Pope Francis Pays a Brief Visit to Budapest to Celebrate Mass

Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic church, spent about seven hours in Hungary this Sunday before leaving for a three-day visit to Slovakia in the afternoon. In Budapest, he celebrated the closing mass of the International Eucharistic Congress 2020.

The plane carrying Pope Francis landed at 7.45 a.m. at Ferenc Liszt International Airport, where he was greeted by a small crowd, including state and church leaders. Then, he was driven to Heroes Square, the venue of the closing mass of the 52^nd International Eucharistic Congress held between September 5 and 12, postponed from last year.

At the adjacent Museum of Fine Arts, the Pope had a brief meeting set up with state officials including Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and President János Áder and then, he delivered a speech to church leaders.

Before the mass, he was taken for a short ride in the popemobile to greet people who gathered at the square and along a short stretch of Andrássy Avenue.

He was gentle in his speeches, and the Hungarians received a delicately wrapped message of openness.

While celebrating the mass, he also said a few words in Hungarian. Following that event, he was flown to the Slovak capital, Bratislava where he begins a tour of that country before flying back to Rome on Wednesday afternoon.