Prime Minister Péter Magyar described his audience with Pope Leo XIV as open and friendly in remarks to journalists on Thursday in Vatican City, following a private meeting with the head of the Catholic Church. The Prime Minister invited the Pope to visit Hungary and presented the Roman Catholic pontiff with a pair of singular gifts.
A day not to be forgotten
“As a former Piarista pupil, today will remain unforgettable for me,” Mr Magyar wrote on his Facebook page of his one-to-one talks with Pope Leo at the Vatican. Departing the audience with the papal blessing, he added that he had recounted events in Hungary over recent years, “and I told him how a politics founded on honesty, genuine human relationships and hard work can succeed.
”Before the meeting, Mr Magyar paid his respects at the tomb of Pope St John Paul II, from whom he adopted the “Do not be afraid!” slogan used at the outset of his political career and whom he regards as an important role model. The Polish-born pontiff, who endured both Nazi and Soviet communist dictatorships, employed the now-famous phrase in his October 1978 inaugural address.
Pope well informed on Hungary
According to MTI, Mr Magyar said the discussions covered changes in Hungary and the challenges facing Hungarians and Europeans alike, whether war or the energy crisis. They also spoke at length about artificial intelligence and the challenges and dangers it poses, he said. He added that they had discussed the situation of the Catholic Church in Hungary, the social, educational and other services provided by the Church, as well as Hungarian Christian traditions.
The Prime Minister said the Pope was very well informed about the situation in Hungary and Central Europe, and about the circumstances of Hungarian minorities living beyond the country’s borders.
Special gifts
With the 70th anniversary of the 1956 revolution and war of independence approaching, Mr Magyar chose gifts for Pope Leo accordingly. One was a graphically rendered, hand-written Italian version of Pope Pius XII’s address delivered on Vatican Radio on 10 November 1956 in connection with events in Hungary; the other was the first, 1974 New York edition of the memoirs of Cardinal József Mindszenty.Before boarding his Wizz Air flight, Mr Magyar also announced that his two sons had accompanied him on the visit at his own expense.
The first gift:
All parties satisfied
Both sides expressed satisfaction at Thursday’s Hungarian-Vatican meetings over the favourable course of bilateral relations and the role of the Catholic Church in Hungary’s life, the Holy See press office said in a statement after Pope Leo XIV received Prime Minister Péter Magyar in private audience, following which the head of government met Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican Secretary of State’s secretary for relations with states, MTI reported.
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According to the briefing, the talks addressed Hungary’s social and economic situation, as well as several matters of mutual interest, including education and the protection of vulnerable Christian communities in various parts of the world.The discussions also touched on current international issues, with particular reference to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. The parties expressed hope that the international community would show ever greater commitment to promoting peace, the statement read.
