The second day (Sunday, August 20, 2023) of the official visit of His Holiness Pope Tawadros II to Hungary included the participation of His Holiness in the celebration that was held in Lagos Kossuth Square in the Hungarian Parliament on the occasion of the National Day of the State of Hungary, which coincides with the memory of King Stephen, who is called the Saint of Hungary, in the presence of all the pillars of the state, headed by Mrs. Katlin Novak, President of the Republic of Hungary.
His Holiness Pope Tawadros II visited this evening the Monastery of Saint Paul in Budapest, and he was received by Father Sabolch, the former head of the monastery. His Holiness listened to an explanation about the features of the monastery, in the outer courtyard of the monastery. Inside the monastery His Holiness was welcomed by Father Sabolch, expressing his happiness with the visit, pointing out that “St Paul” is the saint and intercessor for us, and he was the patron saint of the state of Hungary in the eighteenth century, and that there are many saints from the Coptic Church, including Saint Anthony and Saint Makarios the Great. He said, directing his words to His Holiness: “You have arrived at your home here in the monastery. Your Holiness is considered the Pope of all the monks.”
The monastery held a luncheon in honor of His Holiness the Pope.
At 5p.m. Budapest time, His Holiness attended the religious part of the national celebration, which is the festive mass in memory of the Hungarian saint, King Stephen the First.
Then, His Holiness accepted the invitation of Ambassador Mohamed El-Shennawy, Ambassador of Egypt to Hungary, to attend the dinner banquet held by the Ambassador at his home in honor of His Holiness the Pope, which was attended by Mr. Shamyen Gault, Deputy Prime Minister of Hungary, members of the Egyptian Embassy in Budapest, and a delegation from the Egyptian community in Hungary.
During the banquet, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the visit of His Holiness the Pope will remain in the hearts of the Hungarians, stressing that Egypt and Hungary have historical friendship, and concluded his speech with the phrase “Long live Egypt and long live Hungary.”
For his part, the Egyptian ambassador expressed his happiness at the visit of His Holiness, describing it as historic, and referred to his meeting with His Holiness the Pope at the Papal Residence in Cairo before he travelled to Budapest to take up his position as Ambassador of Egypt to Hungary, saluting His Holiness the Pope and the accompanying delegation, wishing His Holiness a successful visit.
In his speech, H.H. thanked the Egyptian ambassador and all the embassy staff who made a great effort in preparing for this visit and their presence in order to make it a success, and also thanked him for the kind invitation and hospitality.

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