Faith and Folklore: Hungarians Celebrate Pentecost

Pilgrims on horseback set off for Csíksomlyó

Pentecost is a Christian holiday celebrated on the 7th Sunday and Monday after Easter, when Christians celebrate the outpouring or sending of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit (Greek hagion pneuma, Latin Spiritus Sanctus), who was poured out on Jesus’ disciples, the apostles, on this day, gave the day a new meaning for Christians. The Feast of Pentecost represents the fulfillment of the Paschal Mystery: the coming of the Holy Spirit, the outpouring of His gifts, the new law and the birth of the Church.

In Hungary, this church festival is celebrated in a traditional way. In Csíksomlyó (Eng. Schomlenberg, ro. Șumuleu) Catholics can do penance on Pentecost, because the believer who confesses and repents of his sins, visits the sanctuary in the state of grace of the Sacrament of Confession and participates in the Holy Mass, receives a complete remission of the “temporal punishments” remaining after the forgiveness of his sins. The pilgrimage to Csíksomlyó at Pentecost is the largest cross-border gathering of Hungarian Christians.

According to the legend, the first pilgrimage took place in 1567, when the Transylvanian Prince John Sigismund wanted to force the Catholic Szeklers to convert to the Unitarian faith by force of arms. On Pentecost Saturday, the inhabitants of the Szekler chairs Csík, Gyergyó and Kászon gathered in Csíksomlyó, asked the Virgin Mary for help and defeated the prince’s army at the Tolvajos Pass in Hargitta (Hargita, Harghita). After the victory, they gave thanks again in Csíksomlyó and vowed to go on pilgrimage there every year on Pentecost Saturday.

Every year at Pentecost, the special Szekler Express and Csíksomlyó Express, which is about half a kilometer long, bring thousands of pilgrims from all over the country to the Basilica of Csíksomlyo. The Szekler Express and the Csíksomlyó Express with a locomotive are decorated in memory of Áron Tamási, the Kossuth Prize-winning Hungarian writer from Szeklerland (in today’s Romania).

Another Pentecost tradition is the mounted Áron Márton Pentecostal Pilgrimage, organized by the Equestrian Organizations of Szekler Equestrian Program, with the support of the State Secretariat for National Policy and the House of Hungarian Cultural Heritage. The Mounted Pentecostal Pilgrimage, held for the sixth time this year, is a solemn manifestation of Transylvanian Hungarian equestrian culture, which has become a symbol of national unity over the years. This year, the mounted pilgrims will travel along twelve routes in the Szeklerland to Csíksomlyó, carrying with them the prayer messages of the Hungarians of the world collected and written on ribbons by the State Secretariat for National Policy. The aim of the initiative is to bring to Csíksomlyó the prayers of those who cannot be present in person.

 

A special feature of this year’s event is that riders from almost all parts of the Carpathian Basin as well as from the motherland will participate in the pilgrimage. János Árpád Potápi, State Secretary for National Policy, will accompany the pilgrims on horseback on the route Gyergyószentmiklós – Csíksomlyo, as announced by the State Secretariat.

The pilgrims will arrive in Csíksomlyó in front of the Three Hills Altar at 6:00 p.m. on May 26, where they will be welcomed by the local religious and secular dignitaries with a solemn program.

Via www.magyarorszagom.hu, Ungarn Heute, Facebook Csíksomlyói búcsú