During his brief visit to Hungary on Sunday, Pope Francis spoke to Christian and Jewish leaders about ‘the threat of antisemitism’ in Europe and elsewhere. There, he also met Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the head of the anti-migrant People’s Party. ‘Antisemitism is still a threat in Europe and elsewhere. The fuse must not be allowed to burn. ‘It is best to work together and to promote fraternity to defuse it,’ he said. During the pope’s seven-hour visit to Budapest, he met with the country’s bishops and representatives of Christian congregations.
A meeting with the Hungarian Jewish community, the largest in Central Europe, is also planned. Jewish communities number between 47,000 and 130,000 people. The meeting between Francis and Orban – whose views on immigration are at odds with those of the pontiff – raised eyebrows among papal observers. In Budapest’s grand Fine Arts Museum, the head of 1.3 billion Catholics, accompanied by his deputy and the president, met Orban behind closed doors as the international Eucharistic Congress came to an end.
The Hungarian prime minister describes himself as a defender of ‘Christian Europe’ against immigration. On the other hand, Pope Francis has called for help for the marginalized and those fleeing war and poverty of all religions. Days before the pope’s arrival, posters appeared in Budapest – where opposition leaders control the city council – reading ‘Budapest welcomes the Holy Father’ and showing quotes from him including pleas for tolerance and solidarity.
Pope Francis’ approach to dealing with those who do not share his worldview – eminently Christian according to the pope – has often been met with incomprehension among the faithful, particularly among traditionalist Catholics. Following a photo of the two shaking hands, Orban posted to his Facebook page, ‘I asked Pope Francis not to let Christian Hungary perish’. In a statement after the meeting, the Vatican described it as ‘cordial’.
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‘Among the various topics discussed were the role of the church in the country, the importance of protecting the environment, and the protection and promotion of the family,’ the statement said. There has been no love lost between Orban supporters in Hungary and the leader of the Catholic world over the past few years. Media and politicians supporting Orban have taken potshots at the pontiff, calling him ‘anti-Christian’ for his pro-refugee sentiments, as well as ‘Soros Pope’, referring to Hungarian-born liberal US billionaire George Soros.
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