Pope grants honour to Hungarian Maltese Charity international head

Pope Francis has awarded Daniel Solymari, director of international relations at the Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta, the Knight Cross of the Order of Saint Sylvestre, the oldest decoration the Holy See bestows on secular individuals, the charity told MTI in a statement.

Solymári was presented with the award by Cardinal Péter Erdő, the Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, and Youssef Absi, the patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, at the Primate’s Palace in Budapest on Friday. He received the honour in recognition of his work concerning the international relations of the pontiff and the Holy See, mainly in the areas of international aid and humanitarian diplomacy.

The charity noted that the Knight Cross of the Order of Saint Sylvestre was among the most rarely bestowed decorations, having been given to less than ten Hungarian citizens, according to records available since 1945.

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Orbán meets Syrian Christian leaders

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met the leaders of three Christian Churches in Syria in his office on Friday, Orbán’s press chief said. Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, Youssef (Joseph) Absi, Patriarch of the Syrian Melkite Catholic Church, and Patriarch John X of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and all the East thanked Hungary and its government for the help and assistance provided to Syria which was hit by a devastating earthquake in February, Bertalan Havasi said.

The press chief noted that Hungary had provided 50 million forints (EUR 127,000) to the Hungarian Maltese Charity for setting up three mobile clinical units in Syria’s earthquake-hit region. Hungary is planning to collect and extend further donations to be distributed by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in north-eastern Syria, he said.