for the visit of Pope Francis, which has been promised several times since the beginning of the war, but did not materialize due to the lack of a host, László Brána replied that the head of the church's visit would certainly help on the way to the peace table in the current "terrible situation".
MTI
