Members of the Order at the International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest
The participation of Knights and Dames in the International Eucharistic Congress demonstrated the commitment of the Order’s members to the life of the universal Church.
The preparation and celebration of the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress involved in some way the whole Hungarian Church, so also the local Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Over the previous three years, the Missionary Cross, the symbol of the Congress, has visited the various Catholic communities not only in Hungary, but also in neighbouring countries, gathering the faithful for prayer and adoration. It is a grandiose reliquary, made in 2007 from sheets of bronze, bearing a splinter of the Holy Cross in the center, surrounded by the relics of Hungarian and Central European saints. The Lieutenancy for Hungary welcomed the Missionary Cross in August 2021, at its headquarters in Budapest, with particular affection, since it was created by a Knight, Csaba Ozsvári, who died in the odor of sanctity in 2009. For three days the Knights and Dames organized moments of prayer and sacred music, with testimonies about the Order, which were also very well attended by the public. The Lieutenancy had also participated in the worldwide adoration, organized in preparation for the Eucharistic Congress, on 5 June 2021.
During the week of the International Eucharistic Congress, the Lieutenancy, together with the Hungarian Relief Corps of the Order of Malta, organized an evening of prayer and fraternal meetings with the prelates of the Middle East present in Budapest. Despite travel restrictions due to the pandemic, several of the Order’s Lieutenancies sent their representatives to the Congress. The significant presence of the Lieutenant for Western Spain, the Lieutenant for Belgium and the Magistral Delegate for Croatia are worthy of mention.
The Mass celebrated on 11 September 2021, presided over by Cardinal Péter Erdo“, Primate of Hungary, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest and Grand Prior of the Lieutenancy for Hungary, in front of the Hungarian Parliament Building, was followed by a grand Eucharistic procession with hundreds of thousands of faithful, which wound its way through the streets of the center. The Knights and Dames of the Holy Sepulchre, as well as the candidates, the “novices”, walked under the banners of the Lieutenancy, led by Lieutenant Béla Jungbert, immediately after the float carrying the Blessed Sacrament. Similarly, members of the Lieutenancy for Hungary were also present on September 5 at the opening of the Congress on Heroes’ Square.
The concluding liturgy of the International Eucharistic Congress was celebrated by the Holy Father in front of 250,000 faithful on the morning of 12 September, with the participation of Knights and Dames of the Holy Sepulchre, some of whom were involved in the organization of the event. These days were for all a solid foundation from which to start again in order to become collaborators in the spiritual rebirth for Europe called for by Cardinal Péter Erdo“ and Pope Francis.
Article written from a report received from Márk Aurél Érszegi
Secretary of the Lieutenancy for Hungary
(October 2021)