Today, Thursday, June 17, 2021, the Bishop of Murska Sobota, Peter Štumpf, in the presence of the Bishop's Vicar for Nationalities, Msgr Franc Režonja and the parish priest of Lendava, Martin Dolamič-Konrad, held a long conversation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary, Pétro Szijjártó.

On this occasion, the Minister first visited the parish church of St. Catherine in Lendava, where the local parish priest received him, explaining the history and significance of the parish church. Next, the Vicar for National Communities prayed the Our Father prayer in Hungarian, and the Bishop finally gave a blessing to all present. A meeting in the rectory followed.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary to Slovenia Andor Ferenc Dávid, the Consul General of the Republic of Hungary in Slovenia Máthé László Eduárd and the President of the Hungarian Community in Slovenia and Member of Parliament and President Ferenc Horváth were also present.

In the beginning, the Minister presented to the Bishop the work of the current Government regarding family, culture and Christian values that unite both nations. In this sense, Hungary strives to fulfil as many projects in culture and preservation of sacred heritage in the Diocese of Murska Sobota as possible. It is one of the reasons why the parishes of Lendava and Dobrovnik also receive assistance from the Hungarian Government in the restoration and preservation of parish churches.

The Minister thanked the Bishop and the entire Catholic community in his diocese for allowing the Hungarian faithful of the diocese to maintain their faith and culture in their language. The Bishop also thanked the Minister for the assistance and care of the Hungarian Government in preserving the Christian identity of the Hungarian-speaking believers in the Diocese of Murska Sobota. He also thanked him for Hungary's solidarity with Slovenia in resolving some of the difficulties caused by the epidemics. He also expressed his gratefulness for the Minister's testimony of the Christian faith in his Minister's service. He stressed that this resonates very positively in the broader social space.

The Bishop presented the project of the traditional meeting of Slovenes and Croats, taking place next October in the diocese of Murska Sobota. It seems that the presence of Hungarians would also be necessary. The meeting will take place in Beltinci, and on this occasion, the presence of the relics of St. Ladislaus, the founder of the Zagreb diocese and the patron saint of the Beltinci parish, would be possible. In future meetings of the Church's international commissions that will be preparing this event, it will become clear whether this will be feasible. The Minister supported this initiative with joy and gratitude and expressed his readiness to help with this project if necessary.

In the end, the Bishop and the Minister exchanged occasional gifts. The Minister presented the Bishop with a valuable medallion with the image of St. Ladislaus. The Bishop offered the Minister a medallion with the image of St. Anthony of Padua and the Bible of the New Testament in Slovene and Hungarian.

Ordinariate of the Diocese of Murska Sobota