Catholic Church leader discusses pope’s Budapest visit in Vatican

Erdo told MTI that his talks had focused on specific organisational matters concerning the upcoming Congress.

Though it is too early to be talking about the event’s finishing touches, the programme is currently being organised, Erdo said, adding that a Vatican delegation had inspected the Budapest venue of the Congress last week.

“What’s certain is that Pope Francis has an invitation to the Sept. 12 closing mass,” Erdo said. He noted that this International Eucharistic Congress closing mass will be the first in 20 years to be attended by the pontiff.

Pope Francis’s Budapest visit will also involve meetings with the Congress’s participants, Erdo said. Statio Orbis, the mass closing the Congress, will be celebrated by Pope Francis at Heroes’ Square on Sept. 12, he noted, adding that the pontiff’s meeting with the faithful could be organised in the Museum of Fine Arts or the Budapest Hall of Art.

The Congress is also expected to be attended by Greek and Eastern Catholic bishops, Orthodox and Protestant guests as well as representatives of the Jewish community and civil society, the cardinal said.

The International Eucharistic Congress scheduled to be held from Sept. 5 to 12 was originally set to be held in September last year but had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.