On 17 October, a wonderful group of nearly 200 people gathered in the heart of Budapest, in the beautiful St. Stephen's Basilica, to welcome the new academic year of the Scholarship Programme for Christian Young People. The ceremony commenced with a joint Roman Catholic Holy Mass and asked for blessings for the scholarship holders.
The Holy Mass was celebrated by the Nigerian Father Anayo Augustus Esiobu (Ágoston atya) and was concelebrated by Armenian Father Másdoc Zahterián, Nicaraguan Father Jorge Luis Altamirano Méndez and Kenyan Father Jonas Kiplimo Kimeli. The occasion was particularly memorable thanks to the melodious music and service of the Aurora Chorale Kenyan Choir, who graced us with their presence. The father’s sermon was heart-warming and welcoming. He guided the first year students through the history of Hungary’s saints and inspired the new scholarship holders with his engaging homily, emphasising the value of the experience they were about to embark on.
After the Holy Mass, Tristan Azbej, State Secretary for the Aid of Persecuted Christians, gave a powerful speech welcoming the new scholarship holders with words of hope.
“Why did we start the Hungary Helps Program and the Scholarship Programme for Christian Young People?” – he asked. “It's really three reasons. One is Christian solidarity. The second is the spirit of the Hungary Helps Program. And the third reason is that I believe that this is the best thing for us Hungarians.”
We also took the opportunity to express our gratitude to all those who have contributed to our work by volunteering. We would like to extend our gratitude to Sevan Marishlian, Sarin Bazarbashian, and all those who provided immediate assistance during the Danube flood and played a key role in containing the flooding through their commendable volunteer efforts. In particular, we would like to thank Victoria Tumanian, Antranig Fermanian, Gagik Chilingaryan, George Antabi, Jefferson Jerez, Onel Israel Badro, Steven Nashwan Hazim Alqis, and Tabish Pervez for their invaluable contributions.
First year scholarship holders, Welcome to Hungary!
We hope that your time here will be both fruitful and blessed,
and that you will always remember the words of the State Secretary:
“We have a message of encouragement to your families and communities. And I want you to send this message.
I want you to send them the message that they are not alone. We, Hungarians, care about them. We are standing with them.
Please send the message to the Nicaraguan priests who are imprisoned in government prisons that they are not alone. We care about them.
Please send the message to the African Christians who live in the threat of murderous jihadists or who face extreme poverty that they are not alone. We care about them.
Please send the message to the Karabakh Armenians that we care about them.
Please send the message to the Pakistani Christians who fear the consequences of false blasphemy allegations and who fear that their daughters might be kidnapped and forcefully conversed, that we care about them.
Please send the message to the Holy Land, to the wider Holy Land, to the Middle East, to Christians who had been recently persecuted by ISIS and Christians who face all the terrible consequences of the war and conflicts of the Middle East that they are not alone and we care about them.
And with that, I'm telling you, you can count on us. We are with you and we will be with you along this journey that you have started in Hungary. “
