All preparations complete for papal visit
"Everything is set" for Pope Francis's upcoming visit to Hungary, the state secretary for international communications said after a meeting on Tuesday of the operative body in charge of preparations.
Zoltan Kovacs said making preparations was a state responsibility, though the pope’s visit would “basically be an apostolic event”.
Organisers have been working “in line with decisions by the Hungarian Catholic Church and the papal delegation” in terms of selecting venues and planning programmes, he added.
Bishop Andras Veres, the head of the Conference of Hungarian Catholic Bishops, said the visit would be an “honour and joyful meeting” not only for Catholics but for the whole nation. He noted that Francis could not visit outside Budapest due his fragile health, but organisers were “mobilising the country” and inviting believers and priests to come to Budapest during the three-day visit starting on Friday.
