Pope Francis, in his speech following Sunday’s Angelus, officially announced that the he concelebrates the closing mass of the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress held on the afternoon of 12 September in Budapest. . Following the pope's speech, a statement by Matteo Bruni, a spokesman for the Holy See, also confirmed that Pope Francis would visit Budapest at the invitation of civil authorities and episcopal conferences to present the closing mass of the congress,

The last time 30 years ago, on 20 August 1991, Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at the Heroes' Square, which is estimated to have been attended by more than half a million believers. The Catholic archbishop then traveled to Hungary in 1996, when he visited Pannonhalma and Győr.

Huge crowd welcomed Pope John Paul II in the Heroes' Square 30 years ago, on August 20, 1991 (Source: Népszabadság, 21 August 1991)

Pope Benedict XVI did not visit Budapest, Pope Ferenc presented Mass in 2019 at the pilgrimage in Csíksomlyó.

Originally planned for last year, due to the pandemic, the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Budapest from 5 to 12 September this year. The Hungarian capital is hosting the event for the second time, the 34th Eucharistic Congress held in 1938 was also in Budapest.

The Heroes' Square was one of the main venues of the World Eucharistic Congress also in 1938 (Source: Fortepan / No.: 7598)

Source: MTI

Cover photo: Papal Mass in Heroes' Square on 20 August 1991 (Photo: MTI Photo / Attila Soós)